Midnight In Malmö: The Fourth Inspector Anita Sundström Mystery (The Malmö Mysteries Book 4) by Torquil MacLeod
Authors: Torquil MacLeod
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months. You can have a copy of this, of course.’
‘Thank you.’
‘There was nothing in the car that puts a light on her and her activities. But I believe you have a key for her home, so you should be able to uncover many things. Tomorrow, you can take the train to La Sarraz. It only takes about twenty minutes. There you will be met by one of the local gendarmerie. He will show you where the apartment is situated. I am told he has a little English.’
‘Maybe he can talk to the neighbours for me. Find out more about Julia Akerman.’
Boniface gave Hakim a pitying grin.
‘You may find that they will not have much to say. The villages of the Vaud are very close. They do not welcome strangers, and this lady of yours was from outside. To tell the truth, they often do not like the people from the next village. There are many feuds. You may not get much information. I think your eyes will be a better guide.’
Boniface looked up the train times and made a quick call to arrange for the policeman to meet Hakim at the station – ‘He is called Lacaze.’ That concluded the meeting. Boniface walked Hakim out of the building.
‘Have a pleasant evening. Lausanne is a wonderful city. Oh, and if you do find anything tomorrow, you will tell me, will you not? I would not like you to remove things like computers. That sort of thing might be useful for us.’ The smile returned. ‘Can you find your way back to the Metro station?’
‘You mean there is a station?’
Boniface’s face creased into a wide grin. ‘It would have saved you a steep climb, no?
Bonsoir
.’
Hakim retraced his steps to the cathedral. Now he had more time to appreciate the view. He concentrated on the Alpine ridges on the other side of the lake. He had never before been this close to such huge mountains. Skåne was basically flat, and he had never been beyond Stockholm, so he hadn’t seen Sweden’s own higher ranges in the north. On the train from Geneva, he had had a slightly uncomfortable feeling of claustrophobia, being hemmed in by the mountains on both sides of Lac Léman. Up on the cathedral promontory, it wasn’t so bad. He wondered how people could live in the shadow of such colossi, however magnificent they may be.
He made his way down the stairs until he saw a little restaurant nestling under a high wall supporting the road above. Inside it was cosy, and had an Italian menu. He ordered a tuna salad and a coffee. Nothing extravagant. He had noticed the steep prices, and he didn’t want to run up huge expenses that he would have to justify when he got back to Malmö. The rain had started again. He stared out of the window, watching the office workers and tourists coming down the steps. The music in the restaurant was too loud, and he tried to shut it out by thinking about Julia Akerman. What had brought her to this land-locked country in the middle of Europe? Was it work? Was it to avoid punitive Swedish taxes? Or, as one of Boniface’s suggestions had been, was she escaping from her past? There was so much to speculate about. From Boniface’s sketchy facts, she didn’t appear to have a husband or a family. A boyfriend in Switzerland? That was unlikely, as she had had sex the day she died. Or was he just being naïve? He hadn’t had enough experience of women to know. He had concentrated so hard on carving out a career, that girlfriends hadn’t really featured in his life, a fact that Jazmin constantly reminded him of.
But what of Julia Akerman? Was she Julia Akerman? Maybe he would find out tomorrow.
CHAPTER 17
The weather had turned, and the sun greeted Hakim as he walked down the slope to the station. This time he was less hurried, and he could appreciate the imposing exterior and atrium. Hakim had always been a fan of Art Nouveau, and the refined ornamentation on the façade immediately took his eye. He hadn’t really noticed the interior the previous day, but now, as he looked for his platform, he admired the long window
‘Thank you.’
‘There was nothing in the car that puts a light on her and her activities. But I believe you have a key for her home, so you should be able to uncover many things. Tomorrow, you can take the train to La Sarraz. It only takes about twenty minutes. There you will be met by one of the local gendarmerie. He will show you where the apartment is situated. I am told he has a little English.’
‘Maybe he can talk to the neighbours for me. Find out more about Julia Akerman.’
Boniface gave Hakim a pitying grin.
‘You may find that they will not have much to say. The villages of the Vaud are very close. They do not welcome strangers, and this lady of yours was from outside. To tell the truth, they often do not like the people from the next village. There are many feuds. You may not get much information. I think your eyes will be a better guide.’
Boniface looked up the train times and made a quick call to arrange for the policeman to meet Hakim at the station – ‘He is called Lacaze.’ That concluded the meeting. Boniface walked Hakim out of the building.
‘Have a pleasant evening. Lausanne is a wonderful city. Oh, and if you do find anything tomorrow, you will tell me, will you not? I would not like you to remove things like computers. That sort of thing might be useful for us.’ The smile returned. ‘Can you find your way back to the Metro station?’
‘You mean there is a station?’
Boniface’s face creased into a wide grin. ‘It would have saved you a steep climb, no?
Bonsoir
.’
Hakim retraced his steps to the cathedral. Now he had more time to appreciate the view. He concentrated on the Alpine ridges on the other side of the lake. He had never before been this close to such huge mountains. Skåne was basically flat, and he had never been beyond Stockholm, so he hadn’t seen Sweden’s own higher ranges in the north. On the train from Geneva, he had had a slightly uncomfortable feeling of claustrophobia, being hemmed in by the mountains on both sides of Lac Léman. Up on the cathedral promontory, it wasn’t so bad. He wondered how people could live in the shadow of such colossi, however magnificent they may be.
He made his way down the stairs until he saw a little restaurant nestling under a high wall supporting the road above. Inside it was cosy, and had an Italian menu. He ordered a tuna salad and a coffee. Nothing extravagant. He had noticed the steep prices, and he didn’t want to run up huge expenses that he would have to justify when he got back to Malmö. The rain had started again. He stared out of the window, watching the office workers and tourists coming down the steps. The music in the restaurant was too loud, and he tried to shut it out by thinking about Julia Akerman. What had brought her to this land-locked country in the middle of Europe? Was it work? Was it to avoid punitive Swedish taxes? Or, as one of Boniface’s suggestions had been, was she escaping from her past? There was so much to speculate about. From Boniface’s sketchy facts, she didn’t appear to have a husband or a family. A boyfriend in Switzerland? That was unlikely, as she had had sex the day she died. Or was he just being naïve? He hadn’t had enough experience of women to know. He had concentrated so hard on carving out a career, that girlfriends hadn’t really featured in his life, a fact that Jazmin constantly reminded him of.
But what of Julia Akerman? Was she Julia Akerman? Maybe he would find out tomorrow.
CHAPTER 17
The weather had turned, and the sun greeted Hakim as he walked down the slope to the station. This time he was less hurried, and he could appreciate the imposing exterior and atrium. Hakim had always been a fan of Art Nouveau, and the refined ornamentation on the façade immediately took his eye. He hadn’t really noticed the interior the previous day, but now, as he looked for his platform, he admired the long window
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