The Golden Calf Read Online Free PDF Page B

murdered.”
    “Well, I hope they tear down the place—it’s ruining my view.”
    He shut the door in Irene’s face.
    A family of five lived at the last house. The girls ranged inage from eight to fifteen. They’d all left home at quarter to six yesterday evening. The mother had dropped off the eight-year-old at ballet lessons downtown and then gone directly with the eleven-year-old to figure skating. The fifteen-year-old had been at riding lessons and had to be picked up on the way home, since there were no buses after eight. They hadn’t gotten home until nine. Their father had been at a business dinner with an important client and didn’t get back until eleven.
    Strange
, Irene thought.
All these people live in some of the most expensive houses in Göteborg, but they’re never home to enjoy their luxurious surroundings. Most of the time, these houses are empty
. Irene noticed shield signs in front of all the houses that warned presumptive thieves of top-grade security systems.
Probably a good investment
.
    L ATER , I RENE RETURNED to the Ceder house. The police officer on guard duty let her in, and her steps echoed desolately as she walked over the tile floors toward the bedrooms.
    Ludwig’s room had a surprisingly pleasant color scheme. The walls were painted a warm, light yellow with a sky-blue border, along which various painted boats floated. There was a silky-soft, wall-to-wall carpet in the same beautiful sky blue. Shelves and tables were covered with a riot of stuffed animals in various sizes, and over the crib dangled mobiles in bright colors. On the wall next to the bed, a photograph of Sanna smiled down, holding newborn Ludwig in her arms. A small, bright red car stood in the middle of the floor—a toy that the little boy wouldn’t be able to use for another three years, until his feet could reach the pedals. But the boy’s room was not why Irene had come back.
    Sanna’s bedroom next door was large and bright, with sliding glass doors and a view of the ocean. A colossal roundbed stood in the middle of the floor. On one side of the bed was a small panel with buttons. Irene pushed one at random, and heavy black curtains slid over the glass doors. The room was completely dark. With another button, the curtains slid back open, and the pale light shone through the outside rain again. Another button made a huge television screen on the wall spring into life. Irene sighed. She wasn’t here to admire interior decoration, and as luxurious and trendy as the room was, it all seemed too impersonal and cold.
    Irene experimented with the button panel until the mirrored glass closet doors opened. She had never seen so much clothing in her entire life—at least not meant for one person. She scanned the closet and confirmed what she suspected—only women’s clothes were stored there. The single article of clothing meant for a man was a brand new, white velvet robe. Most likely the unused Scholl sandals in size twelve were also not Sanna’s, but everything else was. Irene read the labels on the items: Versace, Kenzo, Prada. There were other brands she didn’t recognize but she could tell they were of exquisite design and excellent quality.
    Slowly and methodically, she walked through all the rooms in the house. In Sanna’s bedroom and the hallway, there were pictures of mother and son, but Ceder didn’t appear in any of them. In fact, there was hardly a trace of him anywhere. However, Irene did find an unopened spray bottle of shaving cream and a package of disposable razors in the bathroom.
    Ceder may not have visited the house regularly, but male visitors were obviously still welcome.
    T HE ONLY POTENTIAL witness was a man who lived near the villa. He explained he’d been outside walking his dog, despite the bad weather. Before he’d gotten all the way to the Ceder place, he’d seen the back of a jogger running away down a jogging path that ran along the coast to Billdal. However, thewitness had been a