She needed some excuse to knock on his door. She had not given him any
Christmas present, but she knew what she was going to buy. In a junk shop she had
seen a number of metal advertising signs from the fifties, with embossed images.
One of the signs showed Elvis Presley with a guitar on his hip and a cartoon balloon
with the words HEARTBREAK HOTEL. She had no sense for interior design, but even
she could tell that the sign would be perfect for the cabin in Sandhamn. It cost 780
kronor, and on principle she haggled and got the price knocked down to 700. She
had it wrapped, put it under her arm, and headed over to his place on
Bellmansgatan.
At Hornsgatan she happened to glance towards Kaffebar and saw Blomkvist
coming out with Berger in tow. He said something, and she laughed, putting her
arm around his waist and kissing his cheek. They turned down Brännkyrkagatan in
the direction of Bellmansgatan. Their body language left no room for
misinterpretations—it was obvious what they had in mind.
The pain was so immediate and so fierce that Lisbeth stopped in mid-stride,
incapable of movement. Part of her wanted to rush after them. She wanted to take
the metal sign and use the sharp edge to cleave Berger’s head in two. She did
nothing as thoughts swirled through her mind. Analysis of consequences. Finally she
calmed down.
“What a pathetic fool you are, Salander,” she said out loud.
She turned on her heel and went home to her newly spotless apartment. As she
passed Zinkensdamm, it started to snow. She tossed Elvis into a dumpster.
A NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stieg Larsson was the editor in chief of the antiracist magazine Expo, and for twenty
years the graphics editor at a Swedish news agency. A leading expert on
antidemocratic, right-wing extremist and Nazi organizations, he died in 2004.