The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Blomkvist knew that the old man could afford any such expense-considering how many kronor he had written off his taxes all his life. Vanger gave him a sullen look until he started laughing.

“What the hell, you were worth every krona. I knew you would be.”

“To tell you the truth, I never thought I’d solve it.”

“I have no intention of thanking you,” Vanger said.

“I didn’t expect you would. I’m just here to tell you that I consider the job done.”

Vanger curled his lips. “You haven’t finished the job,” he said.

“I know that.”

“You haven’t written the Vanger family chronicle, which was agreed.”

“I know that. I’m not going to write it. In fact, I can’t write it. I can’t write about the Vanger family and leave out the most central event of the past decades. How could I write a chapter about Martin’s period as CEO and pretend that I don’t know what’s in his basement? I also can’t write the story without destroying Harriet’s life all over again.”

“I understand your dilemma, and I’m grateful for the decision that you’ve made.”

“Congratulations. You’ve managed to corrupt me. I’m going to destroy all my notes and the tape recordings I’ve made of our conversations.”

“I don’t think that you’ve been corrupted,” Vanger said.

“That’s what it feels like. And I think that’s what it is.”

“You had to choose between your role as a journalist and your role as a human being. I could never have bought your silence. And I’m quite certain that you would have exposed us if Harriet had turned out in some way to have been implicated, or if you thought I was a cretin.”

Blomkvist did not reply.

“We’ve told Cecilia the whole story. Frode and I will soon be gone, and Harriet is going to need support from someone in the family. Cecilia will play an active role on the board. She and Harriet will be in charge of the firm from now on.”

“How did she take it?”

“She was very shaken. She went abroad for a while. I was even afraid she wouldn’t come back.”

“But she did.”

“Martin was one of the few people in our family that Cecilia always got along with. It was very hard for her to find out the truth about him. She also knows now what you did for the family.”

Blomkvist shrugged.

“So thank you, Mikael,” Vanger said.

“Besides, I couldn’t write the story because I’ve had it up to here with the Vanger family. But tell me, how does it feel to be CEO again?”

“It’s only temporary, but…I wish I were younger. I’m only working three hours a day. All the meetings are held in this room, and Dirch has stepped in again as my enforcer if anyone acts up.”

“The junior executives must be quaking in their boots. It took me a while to realise that Dirch wasn’t just an old sweetie of a financial adviser but also someone who solves problems for you.”

“Exactly. But all decisions are made with Harriet, and she’s the one who’s doing the legwork in the office.”

“How are things going for her?”

“She inherited both her brother’s and her mother’s shares. She controls about 33 percent of the corporation.”

“Is that enough?”

“I don’t know. Birger is trying to trip her up. Alexander has seen that he has a chance to make an impact and has allied himself with Birger. My brother Harald has cancer and won’t live much longer. He was the only remaining person with large shareholdings of 7 percent, which his children will inherit. Cecilia and Anita will be on Harriet’s side.”

“Then together you’ll control, what, 45 percent.”

“That kind of voting cartel has never existed within the family before. Plenty of shareholders with one and two percent will vote against us. Harriet is going to succeed me as CEO in February.”

“That won’t make her happy.”

“No, but it’s necessary. We have to take in some new partners and new blood. We also have the chance to collaborate with her company in Australia. There are possibilities.”

“Where’s Harriet today?”

“You’re out of luck. She’s in London. But she would very much like to see you.”

“I’ll see her at our board meeting in January if she’s going to take your place.”

“I know.”

“I think that she realises that I will never discuss what happened in the sixties with anyone except for Erika Berger, and I don’t see why Erika needs to know.”

“She does. You’re a person with morals, Mikael.”

“But also tell her that everything she does from now on could end up in the magazine. The Vanger Corporation won’t have a free pass from scrutiny.”

“I’ll warn her.”

Blomkvist left Vanger when he started to doze off. He packed his belongings into two suitcases. As he closed the door to the cottage for the last time, he paused and then went over to Cecilia’s house and knocked. She was not home. He took out his pocket calendar, tore out a page, and wrote: I wish you all the best. Try to forgive me. Mikael. He put the note in her letter box. An electric Christmas candle shone in the kitchen window of Martin Vanger’s empty house.

He took the last train back to Stockholm.