The meeting with the profiler resumed when, a good hour later than promised, Konrad Simonsen again took his seat at the conference table. The episode with Arne Pedersen had lowered his spirits. Not so much the incident itself—Pedersen would get a good night’s sleep now, there was little doubt about that—but more as a result of his reflections on his colleagues and himself. The truth was that the male part of his inner circle, Simonsen included, was a sorry collection of wimps. Poul Troulsen was on the verge of retirement, Pedersen was bedevilled by compulsive thoughts due to a relationship he couldn’t handle, and Simonsen himself—well, what was there to say really? Perhaps he should be thinking about applying for a pre-retirement position, somewhere he could wind down gradually while letting the younger men take over the big investigations. One thing was certain: if he were to remain in the saddle, he needed a colleague among his small circle of assistants with some strength in him, one who could kick down a few doors without getting out of breath.
Simonsen concentrated on the meeting and summarised the previous findings as he turned to the psychologist.
“You rejected grouping Andreas Falkenborg among the thrill killer, lust killer and power seeker groups of serial murderers. When I left, you were going to review other possible groups.”
The psychologist continued his review, as if the interruption had lasted only a few moments and not over an hour. Berg and Troulsen also acted as if this type of break in their meetings was normal. No one asked about Pedersen.
“A possible grouping is gain killers—that is, serial murderers who achieve material goods or financial gain by their murders. But we can rule this out. Then there are two relatively synonymous groups, namely visionaries and missionaries. The first group is guided by voices or thinks that in some other way they are directed from outside, for example through a spirit who has possessed the neighbour’s dog, to take a specific example. The second group sees it as their mission in life to free the world from a particular type of person, whom they consider to be a danger. Here there are actually some slight points of resemblance with Andreas Falkenborg. The ghost’s mask could fit into that pattern, and also his victims’ marked external similarity, but serial killers in both these groups are almost always psychotic or schizophrenic, and that does not apply in his case. In addition they are seldom organised to such an extreme degree as he is, and—this is the most significant point—as a rule they are of low intelligence, with an IQ between ninety and one hundred. Falkenborg’s intelligence quotient is significantly higher.”
Simonsen interjected, “So there is only one group left, as far as I can see.”
“Yes, that’s correct. The final group is hedonist killers, that is, serial murderers who simply find enjoyment in killing other people. This group is very uncommon in its purest form—that is, where there is not also an element of dominance or sadism. I don’t consider the lipstick, the nail clipping and the similarity between victims to fit with this profile either. And definitely not the fact that on the one hand he is uncommonly persistent with respect to Rikke Barbara Hvidt, even after his first attempt fails, but then gives up the minute she cuts her hair. To witness her death, with her hair cut short, would obviously give him no satisfaction. I have never heard of such an exclusive hedonist before, nor anyone as tireless in pursuit of his victims once he has chosen them.”
Troulsen asked, “But you would not completely rule it out? That the motive is pure enjoyment of killing?”
The psychologist considered for a moment. “This is not an exact science, but . . . No, it simply can’t be correct.”
He looked at Simonsen, who said, “So what could be correct?”
“Tell me, how interested have you been in his childhood? I have read almost nothing about that period.”
It was Pauline Berg who responded.
“That’s because there is almost nothing documented. But obviously that’s a mistake?”
“Yes, that is a mistake. Almost all serial murderers have had a dysfunctional childhood, which often involves sexual abuse, the parents’ abuse of drugs or alcohol combined with exaggeratedly harsh punishment for insignificant offences. One of the classic reaction modes for the child is to resort to daydreams, which later in life may develop into a fantasy universe. This may very well be lived out in parallel with the person’s regular life and concealed from those around him.”
Troulsen raised an objection.