That’s all I have to look forward to at the moment. “See you later.”
As he walks out, two SUPO detectives walk in to take my statement. I give it to them. They ask no interrogation-type questions, just tape-record it. Then they congratulate me on breaking the Saukko case, shake my hand, and wish me godspeed in my recovery. I find myself nodding off.
_________
I WAKE UP and Sweetness is sitting in a chair beside the bed. “Here,” he says, and hands me a bouquet of flowers and a box of candy. I don’t know if it’s a joke or not.
“It was supposed to make you laugh,” he says.
I put on the fake smile. “Sorry, everything hurts. Watch what you say. I’m sure the room is bugged. Everything OK with you?”
“Everything went as planned, and yeah, things are good. I’m dating Jenna now.”
“That’s great, you must be a happy man.”
“I had to bargain to get her. No more carrying the kossu flask.”
“That’s even better. Wise girl. The shit was going to kill you.”
He shrugs. “Something kills everybody. Just ask my brother.”
Milo wanders in. “Hey! The gang’s all here.”
“How are you guys?” Sweetness asks.
Milo says, “Fucked-up and permanently damaged, but alive. How is everything from your end?” meaning the money.
Sweetness gets the drift. “Under control.”
“Mirjami took a leave of absence to care for you,” Milo says to me. “They didn’t like it until she told them she was going to take care of the great fallen hero. She’ll be at your house as soon as you give her the word.”
“Then we can leave. Sweetness, would you do me a favor and take us all home in the SUV?”
“Get your stuff together. It’s parked outside.”
I’m a shot cop, get VIP treatment. I ask a nurse if they can dress my wife, get my child, and meet us in the lobby. She says give her half an hour.
We get outside, have a moment without listening devices monitoring us, and in turn walk, gimp on crutches, and are pushed in a wheelchair to the SUV. “I have a plan,” I say. “We’ll wrap these murders up in a couple days, and make some people unhappy along the way.”
40
The guys help us get our stuff into the apartment. Mirjami shows up, all business. She’s wearing jeans, no makeup and a plain gray sweatshirt. Kate walks to the couch and sits down. She shows no signs of cognition, but this, evidently, is where she wants to be. She holds out her arms. I put Anu in them. Kate’s eyes don’t so much as waver, but she seems satisfied. I ask Sweetness to go with Milo and get the anti-surveillance gear. They go through the house. Every room is bugged. They de-bug the house and leave to let us get settled in.
I call my former psychoanalyst, Torsten Holmqvist, explain about Kate and her condition. I tell him I have an opinion from the hospital, but I’d like a second opinion and follow-up care, and I’d like all this done in my home. I can almost hear him scoff, and then I tell him cost is no object. He’s the best money can buy and that’s what I want for my wife. He agrees.
Mirjami tells me she would like to examine my wounds and takes me to the bedroom. She unwraps them, spends a long time examining them, tut-tuts concern, and applies new dressings.
Torsten arrives. I don’t tell him the story, just that Kate’s been through a terribly traumatic experience. He diagnoses her with acute stress disorder, and cites the same symptoms as the first doctor. So the original diagnosis was correct. She responds only to Anu, whom she will hold and allow to nurse. He deems this a good sign.