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So there’s no point bringing it up now. If nothing else, it could turn out that she’s wrong about this case. And for another, I love seeing her this excited and bright.
* * *
EVA
Mark called in the task force team to meet us at the office, so we’re all sitting around the large glass table in the main part of the office now. A box filled with assorted sugary pastries is in front of me, filling my nostrils with the scent of confectioners' sugar, grease and apricot jam. It’s mixing nicely with the scent rising from the steaming cups of coffee in front of everyone but me. I have a mug of chamomile tea and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, which the office administrator, Mira, insisted on preparing for me. She got the pastries too, like she does for almost every task force meeting. Mira doesn’t exactly look motherly, with her bell-bottom jeans, long grey hair and t-shirt under a sheepskin vest, but she takes care of us here like a mom. Probably because she knows all of us would forget to eat and drink if someone doesn’t remind us. I already had two jam-filled croissants and am thinking of picking up another.
Brina and Simon were already here when we arrived, and we met Dino downstairs in the garage.
“So, another serial killer?” he asked as we were getting in the elevator. “One last hunt before the baby comes.”
He chuckled at his own joke, in his typical way.
Dino is a Bosnian detective with a background in solving mafia-related crimes. He wouldn’t look out of place in any underground mob lair with his wide, muscular frame, black leather jacket and menacing look in his eyes, but he is actually one of the nicest and friendliest people I know. He has a very pleasant manner and a sense of humor that I usually enjoy. But this I didn’t find funny. At all. It felt more like hitting a wall mid-step. And I’m not exactly sure why. Neither Mark nor I reacted to his joke, but that didn’t stop him from expounding on it some more in the elevator.
Simon had a frown on his face as we entered the office. One of his famous,I don’t want you to get involved in this case because you’ll step on too many toes, frowns. He’s the one who set up this task force and handles all the bureaucracy, which allows us to solve cases that, strictly speaking, belong under the jurisdiction of the local authorities.
Brina had a similar frown on her face when we walked in and it’s still there. She had already failed to get me the interview with Milo earlier precisely because the NPB clearly doesn’t want us on this case.
But I ignored all those signs that no one was particularly interested in taking on this case and just told them all my suspicions and described what happened this morning.
Now Mark is going over what the detectives told him at the station. All the reports they promised they’d share with him have arrived and Mira already printed most of it out.
The pictures of the victims and how they were found are on the large screen, which takes up most of the wall behind the conference table.
They’re dark photos, taken at the crime scenes and faces of the victims are unnaturally bright due to the flash. This is the first time I’m seeing actual crime scene photos from any of these murders, because I hadn’t had access to them before.
The faces of the victims all have a very similar expression on them—not exactly peaceful and calm, but not frightened either. More like a frown of pain that’s starting to pass.
Seeing their faces in death cements my certainty that we’re dealing with a serial killer even more. As does the way they are laying, with their arms by their sides, palms turned upward, like they’re just about to raise them over their heads to make a snow angel but in the mud of the riverbank. That’s the best I can describe it.
Mark calls up a map of Ljubljana on the big screen and points at the spot where the river meets the street. “This is where she was found. I’m told it’s a popular fishing spot and almost right under one of the main avenues in Ljubljana. So I’m sure there must be traffic cams or CCTV that can help us find out how she got there. Brina, can you look into that?”
Brina nods and jots down something in her black leather-bound notebook.
The victim’s name is Ana Kobe. She was twenty-six years old and worked as a research librarian at the National University Library. Her glasses were found lying neatly folded by her side, as though she put them away because she would not need them anymore.
“And Dino, I’d like you to do a thorough background check on the suspect they have in custody. His name is Milo Savic. He grew up in the Fužine area and still lives there. He ran with a gang from his elementary school days, as I understand it. Find some of his old friends so we can get a better picture of what he’s like.”
“Will do, Boss,” Dino says.
“Milo didn’t do this,” I interject and they all look at me with what I can only understand as pity.
“We have to look at this from all angles,” Mark tells me patiently.
“I’d like us to look at some old cases too,” I say, rummaging through my bag for a list of names I suspect are also this killer’s victims. I find it scrunched up all the way at the bottom.
“I can help you get access to those,” Simon assures me while I’m still straightening the paper against the table so I can read it.
“Good,” Mark says. “Eva and I will look into the victims. I’ll head to the morgue now to see what they found at the crime scene.”
“And I’ll go with you,” I add.
I have this overwhelming feeling that they’re trying to take this case away from me, and I don’t know why. Probably the hormones.
“From what Sojer told me when I spoke to him at NPB earlier, they are pretty more or less certain that Milo committed this crime,” Brina says and I shoot her what I know is my most annoyed look. She recoils slightly and clears her throat. “But that doesn’t mean he committed the others, of course.”
She says it as though she’s apologizing to me. Don’t they believe me? Are they just going through the motions of investigating this case to appease me?
