course there are. A whole bunch of experienced professionals who know how to do their jobs. The problem is the ones who won't let them do their jobs."
"Holm has spoken to me..."
"I know."
Borgsjo looked puzzled. "He has a number of opinions about you. Almost all of them are negative."
"That's O.K. I have a number of opinions about him too."
"Negative too? It's no good if the two of you can't work together - "
"I have no problem working with him. But he does have a problem with me." Berger sighed. "He's driving me nuts. He's very experienced and doubtless one of the most competent news chiefs I've come across. At the same time he's a bastard of exceptional proportions. He enjoys indulging in intrigue and playing people against each other. I've worked in the media for twenty-five years and I have never met a person like him in a management position."
"He has to be tough to handle the job. He's under pressure from every direction."
"Tough... by all means. But that doesn't mean he has to behave like an idiot. Unfortunately Holm is a walking disaster, and he's one of the chief reasons why it's almost impossible to get the staff to work as a team. He takes divide-and-rule as his job description."
"Harsh words."
"I'll give him one month to sort out his attitude. If he hasn't managed it by then, I'm going to remove him as news editor."
"You can't do that. It's not your job to take apart the operational organization."
Berger studied the chairman of the board.
"Forgive me for pointing this out, but that was exactly why you hired me. We also have a contract which explicitly gives me free rein to make the editorial changes I deem necessary. My task here is to rejuvenate the newspaper, and I can do that only by changing the organization and the work routines."
"Holm has devoted his life to S.M.P."
"Right. And he's fifty-eight with six years to go before retirement. I can't afford to keep him on as a dead weight all that time. Don't misunderstand me, Magnus. From the moment I sat down in that glass cage, my life's goal has been to raise S.M.P.'s quality as well as its circulation figures. Holm has a choice: either he can do things my way, or he can do something else. I'm going to bulldoze anyone who is obstructive or who tries to damage S.M.P. in some other way."
Damn... I've got to bring up the Vitavara thing. Borgsjo is going to be fired.
"Yes, I am, and in this case it's regrettable since it shouldn't be necessary. My job is to produce a good newspaper, and I can do that only if I have a management that functions and colleagues who enjoy their work."
After the meeting with Borgsjo, Berger limped back to the glass cage. She felt depressed. She had been with Borgsjo for forty-five minutes without mentioning one syllable about Vitavara. She had not, in other words, been particularly straight or honest with him.
When she sat at her computer she found a message from [email protected]›. She knew perfectly well that no such address existed at Millennium. She opened the email:
YOU THINK THAT BORGSJo CAN SAVE YOU, YOU LITTLE WHORE. HOW DOES YOUR FOOT FEEL?
She raised her eyes involuntarily and looked out across the newsroom. Her gaze fell on Holm. He looked back at her. Then he smiled.
It can only be someone at S.M.P.
The meeting at the Constitutional Protection Unit lasted until after 5.00, and they agreed to have another meeting the following week. Blomkvist could contact Figuerola if he needed to be in touch with S.I.S. before then. He packed away his laptop and stood up.
"How do I get out of here?" he asked.
"You certainly can't go running around on your own," Edklinth said.
"I'll show him out," Figuerola said. "Give me a couple of minutes, I just have to pick up a few things from my office."
They walked together through Kronoberg park towards Fridhemsplan.
"So what happens now?" Blomkvist said.
"We stay in touch," Figuerola said.
"I'm beginning to like my contact with Sapo."
"Do you feel like having dinner later?"
"Bosnian again?"
"No, I can't afford to eat out every night. I was thinking of something simple at my place."
She stopped and smiled at him.
"Do you know what I'd like to do now?" she said.
"No."
"I'd like to take you home and undress you."
"This could get a bit awkward."
"I know. But I hadn't thought of telling my boss."