SCENE XXXII: GOTHENBERG BOTANICAL GARDENS.

Cammy, Triela, and Claes approach the ticket booth when they're approached from behind by a middle-aged man, who puts his arm around Cammy as she is about to buy the tickets.

"Please allow me to pay for all these lovely ladies." says the man.

"What the hell are you doing here, Blomkvist?" says Cammy, with a notable agitated tone in her voice, "Did La Femme Nakita get to you about us?"

"You know Lisbeth has her ways." says Mikhael Blomkvist, "She knew I'd be interested."

"If you're here for an interview, forget it." says Cammy, "We're here on holiday, and I'll be damned if this little excursion is nothing more than a featured article in your crappy magazine. Don't you have some white collar bureaucrat to bring down; or at least some married woman to spend the night with? You can't be that lonely."

"Some things never change, Cammy." Blomkvist says with a smirk, "You're always trying to bust my balls. I'm here on holiday too. Absolutely 100% off the record. I swear on my daughter's life that I only wanted to get to know these girls on a friendly level."

Triela pulls Cammy aside. Claes huddles with them.

"Who is he?" Triela asks Cammy, "Is he Lisbeth Salander's husband?"

Cammy can't help but laugh hysterically at the remark, "You girls will be grandmothers before the notion of Lisbeth settling down with anyone crosses her mind. No, Mikael Blomkvist is a journalist here in Sweden. But he has a history with Lisbeth. We'll leave it at that."

"Care to join me?" says Blomkvist, "I promise I don't bite."

Claes looks up to Cammy inquisitively.

"It'll be fine." says Cammy, "I trust him, and I don't trust many people."

After buying the four tickets, Blomkvist leads Cammy and the girls through the front gate of the Gothenberg Botanical Garden. He sees Claes with a book in her hands, and gives her a map of the gardens.

"How about you can be our guide, sweetheart?" he suggests to Claes.

"Thank you." says Claes, "Well it looks like there's a chrysanthemum patch over there."

After an hour and a half of walking, Cammy suggested everyone take a break at the Garden's cafeteria for lunch.

"Well Claes, I already know so much about you just by walking around the grounds here." says Blomkvist, "You certainly have a green thumb."

Claes is flushed with the remark, "The Agency gave me the freedom to tend to my garden on the campus when they didn't need me. I know my life wasn't ideal, but I couldn't complain either."

"I guess the Agency had its merits." says Blomkvist, "But their main objective was to use you; all of you. That, above all, was reprehensible in my opinion."

"I realize the actions of the Agency seems crazy from the outside looking in, but us girls still had much to be thankful for." says Triela.

"How can you be so sure that wasn't the 'conditioning' talking?" says Cammy.

"I guess it was just a feeling in my gut." says Triela, "I can't explain it."

Triela brushes the bangs from her forehead and shyly stares away from the group.

"I'm sorry." says Blomkvist, "I didn't mean for this discussion to bring up old wounds. Let's change subjects. Is this your first time in Sweden?"

"Yes it is." says Triela, "Cammy has told us that we'll be travelling a lot; and I guess this is the first of many."

"I'm a woman of my word." Cammy says with a smile, "You'll be filling up your passport books before you know it; both of you."

Triela smiles back, "I like that."

"So what are your first impressions of our beautiful country so far?" asks Blomkvist.

"Well our first night here wasn't too pleasant." says Triela, "It was actually forgettable."

"And we'll leave it forgotten." says Blomkvist, "Lisbeth filled me in on what transpired when she came into the picture, and that's good enough for me."

"Can I ask you about Lisbeth?" says Claes.

"What would you like to know about her?" says Blomkvist, as he then turns to Cammy.

"I don't mean to offend, but she's a very strange woman." says Claes, "How did she get that way? I'm kind of an independent person, but I still care about the people around me."

Triela reaches over and kisses the top of her head.

"I wouldn't want you to be any other way." says Triela.

Cammy smiles at the both of them

"Lisbeth had led a very troubled life." says Blomkvist, "From what I know, you girls have had it rough as well, but at least you worked with people who cared about your wellbeing. She never had anyone like that, except her first guardian."

"She had a guardian?" asks Claes.

"Holger Palmgren." says Blomkvist, "He cared for her as her legal guardian until suffering a stroke. It was issued by the state after she was committed for attempting to kill her father."

"Why would she want to do that?" asks Triela.

"Because of what he did to her mother." says Blomkvist, "Physical and mental abuse beyond recognition. The kind of stuff you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy."

"Is that what made her the way she is now?" asks Claes.

Cammy nods her head to Claes.

"Lisbeth adamantly hates men who abuse women." says Blomkvist.

"Cammy's mentioned that to us yesterday." says Triela, "It's something we all have in common."

"She takes it to another level." says Cammy, "Like I've told you before, she has no boundaries. Where the police would want to interrogate a John to get a heads up on the trafficking in the region, she'll just kill him with no remorse. She's a walking time bomb."

"I guess I can't blame her." says Triela, "In fact, I think I admire her."

"I do too." says Claes, "I can't even explain it."