Chapter 2

Friday, December 20

Summary

Chapter 2 introduces Dragan Armansky, CEO of Milton Security, one of Sweden's most lucrative and well-established security firms, located near the center of Stockholm. Armansky prefers the less risky aspects of his profession: providing services, such as body guards or high-tech surveillance, to wealthy companies and individuals. Providing private investigation carries the greater risk of the security firm being sued or brought into the courts if criminal activity is discovered.

Lisbeth Salander

After Salander's rocky start as an office assistant, Armansky allows Salander to revise an investigative report she considered sloppy and incomplete. Upon providing Armansky a report that stuns him with its thoroughness, Salander is reassigned to investigations. Despite some moments of tension, Armansky and Salander are able to find a common ground and to continue working together. Armansky's feelings become more protective and fatherly the more he works with Salander. Nonetheless, he seeks out Palmgren to find out more about Salander; what he discovers makes him uncertain whether he can trust her.Fortunately, Armansky has a trusted investigator who handles most of the more unusual or difficult requests he receives: Lisbeth Salander, a 24-year-old thinly built woman who dresses like a punk rock star and refuses to conform to Armansky's view of what a professional looks and acts like. Additionally, Salander has a tattoo of a dragon on her shoulder, along with several other tattoos that Armansky finds disconcerting. The young woman was referred to him by Holger Palmgren, a lawyer for the firm. Because Armansky trusted Palmgren's judgment, the CEO agreed to give Salander a chance at Milton Security.

Dirche Frode, a lawyer, insists on meeting with the investigator who drew up the report he requested on Mikael Blomkvist. Armansky, unable to find a way to avoid the meeting, sets it up and Salander proceeds to impress Frode with her cold attention to detail. She also shares speculation that Blomkvist, a man known for his reliable and insightful investigations in the past, may have been set up in the Wennerstrom libel case. Salander backs up her speculations by going into detail about Blomkvist's background and noting that his previous work suggests he would never publish something without proper evidence. After hearing Salander's description of Blomkvist and her thoughts on the Wennerstrom case, Frode asks Salander to investigate further. Reluctantly, Armansky agrees to allow her to work on the case, although he fears her involvement might place Salander in a dangerous situation.