The Girl Who Played With Fire Chapter 21 Summary

How It All Goes Down

Maundy Thursday, March 24 – Monday, April 4

  • Salander holes up in her new apartment for the first seven days after Dag and Mia's murder.
  • She's tried so hard to remain anonymous, but now her troubled past is on display for all to see.
  • When the media stories are combined, she's "a psychotic lesbian […] Satanist that propagandized S&M sex and hated society in general and men in particular" (21.16).
  • When Salander sees Peter Teleborian interviewed, she pays attention.
  • None of the newspapers mention that the "unruly" (21.127) kids at St. Stefan's are strapped down in empty rooms, and subjected to "sensory deprivation" (21.27).
  • Flashback to the time when Salander was hospitalized.
  • While in St. Stephan's, Salander spends much of her time strapped down.
  • She's sent to the hospital after "All the Evil" happens. Though she tries to explain the situation to authorities, including Teleborian, but nobody listens to her.
  • When she's strapped to the bed on her thirteenth birthday, Salander decides not to speak to any more doctors. She is polite to the nurses and the other staff. (Now we know for sure that Salander was the girl in the Prologue.)
  • When Salander is fifteen, she's released and lives in a series of foster homes.
  • (End flashback.)
  • Salander wonders how the media is missing the police report from 1991. The report details "All The Evil" which would confirm all the gossip that Salander is violent. She doesn't understand why it's being covered up.