A Dark Shadow Falls (21 page)

              Irving puffed himself up and stood before the man. ‘My sister has a nasty gash across her throat. She truly thought you were going to kill her.’

              Eric looked up. ‘I’m sorry about that. But Ms Irving-Bryant believes I murdered my family. I wasn’t going to get anything out of her unless I played up to her expectations of me. I hope it doesn’t leave a scar.’ He absent-mindedly touched the damaged flesh around his own neck.

              James shuffled off and found a seat, knowing he would have to be satisfied with that.

              When Fisher had finished his drink, he turned to address Dani. ‘When you came to visit me in prison, it gave me hope. You were the first person who’d even entertained the idea I might be innocent. I’ve lost my wife and kids. My freedom isn’t worth anything to me. All I want is to track down the bastard who did this. Can you help?’

              ‘I believe you. I think there was somebody else in your house that afternoon. I also think he’s killed others, too.’ Dani took a deep breath. ‘Did you know your wife was having a relationship with another man?’

              Eric bristled. ‘Yes, I did.’

              ‘You realise it gives you a motive to kill Peggy?’

              Anger flashed across his unshaven face. ‘I loved Peggy. It was over with this other guy, we’d worked stuff out. But even if we hadn’t, why the hell would I kill my kids? They were all I ever really had.’ The man suddenly crumpled, his body juddering with sobs. Dani suspected that he’d been keeping in his grief for a very long time. She laid a hand on his back. ‘When I found out about her and Bannerman, I made Peggy organise a paternity test for me and the twins. After I knew I really was their dad, we decided to try again to make the marriage work.’

              ‘So had Peggy told Bannerman it was over?’

              Eric nodded, his face buried in his hands. ‘She must have done.’

              Dani pulled out a chair and sat down to face Fisher. ‘Do you think it was Bannerman who bundled you into the cupboard and then dragged you down those stairs?’

              Eric shook his head. ‘I’d only seen the guy once, from a distance. I just don’t know.’

              ‘But the man’s been missing since it happened, it’s got to have been him,’ Calder insisted.

              Eric wiped his eyes and addressed the room. ‘Yeah, it’s possible. But this guy could have changed his name umpteen times since then and taken on new jobs, new identities. All I can tell you is that the bloke who was in my house was
big
. He was strong and relentless, like he was on some kind of mission.’

              Dani leant forward. ‘If you want us to find this man then you’ll need to leave us to it. I want you to return to your flat in Edinburgh and stay there. I promise to keep you updated on what we discover but you’ll have to trust me and not interfere.’

              Eric directed his gaze towards the DCI, slowly nodding his agreement.

Chapter 38

T
he school hall was full of trestle tables. Each one packed with homemade items for sale. Louise Keene’s table contained an impressive display of cakes and preserves, which she’d carefully wrapped and finished off with pretty, colourful ribbons.

              On the stall next to hers, Louise’s friend Laura had set out various hand-knitted baby clothes and booties. The woman was fussing around her merchandise, trying to position the items as attractively as possible. ‘Your stall looks so professional, Lou. How on earth did you manage it – with the boys running around your feet?’

              ‘I did the baking while they were at school.’ Louise omitted to mention the fact that Davy had helped her to decorate the jars and boxes. She just smiled happily instead, as the memory sent a warm sensation tingling through her body.

              Laura tilted her head to one side and examined her friend closely. ‘There’s something different about you.’ She waggled her finger. ‘Have you been going to Weightwatchers at the Town Hall? We said we’d do it together!’

              Louise laughed. ‘I haven’t, I promise. I’m just bloody relieved that this building work’s finished. The boys have got so much more space now. It really makes a difference.’

              Her friend still looked suspicious. ‘Have things calmed down for Fergus at work?’

              Louise shrugged. ‘It’s better than it was. He’s promised to take me out to dinner at the weekend.’

              Laura noted that the woman didn’t appear particularly enthusiastic about the prospect. But before she could interrogate her friend any further, a man with a large camera around his neck approached them.

              ‘Afternoon ladies, I’m from the Glenrothes Gazette,’ He boomed, eyeing Louise’s stall with obvious admiration. ‘I think you’re going to make a great deal of money for charity today.’

              He directed Louise to stand squarely behind her produce, stretching out her arms to encompass the display. ‘Gorgeous!’ He declared, snapping away feverishly. ‘I believe we’ve got ourselves a lovely front-page. I’ll just need to take a note of your names for the caption.’

*

Ben was the last one to settle. Louise sat on the edge of his bed and ruffled his thick, dark hair. ‘How early can I get up in the morning, Mum?’ He asked sleepily.

              Louise picked up the bedside clock, which had a glowing face doubling as a night light. ‘When this little hand is on the seven and the long hand is on the twelve you can get up. But stay in your room please. Don’t wake your brother if he’s still asleep.’

              ‘Okay.’

              She kissed him on the forehead, watching her eldest son’s eyelids flicker as he drifted off into blissful oblivion. 

              Louise checked on Jamie and then padded down the stairs. Fergus had promised he’d be home for dinner. She turned the oven off and began laying the table in the kitchen, something they didn’t normally do on a weeknight. For the first time since she’d started having a relationship with Davy, Louise felt guilty. She supposed it was amazing to not have felt that way before. But the first few encounters she’d had with her lover were so euphoric that it was hard to imagine what they were doing was wrong. Louise hadn’t experienced such a sense of joy since she was a little girl, before Neil had died. It seemed incredibly cruel that anyone would want to deny her that feeling.

              Louise lifted the fish pie out onto the worktop and shook some frozen peas into a saucepan. She’d just poured water on top and set them over a light when the front door opened.

              Fergus Keene laid his jacket down on the sofa and deposited his briefcase on the floor. Hearing noises in the kitchen, he walked through to find his wife preparing dinner. Fergus kissed her on the cheek.

              ‘Are the boys asleep?’

              She nodded. ‘Don’t go upstairs for ten minutes, you might wake them.’

              ‘Okay.’ Fergus slid a bottle of wine out of the rack and began opening it. ‘This looks nice, is there a special occasion?’

              ‘No, I just thought it might be good to talk.’

              Louise dished up the food whilst her husband used the downstairs toilet to have a wash.

              They sat down opposite one another a little awkwardly. Fergus had been working such long hours recently that they’d hardly had a proper conversation in months, let alone touched each other or made love.

              ‘The charity fayre went well today. I nearly sold out of cakes. The boys ate the last few at teatime.’

              He smiled. ‘Great. You worked really hard to prepare, I’m glad it paid off. Did the lads behave themselves?’

              ‘Well, you know, the usual.’ Louise took a mouthful of pie, but it seemed strangely tasteless. ‘A man from the Gazette was there. He took a photograph of Laura and me. He said we might be on the front page.’

              ‘Terrific. We’ll have to get an extra copy to send to your parents, they’ll absolutely love that.’

              ‘The thing is, when he asked for my name, I told him it was Louise Hutchison, not Keene. I don’t know why I said it. We’ve been married ten years for heaven’s sake. I suppose I was just flustered and it was the first name that came into my head.’

              ‘It doesn’t matter, love. It
was
your surname for a long time.’ He took a sip of wine and beamed. ‘Don’t worry, I forgive you.’

              Quite unexpectedly, tears began to stream down Louise’s cheeks. Fergus let his cutlery clatter onto the plate, standing up and moving over to place his arms around his wife. ‘Darling, what on earth is the matter?’

              She buried her face into his chest and sobbed. ‘I’ve missed you that’s all. I’ve just missed you.’

Chapter 39

A
fter Eric Fisher had gone, James brought the rolled up sheet of paper they’d been working on down from a shelf. ‘Do you believe the man will do as he’s told?’ He asked Dani.

              ‘Probably not, but I sincerely hope he does. I’ll have to be careful what I tell him, I’ve got a feeling that Eric isn’t intending to bring the murderer of his family to trial.’

              ‘You think that if Fisher finds this guy first, he’ll kill him?’

              ‘I’m certain of it,’ added Calder. ‘Eric Fisher is a man with absolutely nothing to lose.’

              The phone started ringing in the hallway. Dani went out to answer it. ‘Oh, hi Dad. How’s things?’ She carried the receiver back into the kitchen to re-join the others. ‘That’s great news. I don’t think it had anything to do with me at all. Listen, Dad, what do you know about the clan Macdonald? I know it’s an odd question, just humour me.’ Dani perched on a seat whilst she absorbed her father’s words. Bevan had always found him to be a mine of information. She supposed it came with the job. ‘Great,’ she said finally. ‘I’ll keep you posted on what’s happening at this end. Take care, bye.’ Dani ended the call.

              ‘What did he have to say?’ Andy asked casually.

              ‘Bryant Construction have agreed to work around the Macfie cairn, in return for some favourable publicity in the local newspaper.’

              ‘Just warn your dad not to get himself on the front page.’ Andy chuckled.

              Dani shot him a worried glance.

              ‘Don’t worry, Ma’am, it was only a joke. The last time I checked, the name Bevan didn’t have a lot to do with Scottish clansmen.’

              ‘I’m glad Grant was reasonable about the situation,’ said James, ignoring this exchange. ‘He can be a tough businessman. It’s hard to change his mind about something, as Sally has learnt to her cost on occasion.’

              ‘My dad can be strangely persuasive,’ Dani added.

              ‘What did he say about the Macdonalds? I can’t claim to be a world expert on the subject,’ Andy put-in.

              ‘Dad said that the history of the clans in Scotland is one of loyalties. The Macdonalds and the McGregors were determined to maintain the Celtic way of life, fiercely protecting it from invaders. The Normans, the English and even the Vikings have tried at various times to overpower Scotland and bring it to heel. But after the Union of 1707, Dad says that the story began to change. Following the Great Civil War in the middle of the 18
^th
Century, the Celtic way of life gradually died out, more Scots became loyal to the English ruling classes. This was seen most notably within the military. The Highland Regiments, made up of clans like the Campbells and the Mackays, helped to impose the British social system on the Highlands.’

              ‘So would folk in the Scottish military be more likely to be loyal to the Union?’ James asked, thinking guiltily that at the private school he’d attended in Edinburgh, they had only learnt about English History.

              ‘On the whole, yes. But particularly so if they were members of ancient regiments like the Black Watch, who fought in the service of the British Empire for over two hundred years.’

              Andy scratched his head. ‘We’re coming back to this military connection again. Bill Hutchison thought it was important.’

              ‘That was in the case of the burglaries in Falkirk, not our murders,’ Dani pointed out.

              ‘I realise that, but haven’t we learnt by now to take Hutchison’s instincts seriously? Maybe we should be looking for a man who’s serving in the army. He may feel as if everything he has done in his career has been for nothing, if there are people in Scotland working to bring the Union to an end. He may have convinced himself that he’s some kind of clan warrior.’

              James nodded his head. ‘Actually, that makes sense. It would also help to explain how well this person has covered their tracks. If he’s a trained killer, it could make sense.’

              ‘Yes, it could.’ Dani fell silent.

              James sighed, scanning through the details written on the page laid out before them. ‘It just feels as if this person can’t quite be human. The way he slips in and out of the houses without leaving a trace. I can almost picture him being that ghostly Highland Chieftain, disappearing into the mists after he’s destroyed his prey.’

              ‘Oh, he’s flesh and blood all right, James. Be in no doubt about that. Sadly, they always are.’

*

When Dani had seen Calder out of the door, she returned to her guest. He stood up and moved towards the DCI, pausing before they were actually touching.

              ‘Do you want me to leave as well? I suppose you aren’t really in danger from Fisher any longer.’

              Dani took a step nearer, stretching up on her toes to place a kiss on his lips. James wrapped his arms around her and pulled Dani close.