A Dark Shadow Falls (7 page)

              Dani nodded. ‘Aye, that’s right. But the use of the van and the careful fencing of the stolen goods suggest a crime that’s more organised and less chaotic than that. It’s almost as if when he saw the woman, he lost control of himself.’

              ‘Do you think the attacker knew Morna?’

              ‘It is possible. She worked front of house in the hotel. Morna was blond and attractive. He might have seen her around town even, which means the perpetrator is local to the area.’

              ‘It’s worth passing that on to DI Alexander. He seems like a straight down the line kind of guy.’ Andy shuffled forward, looking as if he were about to leave, then he turned to address his boss once again. ‘Does this murder help Fisher’s defence?’

              Dani nodded solemnly. ‘Definitely. We’ve got a victim whose age and appearance matches Peggy Fisher’s very closely. She was stabbed by a knife taken from the house in a frenzied attack. The husband was clearly not the perpetrator. It was an intruder in their home. The murder of poor Morna Murphy couldn’t have come at a better time for Eric Fisher and his team.’

*

Bevan was interested to visit the murder scene, having been to the Fisher’s place in Dalkeith. She wanted to find out if anything struck her as similar. Bevan and Calder met Gordon Alexander at the Invergowrie Estate. There was room for both of their cars on the driveway. Dani could immediately see that this was a more upmarket street than the one in which the Fishers had lived.

              ‘When Lyle Murphy came home, he parked on the drive like us and approached the house from the front,’ Alexander explained, leading the way to the front door, which was emblazoned with strips of garish police tape. ‘It was a breezy evening and the man noticed straight away that the house was cold. He proceeded to the kitchen first.’

              They padded through the hallway and took the first left. The back door had been boarded up, leaving the room dark. ‘Did he expect to find his wife in here?’ Dani speculated.

              ‘It was seven pm, so Murphy probably thought she’d be cooking his dinner. That’s what my wife would be doing,’ Andy commented, without any concern that this might sound sexist or unreconstructed. Calder wasn’t bothered by that kind of thing.

              ‘Was Morna the domestic type? What did Lyle say about her?’ Dani glanced at the DI.

              Alexander shrugged his shoulders, obviously unsure why it would matter. ‘He said something about being irritated to see that no one was in. He’d had a stressful day and wanted his dinner.’

              Dani nodded. ‘So it would be unusual for her to be out of the house at that time of the evening. If the burglary was planned, and someone watched the house in the weeks leading up to the break-in, the perpetrator would have been aware of that.’

              ‘Were the Murphys happily married?’ Andy asked, whilst they examined the rest of the ground floor. ‘What were they – late thirties - why hadn’t the couple had children yet?’

              ‘I didn’t enquire,’ Alexander replied, sounding shirty.

              Dani wondered if the detective was married himself. ‘It could be important, if the attacker was known to Morna.’

              The DCI gazed about the living room. It looked bare and slightly grubby without the myriad of expensive goods which had obviously once been housed in there.

              ‘Murphy reckons they took the television, the stereo system and a games console. There was also a camera sitting out on the sideboard which he believes is gone. An original oil painting hung over the gas fire, there. They had that too.’ Alexander tipped his head backwards, so his vision was directed at the ceiling. ‘Do you want to take a look upstairs?’

              ‘Yes,’ Dani responded with a heavy sigh. ‘Go ahead.’

              As they climbed the narrow stairwell behind Alexander, Dani observed how bulky the officer appeared within this modern box of a house. She tried to imagine the type of building in which a broadly built man like himself would seem at home. Dani couldn’t picture one.

              The three of them stopped when they reached the landing. Dani recognised the tell-tale sickly sweet smell of recent death. Gordon allowed the Glasgow detectives to enter the bedroom first. Dani stood only on the trays laid by the forensic team. The thick, pale carpet was stained black by the blood. It was sickeningly reminiscent of the Fishers’ kitchen linoleum.

              The body had been removed, but the imprint was clearly visible in the pattern made by the blood, which must have seeped from out of the multiple wounds. Dani glanced about the room. It was nicely decorated and tidy. There was no sign of a struggle having taken place in there.

              As if Alexander could tell her thoughts he said, ‘we think Morna was stabbed first in the doorway. There are blood splatters on the wall just here. She must have collapsed to the floor, which is where the woman received the remainder of the blows inflicted. That’s why the carpet is so saturated. Then he shifted her onto the bed. Morna can’t have been quite dead by this stage, as she was still bleeding out, according to the pathologist.’ The DI appeared to take no pleasure whatsoever in imparting these details.

              ‘So she was
placed
on the bed,’ Andy stated with interest. ‘Why didn’t the attacker just leave her and run?’

              Dani straightened up and addressed the Dundee officer. ‘I think you should get a profiler in. Get them to take a look at the crime scene photos and the pathologist’s report. I believe that this murderer had some kind of connection to Morna Murphy. A good professional profiler could give you a better idea of the type of person you might be looking for. I’ll give you the number of the Pitt Street serious crime unit. They’ll happily provide you with a list of practitioners.’

              Alexander managed a thin smile. ‘The advice is greatly appreciated, DCI Bevan. I’ll do that. We don’t get need of the use of such people very often out here. Thank God.’

Chapter 12

D
ani lay absolutely still in her double bed, listening to the bird song and the occasional car passing along her wide street. She didn’t do this very often. The DCI still took weekend shifts, even though most officers who were of the same rank as her chose not to. This was because they were married and had children, of course. When Dani had her American boyfriend, Sam Sharpe, over to stay, the time had meant a great deal to her. But they’d called off their relationship several months back, without any great acrimony on either part.

              She closed her eyes and allowed her mind to drift to her meeting with James Irving. The memory gave Dani a warm sensation. She’d always found him attractive, but during the Joanna Endicott case Dani couldn’t possibly have got involved with him.

              Irving had a girlfriend now and their relationship seemed to be getting serious. Ah well, she thought, there was no harm in staying friends with the guy. Dani was just slipping into a rather pleasant daydream in which she and James hooked up again when the front door bell rang.

              ‘Bloody hell,’ she muttered bitterly, levering herself up and slipping on a dressing gown. Dani pulled it tightly around her and marched towards the front door, peering irritably through the spy hole. She wrenched it open. ‘
Andy
? Haven’t you got your own sodding family to spend Sunday morning with?’

              ‘Actually, no. Carol’s mum has taken her and Amy out shopping. They need to buy outfits for a ruby wedding anniversary or something. I was at a loose end.’ Andy breezed past his boss, making a beeline for the kitchen. ‘I’ll put the kettle on while you get dressed, Ma’am.’

              Dani stomped into the bedroom, saying nothing. She emerged ten minutes later having showered and pulled on some jogging bottoms and a Glasgow University sweatshirt. The smell of freshly brewed coffee and the sight of a paper bag full of pastries on the table lifted her spirits markedly.

              ‘Are you still going to the gym up on Great Western Road?’ Dani poured them both a cup of coffee and sat down.

              ‘Very subtle, Detective Chief Inspector. Is that your way of enquiring if I’m letting things slide?’ Andy was grinning, carrying his mug over to join her. He pointed at the murky, brown liquid. ‘This is decaf and I’m limiting myself to one croissant only.’

              ‘Is it actually possible to eat more than one croissant?’ Dani smiled too. ‘I’ve just noticed that you aren’t quite as obsessive about your fitness regime as you were a few months back. I happen to think that’s a good thing.’

              ‘So does Carol. Maybe she’s wanting to get me into an early grave, eh?’ Andy arched an eyebrow as he bit into his pastry.

              Dani didn’t want to laugh at this. There were times since Andy’s heart attack when his humour could be a little off the mark. If Carol had heard him say that she’d be really upset. ‘Carol didn’t mind you coming over here this morning, did she?’

              ‘She doesn’t think we’re having an affair, if that’s what you’re driving at.’ Andy chuckled a little too hard at the idea.

              ‘Thanks a lot. I didn’t mean that. It’s just that it’s Sunday morning and this is work.’ Dani sipped her strong coffee.

              ‘The Fisher case interests me,’ he replied simply. ‘I did some more digging into the details of the Dundee murder from the office yesterday.’

              ‘Oh, aye?’

              ‘I was chatting to Phil about it. He’d seen the reports on the news. Apparently, Phil was at training school with Gordon Alexander.’

              ‘Did he get on well with him?’

              ‘Yeah, I think so. They kept in touch for a few years after qualifying. Only Phil recalled that Alexander’s wife and children were killed in a car accident. He thought it must have been about a decade ago.’

              ‘Shit,’ Dani exclaimed. ‘Poor guy. No wonder he seemed so affected by the murder of Morna Murphy. How did it happen?’

              ‘Phil didn’t remember the details, so I looked up the newspaper reports from the time. Gordon’s wife – Lydia, was driving their kids to see friends in Perth. They were involved in a multiple pile up – a lorry lost control in icy conditions. The children died at the scene but Lydia was in hospital for a few days before she passed away. Gordon had been on duty that day, so he wasn’t with them.’ Andy twisted his cup round. ‘It’s difficult to know how you come back from something like that.’

              ‘By throwing yourself into the job, I expect.’ Dani thought about the burly, slightly melancholy man they’d met in Dundee and felt a lump forming in her throat which she quickly swallowed down. ‘Did you find out anything else?’

              ‘Lyle Murphy has been thoroughly investigated by Alexander’s team. He’s well respected on the local council. The guy has been pushing for more affordable housing to be built around Dundee. According to his colleagues, he was becoming frustrated by the obstacles his department have come up against, but it looked like he was slowly making progress. Lyle had no large deposits of cash coming in or out of his bank account in the last two years. The Murphys had no significant debt beyond their mortgage and car loans. It seems as if the husband is clean.’

              ‘What kind of opposition might you come up against if you wanted to build more affordable housing?’

              ‘Local residents objecting to expansion into the countryside, or construction companies trying to whack up prices,’ Andy mused. ‘Somebody always wants to make a profit out of house building. It’s Thatcher’s legacy.’

              ‘Eric Fisher was working on that new estate of houses in Dalkeith when his family were killed. I wonder if there’s any connection?’

              ‘We can’t rule it out, I suppose. What are you thinking – construction firms bunging council members back-handers to flout the planning regs? Although I don’t see what that would have to do with an ordinary bloke like Fisher. He was pretty low down the food chain, fitting out the kitchens and stuff.’

              Dani nodded slowly. ‘But it’s another factor that potentially links the two cases, so let’s bear it in mind.’ She sighed. ‘But I don’t want to get side-tracked from considering the victims here. Morna and Peggy were very alike in looks and age. That’s the pattern I find the most intriguing.’

              The DCI’s line of discussion was interrupted when there was another knock at the door. This time it was hard and insistent. Dani jogged down the hallway to answer it.

              Carol Calder was standing on the step, her pretty mouth set in a grim line. A car was waiting at the kerb with its engine running. ‘Hi Dani, is Andy here?’

              Dani stepped aside, allowing her DC to move forward.

              ‘Is everything okay sweetheart?’ He enquired lightly.

              ‘I was surprised when you weren’t at home when we got back. Then I saw your note. Mum and Dad would like to take us
all
out for lunch. You were in the office yesterday, Andy.’ These words were delivered through gritted teeth.

              Carol looked totally pissed off, especially when her gaze turned towards Dani once again and properly took in her casual appearance and freshly washed hair.

              ‘It’s my fault,’ the DCI put in swiftly. ‘I had a new lead in this case we’re examining for the DCS and wanted to run it by Andy. I’m really sorry, Carol.’

              Andy re-emerged onto the step with his jacket slung over one arm. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow, Ma’am,’ he said brusquely, following his wife towards the parked car. Not giving his boss a backward glance.  

Chapter 13

O
n this particular visit to Edinburgh, Dani had taken her own small hatchback. James Irving had called to invite her to meet him for lunch. Getting to know the area a little better, the DCI agreed to rendezvous with the lawyer in a restaurant on the newly gentrified waterfront at Leith, a few miles north of the city centre.