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“We really must smell something awful,” said Hamish. “After this, we’ll get back to Lochdubh and clean up. I’ve got an old uniform I can use. What about you?”
“I’ve got a spare recently,” said Josie.
They had a pleasant meal. Hamish was in high good humour. He felt the case was begi
Josie thought about her mad dream of drugging him. What a silly idea!
At the town hall, Hamish asked to be directed to wherever the switchboard was. He was grateful that the town hall was old-fashioned and didn’t go in for a phone tree-press one for so-and-so, press two for someone else, and so on.
The young girl at the switchboard seemed vaguely familiar. “Police,” he said. “Just a few questions. What is your name?”
“ Iona Sinclair.”
“Have we met? I am Police Constable Hamish Macbeth.”
“I saw you last year at the crowning of the Lammas queen. It was promised to me because A
Iona was a tall girl in her late teens with hair as red as Hamish’s own, green eyes, and freckled skin. She had the lilting accent of the Outer Hebrides.
“We’re interested in a call that came through here to the switchboard on the evening Mark Lussie was murdered,” said Hamish.
“Well, we close at five o’clock. There were a lot of calls before then. People ask for various departments.”
“Did anyone ask for waste disposal?”
“We get a lot of those. People are always girning on about the evil dustmen, persecuting them because the waste isn’t in the proper bins.”
“Did you know A
“I was at school with her, but she wasn’t popular with the girls. She was too busy chatting up the teachers.”
“Anyone in particular?”
“Harry Massie, the English teacher.”
“Is he still teaching at the school?”
“Last I heard.”
Outside the town hall, Hamish sighed. “Another suspect. Let’s see this English teacher.”
“What about Iona?” asked Josie. “She must have borne a grudge against A
“I haven’t forgotten her,” said Hamish. “But she doesnae seem the type to know how to put together a sophisticated bomb.”
Harry Massie was a tall, rangy man in his late thirties. He had thick brown hair, a beaky nose, and a small mouth. He was wearing corduroy trousers and a well-worn Harris tweed jacket over a checked shirt open at the neck.
“We want to ask you about A
Josie got an i
“Poor girl. Any idea who did it?”
“Not as yet. I must ask you this: Did A
“By all that’s holy, someone who doesn’t think she was a saint. Yes, she did.”
“Explain what happened.”
The classroom smelled of chalk, sweat, and dust. Outside the wind howled and screeched.
Harry leaned on his desk. “A
“I told her I would report her and she laughed and said who would ever believe me and if I didn’t keep my mouth shut she would report me for having tried to rape her. I felt nothing but relief when she left the school for good.”
“Who’s the chemistry teacher here?”
“Sol Queen. But I hardly think…”
“Where can we find him?” asked Hamish.
Harry glanced at his watch. “He’ll be in the staff room having a break. I’ll take you along.”
Various teachers were standing at an open window in the staff room, smoking and braving the gale that was blowing in.
“Sol,” said Harry. “The police want a word with you.”
An elderly teacher turned around. He had sparse grey hair and thick glasses. “We can’t talk here,” he said. “Come outside.”
Josie and Hamish followed him into the corridor. “What is it?” he asked, peering myopically up at Hamish. Hamish thought that A
“Fu
Hamish had a sudden idea. “Do you have computer classes in the school?”
“No. We were supposed to get them, but there is so much else needing to be done here. The roof’s in need of repair and it would mean finding extra money over the cost of the computers to hire another teacher.”
Hamish thanked him and then, as they walked towards the entrance, he phoned Jimmy. “Did forensics go through A
“She didnae have one,” said Jimmy. “Her father says that computers are the instruments o’ the devil. They searched the one at the wildlife place but nothing but business on it.”
Hamish rang off. “I can’t think of any young person who didn’t use the Internet,” he said. “There’s that new Internet café, just off the main street. Let’s try there.”
The Internet café was run by a Pole, Lech Nowak, and the place was full of Polish accents as other immigrants e-mailed home.
Hamish asked whether A
Another possible lead gone, thought Hamish gloomily.
The café sold snacks, so Hamish suggested they should both eat something. He hoped his pets were all right back at the police station. He was worried that the hit man might call back to finish the job and shoot the animals.
After they had finished eating, Hamish said, “I’m going back to that minister’s. I know the parents have probably been interrogated but I want to speak to them myself. But I would like you to go back to the town hall and have a talk with Percy Stane. Make a friend of him. Sympathise. See if you can get anything more out of him and in a roundabout way, see if he got any phone calls from Mark.”
Hamish was not looking forward to interviewing the Flemings. What sort of parents had produced such a manipulative drug-taking daughter?
Chapter Seven
In for a pe
It’s Love that makes the world go round!
– W. S. Gilbert
Josie didn’t get much out of Percy. He protested that he had never even met Mark Lussie, nor had he received any phone call. Josie tried to trick him by lying and saying she knew he had received a call from Mark Lussie, whereupon the usually rabbit-like Percy had rallied, telling her that she was lying and he would put in an immediate complaint about police harassment. Alarmed, Josie protested that perhaps she had received false information, but Percy simply held the office door open for her and told her to go.
The early northern night had fallen, and the wind whipped clouds across a cold little moon overhead.
Josie suddenly had an idea. She would get a taxi, go back to Lochdubh, clean up the police station, and have a hot supper waiting for Hamish when he returned.
Hamish, meanwhile, was facing Mr. and Mrs. Fleming. He had expected to confront a pair of parental tyrants but found A
“I believe, if you don’t mind my saying so,” said Hamish, “that you appear to have been rather strict with your daughter.”