Chapter 14
FOURTEEN
Wendy screamed before collapsing beside the body of her husband. Ally stared in horror, wondering if she was going to be sick. Ross checked Greg’s pulse and then got straight onto his phone.
‘Body found on the moor, near Loch Soular,’ he said calmly. ‘We need urgent police and ambulance.’
All the time he was speaking, Wendy was weeping loudly. ‘Who the hell would do this?’ she shouted through her tears. ‘Who?’
Ally, feeling very shaken herself, felt there was little she could say or do because Greg was so obviously dead and, only for a moment, wondered if there was any possibility that he could have accidentally tripped, fallen on the sharp edge of the rock and split his head open.
Then she noticed the torn piece of paper beside Greg’s body which had probably fallen out of his hand or his pocket.
Certain that it was probably just a shopping list or a receipt, she picked it up and shone the torch on it.
If you want me to keep your secret, you need to meet me… was written before the horizontal tear. Ally’s blood froze. What secret? Who was he supposed to meet? And where?
Ross was still on his phone, explaining where they were as best he could, and stressing the need for urgency. When he clicked his phone off, he took Ally gently aside, leaving Wendy to grieve over her husband’s body.
‘This doesn’t look like an accident to me,’ he said, keeping his voice low.
‘You mean that you think someone’s killed him?’ Ally asked, horrified.
‘I do,’ Ross confirmed. ‘But then, I’m no policeman.’
The moon was throwing a ghostly, pale light across the moor, almost like something out of a horror film, before sliding behind the clouds again, leaving them with only Ross’s torch to illuminate the eerie scene. The dogs, sensing something was wrong, sat down next to Ally.
‘Will the helicopter be able to land?’ Ally asked, looking around.
‘Yes, on that flat area beside the loch,’ Ross said, recalling a previous emergency. He looked at his watch. ‘They’re bound to be half an hour at least.’ He looked at Ally. ‘Let’s find a comfortable boulder to sit on.’ He shone the torch back at Wendy, who was sitting up but still weeping softly.
‘Who would do this?’ she asked over and over again. ‘Someone did it! Someone killed my brother, and now they’ve killed my husband! Oh God!’ She was holding Greg’s limp hand as she spoke.
‘Try not to touch him too much,’ Ross suggested, ‘and for God’s sake don’t try to move him. The police will want to see the body exactly as we found it.’
‘But I’m his wife!’ Wendy shouted. ‘Why the hell did we ever agree to come over here!’
The wind had got up now and was carrying her voice soulfully across the moors.
Ally found a little hillock and had sat down with her head between her knees to ward off the nausea that kept rising in her throat. Ross sat down next to her and took her hand in his.
‘So he’s been murdered,’ she said in little more than a whisper.
‘Almost certainly,’ Ross replied, squeezing her hand. ‘And there goes one of your chief suspects for Archie Armstrong’s murder!’
They heard the helicopter in the distance before they saw the flashing light in the sky, coming from the south. Ally and Ross made their way back towards the loch, leaving Wendy still weeping beside her husband’s body.
As the helicopter approached, its lights illuminated them and the ground, and it hovered for a few minutes before carefully landing.
With the blades still rotating, the door opened and out rushed a small group of forensics and paramedics, armed with a stretcher.
As if on cue, at the same time, a Land Rover came hurtling up the path, disgorging Amir Kandahar and a young constable.
‘Fortunately, we were in the village overnight,’ Amir said before heading towards the white-clad forensic group. They all looked around.
‘I found this close to his body,’ Ally said, handing the scrap of paper to Amir. ‘I think it’s important.’
Amir, who knew better by now than to dismiss anything Ally told him, took the note with a nod, slipping it into a small evidence bag and handing it to the young constable.
‘Follow us,’ Ross said, taking Ally’s hand and leading them towards the red flag that heralded the beginning of the runners’ route.
The dogs romped ahead, and, as they walked, Ally told Amir briefly about Greg Watson going for a walk earlier, intending to meet them at the castle for the barbecue, and the three of them setting off to look for Greg when it became obvious that something had happened.
Ross also explained about the fun run and that this was the route the runners would have taken.
‘Meaning that most of the suspects for Armstrong’s murder would also have been running along here?’ Amir asked.
‘I’m afraid so,’ Ross replied. Then, as the rays of his torch lit up the rock: ‘Over there…’
They all trundled across the heather towards the rock and the weeping Wendy, still holding Greg’s lifeless hand.
‘I’m sorry, Mrs Watson, but I must ask you to move away, please.’ Amir spoke gently, laying his hand on her arm.
‘But he’s my husband!’ she shouted.
‘I know.’ Amir’s voice was calm. ‘But we need to examine him before we move him.’
Ally moved across and took Wendy’s arm. ‘Come and sit with us over there.’ She motioned towards the little hillock where they’d sat earlier. She found a couple of tissues in her pocket and handed them to Wendy who, very unwillingly, allowed herself to be helped to her feet.
‘This is the nightmare of all nightmares,’ she sobbed as she blew her nose.
The forensics were already hard at work, measuring and taking photographs, while the paramedics had laid the stretcher down by the body in readiness for its removal.
Amir was supervising the scene while talking non-stop into his phone, then turned back to where the others were sitting. ‘I know it’s late and it’s dark,’ he said, ‘but I’m going to have to ask some questions right now.’
‘Where are you taking him?’ Wendy asked, stifling sobs.
‘They’ll take him to Glasgow shortly,’ Amir replied. ‘We need to do a post-mortem and establish the cause of death. Let’s all get back to where the helicopter is.’
Leaving the forensic team and the paramedics at the scene, they slowly made their way back along the track towards the loch, Wendy supported on one side by Ross and by Ally on the other.
As they walked, Amir was questioning Wendy about what time they’d set off for their walk, what time she got back and what time they’d all finally left to look for Greg.
Back at the loch, he ushered an unwilling Wendy into his Land Rover for some further questioning before returning to where Ally and Ross were standing a few minutes later.
‘I’ll be back to talk to you all in the morning,’ he said as the slow procession appeared out of the gloom, carrying Greg’s body on the stretcher.
This sent Wendy off into paroxysms of grief again, and she tried to run towards them.
Amir held her back firmly. ‘No, Mrs Watson,’ he said. ‘You can see him later. Right now, there’s work to be done, and I’ll be back to talk to you in the morning.’ He turned to Ally and Ross. ‘How can I find out how many runners might have taken part in this thing?’
‘Well, your best bet would be Hamish, the earl, because he organised this. It all culminated in the barbecue up in the castle grounds,’ Ally explained.
‘Reckon they’ll still be there?’ Amir asked, consulting his watch.
Ross shrugged. ‘Some of them may be.’
‘Right,’ Amir said to the young constable, ‘that’s our next stop.’
He looked at Ally. ‘Can we give you a lift back down to the malthouse?’
‘No thanks, we have the dogs, and we’ve got a good torch,’ Ally replied.
Amir nodded as he rushed towards his vehicle, at the same time as the helicopter began to rise slowly into the air.
By the time Ally and Ross began to support a staggering Wendy back to the malthouse, the helicopter was just a tiny, distant, flashing light in the night sky.