A Dark Shadow Falls (2 page)

              ‘Great, I certainly do. I’ll be with you in forty-five minutes,’ Sally’s voice displayed her ill-disguised relief.

*

It was early April, but taking a small aircraft out to the Western Isles was still a risky venture. Grant Bryant had a private helicopter based at an airfield in Helensburgh. His firm specialised in eco-builds in some of the most inaccessible parts of Scotland. He often had to fly to these remote places in order to view the progress on a site. When his wife pulled up at the helipad in her BMW, Grant strode across the tarmac to greet her.

              He kissed her on the lips. ‘The chopper’s ready. Do you want me to come with you?’

              She shook her head. ‘No, it’s fine. I’ll only need an hour or so, then I’ll be heading back.’

              Grant gazed up at the sky. ‘You may only have that. The tower has told us we’ve got a window of five hours max before the weather closes in again.’

              ‘I’d better get going, then.’ She reached for her briefcase and walked towards the helicopter, allowing her husband to help her into the passenger seat.

              Grant stood well back, his hands on his hips, watching the machine take to the air and hover briefly above him before it proceeded due west, on a direct course towards the Isle of Colonsay.

*

Making the most of the good conditions, Dani and her father had walked around Kiloran Bay and were aiming to drive to the Colonsay Hotel in Scalasaig for lunch. But as they approached the house, Dani made out a figure up ahead, standing by the stone wall. As they got closer, the detective recognised the woman’s even features and discerned her formal attire. She looked as if she’d stepped straight out of an Edinburgh courtroom. The sight was quite disconcerting amongst the bleak beauty of this picturesque and remote spot.

              ‘I’m so sorry to interrupt your holiday,’ Sally announced, as soon as the walkers were within earshot. ‘I arrived by helicopter about ten minutes ago. I knew you couldn’t be far away.’

              ‘We saw the chopper,’ Dani declared. ‘We thought a boat might be in trouble on the water.’

              ‘Oh no, nothing like that.’ The lawyer flashed them a reassuring smile.

              ‘Please come inside,’ Huw offered, opening the door for their guest. ‘I assume you’ll be staying for lunch?’

              ‘Just a quick bite, thank you, Mr Bevan. I’ll need to get back to the mainland soon.’

              Dani led the woman into the large living room, inviting her to take a seat by the picture window, which enjoyed uninterrupted views out to sea.

              ‘My goodness. It feels as if we’re on the edge of the world,’ Sally commented quietly.

              ‘Although people are still perfectly capable of following me here, it would seem,’ Dani replied dryly.

              She grimaced. ‘I’m sorry about that.’ Sally leant forward, knitting her fingers together and revealing a set of glossy, dark-red nails. ‘I’ll be honest with you, Dani. I’m in trouble with this case I’m defending.’

              Huw came into the room with two mugs of tea, setting them down carefully on the coffee table and returning to the kitchen.

              ‘What is Eric Fisher like?’ Dani asked with genuine interest.

              ‘He’s a very complicated character. I find him
impossible
to read. That’s my problem.’

              ‘What is his plea?’

              ‘Not guilty.’

              Dani took a sip of tea, raising her eyebrows in surprise.

              ‘He claims that someone
else
was in the house with them that Sunday afternoon.’

              ‘Was there any sign of a break-in?’

              ‘There was nothing mentioned in the police report. No locks had been forced and no prints were found other than the family’s. But then Fisher didn’t make his claim about an intruder until he’d properly regained consciousness, which was several weeks later. It wasn’t a line of inquiry that the police were focussing on in the hours and days after the murders.’

              ‘So what is Fisher’s account of the events?’ Dani shifted forward in her seat, her interest definitely piqued.

              ‘Eric and Callum arrived back from football training at 3pm. The girls were playing out in the garden whilst Peggy Fisher unpegged the washing from the line. The boys sat down and watched television in the front room. Half an hour later, Peggy brought Kyla and Skye back in, complaining that they were muddy. She ran the girls a bath. Eric was given the job of supervising them in the water.               Peggy went into the kitchen to start preparing dinner for the children. Eric went up to the bathroom. After he’d put the girls into the bubble bath, Eric heard a scream from downstairs. He didn’t want to leave the children unattended so he shouted to his wife, asking what was wrong. He heard no more from her.

              Eric got the girls washed as quickly as he could, shampooing and rinsing their hair. He intended to lift them out and then see what had happened to his wife. He thought maybe she’d burnt her hand on the iron, or something.

              Before he got the chance, Eric was grappled from behind and dragged out of the bathroom. Someone shoved him into the airing cupboard, squashing him up next to the tank and then barring the door shut. Fisher was shouting and hammering but couldn’t get out.’

              ‘Did he get a look at this
so-called
intruder?’

              Sally sighed. ‘No. The attacker was dressed in black, with a dark hoodie pulled low over his face. Eric claims he heard his son and this man fighting. It lasted no longer than a few minutes. After this, there was a short silence before the cupboard door was opened. A hood of some kind was placed over Eric’s head and he was dragged down the stairs. The man put a knife to his throat and forced him to swallow pills, one by one. Then he felt the blade slice across his neck. That’s the last thing he recalls. The problem for me is that he’s sticking to this story religiously. If I could put in a plea of reduced responsibility, we might have a chance of mitigation. As it stands, Eric Fisher is looking at four life sentences. He’s shown no sign of remorse so if he’s found guilty he hasn’t got a hope in hell of parole.’

              ‘Is he upset about what happened to his wife and children?’

              ‘Yes, of course, but he’s angry more than anything else. Eric claims he wants to find out who did this to his family. Our psychiatrist thinks Fisher is just in total denial. If the expert witness can’t even help us, we’re in serious trouble.’

Chapter 3

T
hey ate lunch at the kitchen table. Sally kept glancing nervously out of the window at the clouds blowing in off the darkening water.

              ‘Was anything taken from the house?’ Dani asked, sipping from a spoonful of watercress soup.

              ‘Nothing obvious. But Eric hasn’t been allowed back to the place since he was arrested, so he’s not had a chance to look around properly.’

              ‘His word wouldn’t really have any credence though, not if all the principal items of value were untouched. It couldn’t help his case even if he did spot something missing.’

              Sally threw her arms up in the air. ‘I haven’t got a great deal of time, Dani. I realise the murders didn’t occur within your jurisdiction but I’d like you to check if the intruder scenario was ever properly investigated.’ The woman began counting off points on her fingers. ‘Was the cupboard on the landing swabbed for Eric’s prints? Were there any traces of the hood Eric claimed to have over his head in the neck wound or on his clothing? Did the neighbours see anyone suspicious entering or leaving the property that day?’

              ‘Why would I do that, Sally?’

              The woman rested her hands palm up on the table. ‘I’ve represented plenty of guys who I knew were guilty as sin. I’ve never had a problem with it before. This case is different. I have no idea if Eric Fisher killed his family or not and I’ve spent countless hours with the man. But there’s something about this crime which has profoundly unsettled me - as if a force of evil was at work in that house. I can’t explain it, Dani. I just need your help.’

              The detective turned towards her father, who shrugged his shoulders in a non-committal gesture. ‘Okay,’ she announced, pushing back her chair. ‘Give me ten minutes to pack a bag. Is there room in that chopper for another passenger?’

*

Bevan had promised Sally Irving-Bryant that she would spend a couple of days in Glasgow, checking out the Fisher case before meeting the lawyer in Edinburgh for an update. Dani deposited her bags at her flat in Scotstounhill and proceeded straight to the Pitt Street offices.

              As she strode across the floor of the serious crime division in her walking trousers and fleece, several of her officers glanced up in surprise.

              ‘Good afternoon,’ she announced brusquely, hoping to get twenty minutes of breathing space before the hordes descended.

              This hope was swiftly dashed. DS Phil Boag followed her into the office and pulled the door shut behind him.

              ‘Hello, Ma’am. It’s great to see you. We weren’t expecting you back until next week.’

              ‘Well, I’m not here officially. I just wanted to grab some paperwork to take home.’

              Phil didn’t pick up on the hint. ‘DCS Nicholson has sent Andy to Irvine on a week long course - something about working harmoniously in a team.’

              Dani burst out laughing. ‘I bet he’s loving that!’

              ‘He’s been calling me every day, each time sounding increasingly desperate. Andy is convinced that Nicholson waited until you were on leave to set this up. He wants me to manufacture a crisis back here so that he can be sent home.’

              Bevan was still chuckling. ‘Well, I owe the guy a favour. He did save my life a few months ago.’

              Phil smiled, ‘sadly, there’s no hint of a crisis. We’re currently working on last Saturday’s break-in at the lock-ups on the Rutherglen Industrial Estate. It’s hardly life or death. Alice Mann and I have got it well covered.’

              Dani became serious again. ‘What do you know about the Fisher murders, over in Dalkeith?’

              ‘Only what I read in the papers. I’ve got a DI friend at City and Borders. I know he was involved in the original investigation.’

              ‘Would you mind if I got in touch with him? I need a contact over there. I’m going to be spending the next few days reviewing the case materials. I could actually really do with Andy Calder’s help to sift through them.’

              ‘I’ll give you Mike’s number, if you like?’

              ‘Great, and leave the Andy problem with me, Phil. I’ll speak to Nicholson and get something sorted.’

              ‘Thanks, Ma’am.’ The sergeant smiled gratefully and returned to his desk, looking mightily relieved.

Luckily for Bevan, the Fisher case was one which had passed through Nicholson’s inbox, requiring his scrutiny in the DCS’s capacity as Media Liaison Chief for Police Scotland. He was actually quite cheered to think that Dani might be casting her eyes over the details. He didn’t want anything to come back and bite them during the up-coming trial.

              ‘The thing is,’ Bevan said on the phone to the Detective Chief Super. ‘I need Andy Calder to help me sort through the material. It’s the kind of thing he’s good at – spotting stuff that another officer might have missed.’

              ‘As opposed to working well with others, you mean,’ the DCS chipped in dryly. ‘I sent him on that course for a reason.’

              ‘I know that. He’s done a couple of days now. Something must have rubbed off.’

              Nicholson sighed. ‘Okay, call him back. But make good use of the man and for heaven’s sake keep Calder on a tight leash, Danielle.’

*

DC Andy Calder arrived at Dani’s flat just after breakfast. He wore a casual sweater and dark cords. As the DCI pulled open her front door, the man was sporting a grin which stretched from ear-to-ear.

              He stepped eagerly over the threshold. ‘I can’t thank you enough for getting me off the course, Ma’am. I’ve experienced some horrors in my time on the force, but nothing compares to that.’

              Dani had the files laid out on her kitchen table and a pot of fresh coffee placed close to hand on the counter. ‘You’re exaggerating,
surely.
’

              ‘I’ve been less patronised by infant school teachers,’ Andy declared. ‘              The guy running the seminars had swallowed a book full of management clichés. Unfortunately for the rest of us, he kept regurgitating his favourites. I’ve taken part in more role-plays in the last forty-eight hours than any self-respecting man would ever admit to. At one point, I thought he was going to bring out the Duplo bricks and give us some play time on the mat.’

              Bevan couldn’t prevent herself from laughing. She’d been on plenty of similar courses in the past. ‘When you’ve reached officer rank, you have to learn to suck it up, Andy. It’s the only way to progress.’

              Calder gave a theatrical shudder and poured out a cup of coffee. ‘Now, can we
please
get on with some proper police work?’

              Dani took a seat opposite her colleague, watching him select a croissant from the basket and start munching it absent-mindedly. Since recovering from a heart-attack a couple of years ago, Andy had completely changed his lifestyle, visiting the gym regularly and laying off the fatty foods. But in recent months, she had noticed him slipping back into some of his old, unhealthy habits. He certainly wasn’t the weight he’d once been, but Dani supposed that over time the fear generated by the heart attack had begun to fade and an equilibrium was reached. She hoped for Andy’s wife and daughter’s sake that he wasn’t letting things slide too much.