Against a Dark Sky (13 page)

Chapter Twenty Nine

A
fter arriving back at her hotel room in Ardyle, Dani had given herself a stern talking to. Only a few days ago, all the details of her mother’s alcoholism and suicide had been reported in the national press, along with her photograph. Charlatans like the medium at the Irvings’ party used that kind of thing to their advantage. Who in the modern world didn’t have problems juggling their private and professional lives?

              It was how these people operated. Only a tiny thread of their spiel had to strike a chord with someone. Then they had them well and truly hoodwinked. But Dani had always prided herself on being better than that. She was becoming as bad as the Hutchisons, for heaven’s sake.

              By the next morning, Dani was feeling more circumspect. As soon as she got into her stuffy office, she dug out Ronnie Sheldon’s current address and phone number, which she’d printed off the police database yesterday. He’d retired in 2005, after reaching the same rank as Dani. The man was now 64 years old. She called his number straight away. He answered immediately.

              ‘Mr Sheldon, my name is Detective Chief Inspector Dani Bevan. I’m currently working on the Joanna Endicott murder inquiry. I know that you led the Ardyle investigation back in ’83. It may sound off the wall, but I wondered if you might be able to offer me some insights into the behaviour of Bill and Joy Hutchison. They seem to have attached themselves to my case.’

              ‘In what respect, Detective Chief Inspector?’ Ronnie Sheldon possessed a broad Glaswegian accent, apparently un-softened by the years he’d spent living away.

              Dani explained how Bill had helped the police to pin-point the whereabouts of Daniel Goff’s body.

              ‘I’ve been following the progress of your inquiry in the press myself,’ Sheldon responded. ‘I certainly felt there was a strong resonance between your case and the incident with the schoolchildren. I can perfectly understand why the Hutchisons wanted to get involved. They wrote to me and my wife regularly for many years after the case was closed. It was the kind of investigation that stays with you for your entire career. I had young children of my own back then, who were just bairns at the time. Although it shouldn’t do, it makes it hit harder.’

              ‘Was there anything unresolved about that case, Ronnie? Why are the Hutchisons so reluctant to let the incident go?’

              ‘From a policing point of view, it was clear-cut. The children got lost in terrible weather that nobody could reasonably have predicted. All of the weans had suffered from hypothermia and exhaustion, but for three of them, the symptoms proved fatal. If you asked my wife Judy, she would tell you that the reactions of the parents were complex, as they are in the aftermath of any tragedy.’

              ‘Would it be possible for me to have a word with your wife?’

              ‘Judy passed away from breast cancer in 2011. But I might be able to find some of her notes from back then.’

              ‘Oh, I’m terribly sorry.’

              ‘Look, I’ll see what I can scrape together. Are you still based in Ardyle? I could drive across tomorrow afternoon and speak with you about the case. Judy had piles of patient notebooks and I’ve got my own papers on the incident. I’ve not read them for decades. We could have a sort through together if you’d like?’

              ‘That would be great, if you’re absolutely certain you can spare the time?’ Dani felt her heart beat faster.

              The man chuckled. ‘Oh aye. The golf course won’t miss me for one day. To be frank, this is the first time I’ve been asked for my input on a live case in over ten years. I’m hardly going to pass that opportunity up!’

Dani called Andy into her office. She’d decided that honesty was going to be the best policy and explained to him how James Irving had sent her flowers and then invited her to his father’s shin-dig in Edinburgh. Bevan outlined her conversation with James’ mother the previous evening.

              ‘Okay, so it’s possible that Irving was in a relationship with Joanna Endicott at the time of her death,’ Andy replied steadily. ‘But you do realise that the way this evidence was ascertained makes it totally inadmissible? If it turns out James Irving
did
kill Joanna, his defence lawyers would have a field day with you meeting up with him off-duty like this. We’d never secure a conviction. The situation would be even worse than with Richard Erskine.’

              ‘I’ve been a bloody idiot.’

              ‘Did you sleep with him?’

              Dani looked her friend in the eye. ‘No, I did not.’

              ‘Then it’s salvageable. But we’ll need to keep it between ourselves.’

              ‘Would you be prepared to do that?’

              ‘Dani, I’m perfectly aware that if it wasn’t for you, I’d never have been allowed back on active service. Not to mention the part where you saved my life.’

              ‘Yeah, that is true.’ It was still a mess, but Dani felt a sense of relief rush through her body.

              ‘Besides, I really don’t think Irving’s our man. I know he’s only got Philippa Graves to vouch for him on the Saturday night Goff and the others went missing, but I never had the sense he’d been lying about drinking that half bottle of whisky and flaking out. The mountain rescue lads said his hangover the next morning was genuine enough.’

              Dani thought of something. ‘What if it was more than a hangover? Graves could have put something in his drink to make sure he never noticed
her
going back out later.’

              ‘It’s possible, but there’s no hope of proving it now. For what it’s worth, I think Joanna was the type of lass who’d fooled around with plenty of fellers. The guys she’d dated over the last few years in London barely knew anything about her. They had dinner from time-to-time and occasionally had sex. Joanna wasn’t searching for a man to settle down with. Maybe she did have a fling with Irving last year, but his mother was probably overstating the matter when she suggested they were on the verge of tying the knot.’

              ‘What if James wanted more from the relationship than she did? Seeing her flirting with Goff and inviting him to come away to Scotland with them might have been the last straw for James.’

              ‘With all due respect, that’s how a woman might react, not a man. For us, if a lassie wants to have sex, no strings attached, no commitment required and we can still be mates afterwards, great.’

              ‘I’ll be sure to mention that to Carol the next time we meet up.’

              Andy laughed. ‘When the right time comes for a man to settle down, he chooses a woman accordingly. The next lassie he asks out will be the marrying type – homely, kind, pretty enough and someone who doesn’t put it about. Believe me, James Irving hadn’t placed Joanna into that category. To him, she was a great mate; fun, sexy, exhilarating and good for the occasional roll in the hay. He wasn’t in love with her.’

              Dani was genuinely surprised by Andy’s insight.

              ‘I’d even go as far as to say that Irving wouldn’t have considered looking in London for his soul mate. When Irving finally decides it’s time to settle down, he’ll come back to Scotland to find his wife.’

              ‘Are you taking an online psychology degree on the quiet?’

              Andy chuckled. ‘I may be an ill-educated Glasgow boy, but I know James Irving’s type. He’s public school with pukka parents and a respectable, well-paid career. He’ll never choose a life-partner who doesn’t fit the mould.’

              ‘Do you know what?’ Dani said cheerfully. ‘I think you’re absolutely right.’

Chapter Thirty

T
he next day was a Saturday and although Dani was expecting her visit from Ronnie Sheldon in the afternoon, she’d decided to go into the incident room a little later than usual. Dani felt that a slower start might help to get her ideas flowing.

              She took a long shower. When she finally emerged from the en-suite, Dani picked up her mobile and tapped on the frequent contacts list. Her dad answered their home phone after several rings.

              ‘Hi, it’s Dani. Were you outside?’

              ‘Aye, we’ve had strong winds overnight. The fences are down.’

              ‘You’ll have to ask Cameron to help you fix them. Don’t try and do it on your own Dad, please.’

              ‘I’ll take a drive over to his place later, if the road is clear. How’s the case? Are you still in Ardyle?’ Her father sounded genuinely interested.

              ‘We’ve been set back by the discovery of Daniel Goff’s body,’ Dani explained.

              ‘I saw it on the news.’

              ‘Did you read the stuff about me in the papers?’ Dani waited nervously for his response.

              ‘It was hard to avoid. The higher up you go in the police force, the more you’ll have to expect that kind of thing. Luckily for me, I’m surrounded by folk who don’t give a damn what’s written in the gutter press. I just hope it hasn’t caused you problems at work?’

              ‘It will blow over. There’ve been far worse scandals involving senior police officers in the last few years than this. By comparison, my life is pretty mundane. I was just worried that having Mum’s illness raked up again might upset you.’

              Huw Bevan chuckled. ‘Of course not. When you live on an island on the fringes of the Atlantic Ocean, not much that happens in the outside world does bother you. Don’t waste your time fretting about me.’

              Dani felt tears spring to her eyes. ‘Good. I’m glad things are okay. Just do your best to refrain from shifting any heavy fence posts single-handed now, do you hear? I’ll get Jilly O’Keefe to spy on you with her binoculars. She’ll let me know straight away if you do!’

              ‘Oh, I’ve no doubt she would, no doubt at all.’

              Dani laughed gently and ended the call, before her dad had a chance to notice that her voice was wavering. As she placed her mobile down on the bed, she spotted there’d been a message from James Irving. Dani ignored it, thinking that perhaps she should delete his number.

              Whilst Dani was speaking with her father, the television set on the dressing table had been tuned to a current affairs channel with the sound turned low. One of the breaking news strands rushing across the bottom of the screen suddenly caught her attention. She reached for the remote control and cranked up the volume.

              ‘Dear God!’ She loudly proclaimed, pulling on her work clothes and applying her make-up as quickly as possible.

              Ten minutes later, she was in the Town Hall. The janitor had kindly wheeled out an old fashioned television set on a trolley for them to use. Dani had it switched onto the BBC News channel. The officers in her team were perched on the edge of desks and seated on every available chair, their eyes glued to the screen.

              Dani laid out the facts she had so far gleaned. ‘That gentleman there,’ the DCI said, pointing at the grainy photograph of a middle-aged man dressed in a police dress uniform, holding up a long-service medal, ‘is Ronald Sheldon, known as Ronnie. He was due to travel here this afternoon to show me his notes on the Ardyle case of 1983. He’d been the officer in charge of that investigation back when he was a DI. But Ronnie sadly won’t be visiting us today, because he’s currently laid out on a mortuary slab in Perth, after his home was subjected to an arson attack in the early hours of this morning.’

              ‘Bloody hell,’ Andy muttered.

              ‘This
cannot
be a coincidence. I spoke with Ronnie yesterday. He told me there were notes and files relating to the Ardyle case that he wanted to show me. I have to assume right now that these have all gone up in smoke. According to the Crieff Force, somebody broke into the Sheldon house and started a fire in the sitting room or kitchen at roughly 2am. Ronnie was fast asleep upstairs. The poor guy didn’t stand a chance. We’re talking about a man who’d served in the police for 35 years.’

              ‘Who knew that Ronnie Sheldon had spoken with you?’ Andy immediately enquired.

              ‘Well, Bill Hutchison suggested I get in touch with Sheldon, but I didn’t inform him of our plan to meet up.’

              ‘He knew that you were going to speak to Sheldon at some point though, didn’t he?’ Andy persisted.

              ‘But it was Bill who was desperate for me to get in contact with Ronnie Sheldon in the first place. He was convinced there was a link between the Ardyle tragedy and the murder of Joanna Endicott. To be fair, it looks as if he’s been proved right,’ Dani declared.

              ‘
Exactly
,’ Andy retorted. ‘Bill Hutchison’s amazing supernatural powers have been shown to be correct, yet again. Funny, that.’ A few members of the team snickered.

              ‘Do you seriously believe that Bill did this? Tipped me off to the importance of Ronnie Sheldon as a witness and then burnt him to death in his bed in order to make it look like his wife has the gift of ‘second sight’? Why would he do that?’

              Andy shrugged his shoulders. ‘I don’t know, perhaps not.’

              ‘Bill would never have harmed this man.’ DC Sammy Reid stepped forward, his face red with anger. ‘The Hutchisons got on really well with Ronnie and Judy Sheldon. Judy helped us all through a terrible time. Bill just wouldn’t have done something like that to him.’ The handsome young officer strode out of the hall, flashing Andy Calder a look of distaste as he passed.

              Dani designated tasks and then walked out              of the front of the building to locate her young DC. He was leaning against the wall of the Town Hall, his right boot resting on the bricks, smoking a cigarette.

              ‘Andy can be very blunt sometimes, I’m sorry. He should have been far more sensitive to the situation,’ Dani said.

              ‘I don’t want my past history to affect my performance in this investigation. I shouldn’t have got angry, I was just frustrated.’

              ‘You feel fairly certain that Bill Hutchison couldn’t have set that fire. This is based on having known the man for over thirty years. That is an insight which is extremely valuable to me. It also happens to be my instinct too. But we have to be open to alternative theories. To ignore them could seriously damage an investigation. It’s what makes police officers suffer from tunnel vision. We have to be open to everything, however uncomfortable it makes us.’

              Sammy nodded, throwing his stub down and grinding it out on the stone step. ‘I know that, but when it impacts upon you personally and your family, it isn’t an easy rule to stick to.’

              Dani smiled. ‘Murder inquiries affect
every
police officer, regardless of whether they have a connection to the events. But now we know that the Ardyle case will have to be re-examined, I’d be within my rights to take you off the investigation.’

              Sammy looked horrified. ‘I really want to remain on the team, Ma’am. I was only six years old when Katrina died. I recall almost nothing about what went on back then.’

              Dani knew this made no difference, but she was also aware that it was entirely her call. The connection between Ronnie Sheldon’s death and their current investigation had not been made official. Bevan was inclined to keep Sammy on the team. She liked him, and sensed his knowledge would prove extremely useful. ‘For the time being, I will keep you in the unit. But if the DCS decides that you’re compromised, I’m afraid you’ll have to go.’

              Sammy nodded with understanding. ‘Thank you, Ma’am, I really appreciate this.’