She stalked past the cousins and headed out of the graveyard.
Renie frowned. “Kate and Philip in a takeover of Blackwell?”
“Sounds crazy,” Judith said, leaving the Gunn family plot behind, “but not impossible. It’s not the only interesting thing, though.”
“Such as?”
“Kate wasn’t at the inquest,” Judith said. “I know, I looked for her. How did she know the magistrate’s conclusion?”
“Aha. Kate has a small hole in the wall of the Women’s Institute?”
Judith nodded. “This entire investigation is full of holes. Why do I have a feeling that we could step in one and never get out?”
Renie shuddered. “Not a good thing to say in a cemetery. A really bad thing to say since that’s what happened to Chuckie.”
Judith nodded again, her expression grim. “That’s what scares me. I wish our husbands would come back. I’m worried about them.”
The sun was peeking from behind the shifting clouds, but the weather’s improvement didn’t lift Judith’s spirits. “I don’t care what you say about fishermen,” she declared as they reached the village green, “I’m calling Joe.” She dug her cell phone out of her purse and dialed.
After six rings, a message came on, telling her that the person at this number was unavailable. Frowning, Judith stared thoughtfully in the direction of the now deserted Women’s Institute. “I’ll call the Glengarry Castle Hotel. Where did I put that information?” She did some more digging in her purse. “Ah. Here it is.”
“You’re nuts,” Renie murmured. “They’ll be fishing this morning.”
“I know,” Judith agreed, “but I can leave a message. Hello?” she said as a woman’s voice answered on the other end. “I’m calling for Joe Flynn. This is his wife. Is he in?”
“He left yesterday,” the woman informed her in a brusque tone.
“Oh.” Judith glanced at Renie who had walked over to the drooping banner and was trying to rip it down from the tree where it had been hung. “I assume Mr. Jones and Mr. MacGowan went with him.”
“Yes,” the woman said.
“Did they tell you where they’d gone?” Judith inquired.
“No.”
Judith tried to remember what Joe had told her about their plans. “I thought,” she said, “they were going to do some sightseeing in your area. Ben Nevis, Beauly Firth, a castle ruin close by. Didn’t they expect to stay at your hotel for at least another night or two?”
“Yes.” The woman sounded rather testy. “They were booked through tonight. They didn’t bother to check out, so I charged their partial stay to Mr. MacGowan’s credit card and added a cancellation fee. It was, if I may say so, quite rude of them.”
Alarmed, Judith motioned to Renie, who had succeeded in yanking down the banner and was stuffing it into a dustbin. “Did they take their belongings with them?” Judith asked.
“Not all of it. But they also put at least six fish in our freezer. Shall I send everything on to you?”
“Could you hold for a moment?” Judith said, trying to keep the panic out of her voice and putting a hand over the cell. “Coz!” she whispered urgently to Renie, who was coming toward her. “The husbands are missing!”
20
What do you mean, ‘missing’?” Renie responded with an anxious expression.
Judith explained what the woman at the hotel had just told her. “Joe and Bill wouldn’t walk out of a hotel and leave stuff behind.”
“How can they get into trouble when they’re with a topnotch policeman?” Renie demanded. “Maybe they intended to come back but the fishing got so hot wherever they were that they decided to stay put.”
It was possible, Judith realized. She hesitated before speaking into the phone. “Could you store their belongings for a day or so? It’s just not like them.”
“If you say so,” the woman said, unconvinced. “Twenty-four hours. That’s all we can allow to keep their luggage. This is a hotel, not a storage locker.” She hung up.
Judith held the phone in her hand. “I don’t like this. I told you I had a feeling something was wrong when we didn’t hear from them. I’m calling MacRae.” After the third ring, he answered. “This is Judith Flynn. Have you heard from DCI MacGowan recently?”
“No,” MacRae answered, faintly surprised. “Why do you ask?”
“I don’t mean to be an alarmist,” Judith said, and explained what she’d been told by the woman at the hotel.
“Rather odd,” MacRae agreed. “I hope there hasn’t been an accident. Some of the terrain in that part of the country is quite rugged.”
The words only increased Judith’s concern. “Surely not all of them could have been…incapacitated.”
“Probably not.” MacRae paused. “Don’t upset yourself, Mrs. Flynn,” he said in a more cheerful voice. “When it comes to fishing, the word ‘lure’ takes on a strong double meaning.”
“Are you friendly with MacGowan?” Judith inquired. “I thought you might know where he was likely to take our
