arms slacken.
In the light from the flames below, he saw a rocky ledge to his left. With all the strength left in his arms, he swung himself over and fell panting on the ledge. Using tufts of grass for purchase, he swung himself back up over the top of the cliff and, taking out a powerful torch, swung it to the left and right.
Moorland stretched for miles either way. He pulled out his mobile phone and woke up Jimmy Anderson.
“I’ll get the police helicopter up and we’ll search the moors,” said Jimmy. “Go back and lock yourself in.”
¦
Hamish stayed awake, listening to the sound of the police helicopter overhead. At last he could not bear the inactivity any longer and went out. The harbour was full of police cars. A forensic team was working on the burnt- out van, which had fortunately hit a large rock instead of plunging down onto one of the houses.
James Fringley appeared beside him. “I gather you’re not who you said you were,” he said.
“No. Who told you?”
“A copper asked me which cottage had been rented to Hamish Macbeth. I gather that’s you and you’re that policeman from Lochdubh. Why are you here?”
“Headquarters has me hidden up here because some murderer is after me,” said Hamish wearily.
“Do me and everyone in this village a favour and get the hell out of it as soon as you can. There were fishing nets burnt in that shed, and that van could have killed someone.”
Hamish guessed the would-be killer had probably guessed he would search for him up on the clifftop. The back of the van had been cramped, and he had changed his position from time to time. Maybe the van had rocked a little, alerting the murderer to the fact that he was inside.
¦
Jimmy arrived at Hamish’s cottage at six in the morning to find the policeman still awake, packed and ready to leave.
“No success,” said Jimmy. “We kept the helicopter up as long as we could but then Daviot came on the phone screaming about the cost. All we can do now is put a police guard outside your station.”
“I’ll alert the villagers,” said Hamish. “Any strange woman appearing in Lochdubh and they’ll make a citizens’ arrest. There is no need for a police guard. Do you know, I don’t think she or he will try again. I think whoever it is could possibly be mad, and made even madder with fear that I might guess something.”
“It’s up to you. What a dump this place is. Worse than Lochdubh.”
“It’s really lovely,” said Hamish. “That reminds me. I’ve a present for you.”
He took out the wood carving that looked so like Blair.
“Man, that’s grand,” said Jimmy. “Can I stick pins in it?”
¦
Lochdubh looked reassuringly the same. As soon as he had unpacked, Hamish got into bed, joined by his cat and dog, and fell sound asleep.
He awoke in the late afternoon to find Elspeth standing over him.
“You cannae chust walk into a man’s bedroom!” he howled.
“I came to see if you were alive,” said Elspeth. “I bought you a present.”
“I don’t want a present,” said Hamish sulkily. “All I want iss a bit o’ peace.”
“Smell something?” asked Elspeth.
Hamish propped himself up on the pillows and sniffed the air. “Coffee?”
“Yes, good coffee. I bought you a percolator.”
“Have you seen Sonsie and Lugs?”
“Last time I saw them, they were strolling along the waterfront, heading for the Italian restaurant. They must be hungry.”
Hamish got out of bed and stretched and yawned. Then he realised he had not put on any pyjamas and was stark naked.
Elspeth giggled. “That’s quite a blush you’ve got, Hamish. It goes all the way – ”
“Get out!” he roared.
When Hamish had washed and dressed, he found Elspeth in the kitchen. She poured him a cup of coffee.
Hamish drank a little and then smiled. “This is grand. Thank you. Now, what do I have to do for this?”
“Nothing. There’s a clampdown on reporting what happened up in Grianach. Editor’s phoned all over. Story suppressed. Unless you can think of anything, I’ve got to get back to Glasgow.”
Hamish looked at her thoughtfully. She had lit the stove. The kitchen was warm. She was wearing a chunky grey sweater over jeans, and the grey seemed to highlight the odd silvery colour of her eyes. Her hair had reverted to its usual frizzy look, which seemed to suit her better than when it was straightened.
“I may be back,” said Elspeth. “The editor of the
“Wouldn’t it seem a bit tame after the city?”
“Not with the goings-on you seem to conjure up. I’m highland to the bone, and I don’t really seem to fit in in Glasgow. Then the photographer I have with me, Billy, is a complete lout. All he does is sneer at this place, and the more he sneers at it, the more I realise how much I love it.”
“I was sorry to hear about you being jilted,” said Hamish. Elspeth had been left at the church on her wedding day. She had been about to marry a fellow reporter but he had run off and left her. “Were you very hurt?”
“I was angry and then I was relieved,” said Elspeth. “And while we’re on the subject of jilted people, how are you getting on with Priscilla?”
“I cancelled the engagement,” said Hamish. “Not her. I havenae seen much o’ her. She’s traipsing around the hills and heather with that Irishman.”
“Not any more. He’s left, and she’s too busy rehearsing her part with that writer. I’m still amazed you actually got around to proposing marriage to someone, Hamish. That Russian, I mean.”
He sighed. “I thought I was doing the right thing, Elspeth. I did it to keep my police station. And the idea was that we’d divorce after a while.”
“It’s wonderful how you got permission to marry her so easily. They’re clamping down on these arranged marriages. There was a woman down in England who charged a hefty fee to marry foreigners. When they caught up with her, she’d married five and not a divorce paper in sight.”
Hamish suddenly remembered the day he had bought an engagement ring to present to Elspeth, only to find out that she had promised to marry her fellow reporter.
He had bought Irena another ring. He wondered what had happened to it. Inspector Anna had arranged to have the body flown back to Moscow for burial. Why she had persuaded her bosses to go to that expense, he did not know.
He suddenly decided to take the plunge. “Excuse me a minute,” he said. He went into the bedroom and took the ring in its little box out of his bedside table. His heart was hammering.
Just as he walked into the kitchen, the door opened and Priscilla walked in.
Hamish stuffed the box in his pocket and shouted, “Damn it, don’t you ever knock?”
“I’m off,” said Elspeth hurriedly.
“I’ll come with you,” said Priscilla. “It seems I am not welcome.”
Say something, yelled a voice in Hamish’s head. But he stood there, frozen, as they both walked off.
¦
He walked along to the Italian restaurant to be told that his animals had been fed and then had gone away.
By asking people on the waterfront, he learned that they had been spotted heading for Angela Brodie’s cottage.
Angela opened the door to him. “I’ve sent them home,” she said. “The poor things seemed so hungry that I fed them first.”
“Angela, they’ll be as fat as butter. They’ve already been stuffing themselves at the Italian restaurant.”
“Oh, well, they say that pets take after their owner, and you always were a moocher, Hamish. I suppose you want a coffee.”
“No, I do not. I haff the verra good coffeemaker. Elspeth gave it to me.”
“Did she, now. You ought to marry that lassie, Hamish.”
