‘That’s exactly what we’ve set out to establish. I have two experienced men up at Parliament House today, making very discreet inquiries. My Inspector phoned me while I was on my way here. They’ve interviewed Colin Maxwell, Lord Archergait’s attendant, and they think they know: not just how, but when.
‘They are now trying to establish whether anyone was seen in the corridor which leads to the judge’s ante-room. . without success so far.’
Norman King looked at Lord Archibald. ‘Who would want to kill my old man?’ he asked, despairingly.
‘That’s really what we wanted to ask you, Norman,’ the Lord Advocate replied. ‘Judges make a potential enemy every time they send someone down. Did Billy ever mention anything to you about any of his decisions that might have been preying on his mind?’
‘What d’you mean?’
‘Well, for example, can you recall a sentence which he thought in retrospect might have been too severe?’
Unexpectedly, the advocate let out an ironic chuckle. ‘Archie, my Pa only ever worried about a sentence if he thought he might have been too lenient. He used to say to me that part of a judge’s duty is to support the jury. He was always concerned that if he went too easy on a convicted person that might be interpreted as undermining, or disapproval of the verdict.
‘He didn’t like plea-bargaining, either, although he usually went along with it, since it didn’t involve a jury.’ He glanced towards Skinner, then back to Lord Archibald. ‘The chap Charles, that fellow you put away a few months back; Pa didn’t approve of that deal at all. He’d have given the bloke eight years, if it had been down to him. As it was, he refrained, since in the final analysis he always believed in supporting the police as well.’
King paused, smiling in fond recollection. ‘On top of all that, my father had a keen eye for public opinion, as expressed through the media. His firm belief was that leniency is the only thing for which a judge is ever really lambasted. He was right, too. Just look at how they turned on that chap in the States.’
The Lord Advocate leaned back in his chair and looked at Skinner across his desk. ‘All that, of course, just adds to the list of potential grudge-bearers.’
The detective nodded, as if in agreement. ‘In theory, but I think we can disregard those who are still in jail.’
‘What about their families, though?’ asked Lord Archibald.
‘Those avenues will be explored, don’t worry. Still. .’ He hesitated, formulating his thoughts. ‘If we’re looking at a get-even murder by an old client or a relative, we have to consider their backgrounds. In my experience, and I’m sure in yours too, most criminals fall into two categories. There are the domestic offenders, violent husbands, abusive parents, or fairly frequently, people who have lost control only once in their lives, but with fatal results. Then there are the hooligans, the street boys. Usually, they run with gangs, and are into extreme violence. . but with knives, clubs, or guns occasionally.
‘I don’t see this killer coming from the first group. Families want to put their troubles behind them. As for the second, if Lord Archergait had been attacked on his way home from Court and stabbed, or beaten to death, that would fit the pattern. But poison, no.’ He fell silent, staring at the window for a few seconds.
‘Look, Mr King,’ he resumed. ‘It’s possible that your father was killed at random, by someone with an irrational grudge against the law in general. But I don’t think so. This murder was premeditated and thoroughly planned. From what I’ve been told so far, the killer watched and waited for his opportunity, and when it arose, he took it.
‘Be in no doubt that if they have to, my people are going to look over your father’s career on the Bench, case by case. To help them, I’d like you to go through his notes, his papers, his diaries, any records he may have kept of his career. Speak to your brother as well; he may recall something that’s slipped your mind.’
The bereaved son nodded. ‘Of course I’ll do that. Don’t expect anything from it though. Pa wasn’t a great hoarder.’
He blinked, hard, as the enormity of what he had been told began to sink in, and, as it did, the anger began to surface. ‘Good luck to you and your people, Mr Skinner. When you catch this bastard, I don’t imagine that I’ll be allowed to lead for the Crown.’ He smiled, wickedly. ‘However, thanks to Archie, and my new appointment, I’ll be in a position to ensure that whoever does leaves the judge and jury in no doubt as to what’s expected of them!’
28
Detective Chief Superintendent Martin opened the door of the small room opposite the CID suite. ‘How’s the viewing going, Sammy?’ he asked.
Young Constable Pye looked up at him, bleary-eyed. ‘I’ve got nothing so far, sir,’ he answered, quickly. ‘The fact is, I’m still working out how to tackle it. I’ll tell you now though, unless I get lucky, this is going to be a long job.’
‘I’m under no illusions about that. How will you go about it?’
Martin’s assistant pointed to the television screen on the table at which he sat. ‘Well, sir, as you can see from that, there are a lot of people on these tapes.’
‘Which bank is this?’
‘This is Dalkeith, where the first robbery took place.’ He pressed the pause button on the video player, and stood up to face the Head of CID. ‘I’ve decided to run through each bank’s tapes at least twice, to familiarise myself with the faces. That’s not as bad as it sounds, I can fast-forward, and I can cut out obvious non-runners. . old people, young girls delivering shop takings or getting change, handicapped people and so on.
‘My reasoning is that we’re looking for a male, probably in his thirties or forties, somebody with the potential to scare a guy like Nathan Bennett into silence. On my first run-through of each tape, I’ll note down all the possibles by date and time reference, then go through them again, concentrating on their appearance.
‘If I see the same face at more than one bank, that’ll ring an alarm bell.’
Martin nodded. ‘That sounds like a pretty fair plan. But are you sure you’re happy to tackle this on your own? I could give you a team of watchers if you thought it would it help.’
Pye shook his head. ‘No, sir. You and Mr Skinner are right. We could fill this room with people, yet everyone would still have to look at all the tapes. I’ve always had a good memory for faces. I’m confident that if there is a lead in here, I’ll find it.’
‘Okay, Sammy,’ said the Head of CID. ‘I’ll go with that. Have you got any feel for timescale yet? I don’t have to tell you how important this is.’
‘I know, Boss. Let’s see.’ He looked at his watch. ‘It’s mid-day Tuesday. If I find a suspect quickly, I’ll give you a shout at once. Failing that, how would it be if I report progress at close of play on Thursday?’
‘That’s acceptable.’ The DCS stepped towards the door. ‘I’ll let you get on with it.’
‘I’ll tell you one thing, sir,’ said DC Pye just as he reached it. ‘After this I won’t be wanting to watch telly for a long, long time.’
29
‘Want to talk about it?’
Tall even in his open-toed sandals, Bob looked down at Sarah, who grinned back at him as they made their way down the high dune. ‘What do you mean?’ he asked her.
‘You know damn well. You’ve been in another world since you got home this evening. Not one word of more than two syllables has passed your lips, and when I suggested that we should take the boys for a walk before we ate, you jumped at it.
‘I know you, husband, and I know when there’s something chewing at your brain. What is it? The bank robberies? Lord Archergait?’
He nodded as he side-footed his way down the slope, holding Jazz steady in his front-slung carrier. ‘Yes,’ he admitted. ‘It’s both of those things.
‘We have our best people on each inquiry, yet so far each one’s as cold as a witch’s tit.’