Chapter 12
Isolation (also) is an important element in the modification of species through Natural Selection. All fresh water basins, taken together, make a small area compared with that of the sea or of the land. Consequently, the competition between fresh water productions will have been less severe than elsewhere; new forms will have been more slowly produced, and old forms more slowly exterminated. And it is in fresh water basins that we find seven genera of Ganoid fishes, remnants of a once preponderant order. These anomalous forms may be called living fossils; they have endured to the present day, from having inhabited a confined area, and from having been exposed to less varied, and therefore less severe, competition.
I had no doubt that there was something abnormal in the Loch and that it must be the monster or some unusually big living object which was making one of its rare appearances.
The high court of justiciary is now back in session, Lord Neil Hannam presiding."
The judge took his place behind his bench, wished his clerks a cheery good morning, then addressed Max. "Mr. Rael, is the defense prepared to make its case?"
"We are, my lord."
"Then you may call your first witness."
"Call to the stand, Mr. Angus William Wallace of Drumnadrochit."
Angus turned, gave me a wave, and was sworn in.
"Mr. Wallace, what is your relationship with the deceased?" He was a friend and one-time business associate."
"Describe your business dealings with Mr. Cialino for the High Court."
"Cialino Ventures wis interested in constructin' a five-star resort, hotel, an' holiday apartments on a parcel o' land my ancestors owned overlookin' Loch Ness. I selt him the land, which wis tae be paid in installments. He owed me for the last payment, but he'd been puttin' me off for weeks. So I went ower tae his site an' we went for a wee walk tae chat."
"And?"
"An' the lyin' bastard telt me he wis short o' cash, which wis crap, bein' that he'd jist bought his mistress a fancy new diamond necklace no' two days earlier."
I glanced at Theresa Cialino, who seemed unfazed about the mistress comment.
"Johnny didnae ken it, but I saw his tart wearin' it when they left the jewelers together. Quite a piece of ice for that piece o' ass. Ye willnae catch me payin' for—"
"Objection!" The prosecutor was standing. "My lord, the victim's personal life is not on trial here."
"Sustained," said the judge, his dour expression intended as a warning to Max.
Max signaled for Angus to ease up. "What happened after Mr. Cialino told you he was short of cash?"
"He claimed he'd pay me after the resort did some business, an' if I didnae like it, it wis too bad, that wis the price o' doin' business wi' the Cialinos. So I hit him."
"You struck Mr. Cialino?"
"Aye, square in the nose. Didnae break it, but I drew blood, an' he stumbled back a few steps, cursin' up a storm, then he twisted his ankle on a tree root an' tumbled ower the edge, right intae Loch Ness."
"What happened next?"
"I dropped tae my knees an' looked ower the slope. John had surfaced an' wis treadin' water. He wis in fair shape, though blood wis pourin' frae both nostrils. I called oot, 'and that's the price o' doin' business with a Wallace, ye cheatin' bastard.' Suddenly, the water came alive wi' salmon, must've been hundreds o' them. Some were leapin' straight oot o' the water, a few smackin' John right in the heid. Made me laugh, it did, but then… then the sun slid behind a cloud an' I saw it."
"It?"
The benches creaked in unison as the public leaned forward to listen. "Aye. A huge animal it wis, long an' serpentlike, had tae be at least fifteen meters, an' it was circlin' John an' thae salmon like a hungry wolf. Grayish in color, or maybe broon, hard tae tell 'cause it wis stayin' jist below the surface, an' visibility in the Loch's like lookin' through a dark lager. I could jist make oot a bizarre dorsal fin runnin' the entire length o' its body, almost like a horse's mane. John couldnae see the creature, but he could feel its powerful undertow as it circled, an' he grew all panicky, callin' oot tae me for help."
"What did you do?"
"Nothin' I could dae, for whit happened next happened awfy fast. The sun appeared again an' splattered across the surface, blindin' me in its reflection, so that I lost sight o' the beast. An' then …" Angus paused, pinching the bridge of his nose with a quivering hand.
"Go on."
"Then John let oot a cry… a terrible wail it wis, the most awfy sound I ever did hear, only it ended abruptly as the creature grabbed hold an' dragged him under frae below, an' the two o' them jist disappeared."
The courtroom erupted in a hundred conversations, some people laughing hysterically, others aghast, howling and swearing like they'd seen the Holy Ghost. The widow Cialino bit her lip and covered her face in her hands, and more than a few of the older ladies fainted dead away.
Me? I just sat there, incredulous.
The judge banged his gavel for quiet, nearly breaking it in the process. "Let me remind you that this is the High Court. Another outburst and I shall order this courtroom cleared!"
The silence became deafening, no one, save me, wanting to leave.
The judge turned to Angus, a skeptical look on his face. "Mr. Wallace, are you actually testifying, under oath, that you witnessed Mr. Cialino devoured by… by the Loch Ness monster?"
"No' devoured, m'lord, but snatched an' dragged below, absolutely."
I closed my eyes, praying not to see any purple spots.
Angus turned to the jury, reciting a well-rehearsed speech. "I seek no alibis for my actions. It wis wrong o' me tae strike my friend an' business associate, an' I never meant him tae go ower the cliff, that wis an act of God. But I've been sworn tae tell the truth, an' this is whit I've done. No matter whit ye may think, I saw that beast, an' he saw me. Whether he intended to snatch John Cialino or did it by accident, we'll never ken, but snatch him he did, an' he took him straight under, never tae be seen again. The Polis can drag Loch Ness frae now tae my hangin' day, but they'll never find nothin', mark my words, an' I'll never change my testimony, for it's the truth, so help me God."
The judge banged his gavel again, silencing the buzz, then requested all attorneys to join him immediately at his bench for a conference.
The courtroom exhaled and the media's feeding frenzy officially commenced. Reporters typed furiously on laptop keyboards and Blackberrys as fast as their cigarette-stained fingers could move, while others frantically called their editors on cell phones, demanding front- page space in their evening editions.
The judge chastised Maxie with a hard scowl. "Mr. Rael, I warn you, if you intend on turning this trial into a three-ring circus, I shall hold you in contempt and burn your barrister's license."
"My lord, the accused has given us his account of what happened, and we intend to prove it to the jury."
"That I'd like to see," scoffed Jennifer Shaw, the assistant prosecutor.
As I watched them talk, my mind underwent sort of an out-of-body experience. Was I really here in Scotland? Had my father actually testified that the victim had been dragged below by the Loch Ness monster?
And what part was I to play in this, Angus's latest charade? The attorneys took their seats.
It was time for Act Two to begin.
"Lord Advocate, would you care to question the witness?"
"Indeed we would, my lord." Mitchell Obrecht shot back, his voice booming through the two-hundred-year-old courtroom. "Mr. Wallace, I've been a prosecutor for twelve years and a barrister for eight before that, and in all my years, I've never heard such a ridiculous, fantastical testimony as yours. The legend of a water beast in Loch Ness has never been proven in fourteen centuries, and even if accepted as a mystery, no accounting has ever been documented of a person actually being attacked."