head, laddie.’
‘I’ve reported a suspected murder attempt,’ said Hamish. The silence that followed that statement almost hummed in the ears. Then Hamish said sharply, ‘Who raised the bonnet of the car?’
‘Och, we only lifted it up to make sure there was no flames left underneath,’ said Mr Johnson crossly.
‘You shouldnae hae touched anything,’ said Hamish. ‘Mrs Todd, I think if you take Miss Kerr and the guests into the house, I’ll come with you and start taking statements. We’ll need to wait until the team arrives from Strathbane.’
‘I’ll hae a word to say to your superiors,’ raged Mrs Todd. ‘You cannae see a straightforward death when you come across it. When my man died, you was ferreting around my cupboards looking for poison.’
‘Had you told me your husband drank to excess, I wouldnae hae had to bother,’ pointed out Hamish. ‘I was acting under orders from the procurator fiscal.’ The late Mr Todd had choked to death on his vomit and poisoning had been suspected. It had indeed turned out to be poisoning, but alcohol poisoning. Mrs Todd always maintained her husband had died of a heart attack.
Mrs Todd went grimly into the house and began to make preparations for a breakfast-cum-lunch while the others shuffled silently into the sitting room. ‘Is there a room I can use?’ Hamish asked Alison.
‘What? Oh, yes. The study. Through there.’
‘Perhaps you would like to come through first, Miss Kerr. No, there is no need for you,’ he said to Peter, who rose at the same time as Alison and showed every sign of accompanying her.
Hamish sat down at the desk in the study. Alison had stopped crying. She looked ill.
‘Just tell me what you were doing this morning,’ said Hamish.
‘I heard the car start, or rather I heard the garage doors being opened,’ said Alison in a shaky voice. ‘She … Maggie … had been kind to me the day before, so I thought I would ask her if I could drive the car. I ran down and out and just as I got to her, the car burst into flames.’
‘Was there any sort of bang? Any sort of explosion?’
Alison tried to concentrate. ‘No,’ she said at last. ‘One minute I saw her face quite clearly through the windscreen, and then it had vanished and there was nothing but flame.’ She showed every sign of being about to cry again.
‘Now,’ said Hamish quickly, ‘let’s get to the house guests. The tall one who came down that night to the police station with ye, that’s Peter Jenkins. What do you know about him?’
‘He’s an advertising executive in his own company,’ said Alison. ‘He knew Maggie about twenty years ago, I think, or did he say eighteen? Anyway, he was in love with her and then he got her letter. You see, she wanted to get married and so she had chosen four of her old lovers. You don’t seem surprised?’
‘I’m surprised at her odd way of courting but not that she had a lot of lovers. Go on.’
‘He told me she’d changed. He wasn’t in love with her anymore although I heard …’
Alison bit her lip. She had been about to tell Hamish about overhearing Peter begging for money, but Peter had held Alison and comforted her and she felt she had to protect him.
‘What were you about to say?’ demanded Hamish sharply.
Alison looked mutinous. He sighed and said, ‘I’ll return to that. Tell me about the others.’
‘The smallish man in the yellow pyjamas is Crispin Witherington. He owns a car salesroom in Finchley in North London. He took me out driving. He wanted me to put a good word in for him with Maggie.’
‘Now why would he suggest that? You said yourself Maggie hated you.’
‘He thought Maggie was fond of me to leave me everything in her will …’ Alison looked at Hamish with dilated eyes.
‘Don’t be in a taking,’ said Hamish quickly, frightened that Alison would start another scene. ‘The fact the woman left you her money doesn’t mean you killed her for it.’
‘It’s not that,’ said
‘I’ve reported a suspected murder attempt,’ said Hamish. The silence that followed that statement almost hummed in the ears. Then Hamish said sharply, ‘Who raised the bonnet of the car?’
‘Och, we only lifted it up to make sure there was no flames left underneath,’ said Mr Johnson crossly.
‘You shouldnae hae touched anything,’ said Hamish. ‘Mrs Todd, I think if you take Miss Kerr and the guests into the house, I’ll come with you and start taking statements. We’ll need to wait until the team arrives from Strathbane.’
‘I’ll hae a word to say to your superiors,’ raged Mrs Todd. ‘You cannae see a straightforward death when you come across it. When my man died, you was ferreting around my cupboards looking for poison.’
‘Had you told me your husband drank to excess, I wouldnae hae had to bother,’ pointed out Hamish. ‘I was acting under orders from the procurator fiscal.’ The late Mr Todd had choked to death on his vomit and poisoning had been suspected. It had indeed turned out to be poisoning, but alcohol poisoning. Mrs Todd always maintained her husband had died of a heart attack.
Mrs Todd went grimly into the house and began to make preparations for a breakfast-cum-lunch while the others shuffled silently into the sitting room. ‘Is there a room I can use?’ Hamish asked Alison.
‘What? Oh, yes. The study. Through there.’
‘Perhaps you would like to come through first, Miss Kerr. No, there is no need for you,’ he said to Peter, who rose at the same time as Alison and showed every sign of accompanying her.
Hamish sat down at the desk in the study. Alison had stopped crying. She looked ill.
‘Just tell me what you were doing this morning,’ said Hamish.
‘I heard the car start, or rather I heard the garage doors being opened,’ said Alison in a shaky voice. ‘She … Maggie … had been kind to me the day before, so I thought I would ask her if I could drive the car. I ran down and out and just as I got to her, the car burst into flames.’
‘Was there any sort of bang? Any sort of explosion?’
Alison tried to concentrate. ‘No,’ she said at last. ‘One minute I saw her face quite clearly through the windscreen, and then it had vanished and there was nothing but flame.’ She showed every sign of being about to cry again.
‘Now,’ said Hamish quickly, ‘let’s get to the house guests. The tall one who came down that night to the police station with ye, that’s Peter Jenkins. What do you know about him?’
‘He’s an advertising executive in his own company,’ said Alison. ‘He knew Maggie about twenty years ago, I think, or did he say eighteen? Anyway, he was in love with her and then he got her letter. You see, she wanted to get married and so she had chosen four of her old lovers. You don’t seem surprised?’
‘I’m surprised at her odd way of courting but not that she had a lot of lovers. Go on.’
‘He told me she’d changed. He wasn’t in love with her anymore although I heard …’
Alison bit her lip. She had been about to tell Hamish about overhearing Peter begging for money, but Peter had held Alison and comforted her and she felt she had to protect him.
‘What were you about to say?’ demanded Hamish sharply.
Alison looked mutinous. He sighed and said, ‘I’ll return to that. Tell me about the others.’
‘The smallish man in the yellow pyjamas is Crispin Witherington. He owns a car salesroom in Finchley in North London. He took me out driving. He wanted me to put a good word in for him with Maggie.’
‘Now why would he suggest that? You said yourself Maggie hated you.’
‘He thought Maggie was fond of me to leave me everything in her will …’ Alison looked at Hamish with dilated eyes.
‘Don’t be in a taking,’ said Hamish quickly, frightened that Alison would start another scene. ‘The fact the woman left you her money doesn’t mean you killed her for it.’
‘It’s not that,’ said
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