The Dark Fear (15 page)

Chapter 27

R
ain was beating down outside. James had decided to turn his attention to the attic. There wasn’t any means of reaching the hatch so he carried the step-ladder up to the landing, climbed to the top and hoisted himself through the tiny aperture.

              The floor had been boarded. There was insulation in places, although James thought he could add a lot more, which might warm the house up a bit. The bulb had gone, so he shone a torch beam ahead into the semi-darkness.

              Piles of cardboard boxes, old paintings and books were placed at the far end of the loft. James crawled towards them, feeling the dust lining the inside of his throat as he took each breath. Not wishing to linger for too long up there, he pulled a few of the boxes out, slid them along the boards and dropped them onto the landing below. Anything that appeared to have some value he left where it was, returning to the hatch and suspending his body weight by the arms until his feet found the top of the ladder and he could climb back down.

              James coughed the dust up from deep within his lungs, deciding to wear a mask if he went up there again. It didn’t take long to discover that the contents of the boxes must have belonged to the Gascoigne family, the last people to have occupied Oak Lodge for any significant period of time.

              Pulling out photograph albums and desk diaries, he wondered why they’d left so much stuff here. Then James remembered Aiden saying the Gascoignes moved abroad. The family probably had to leave a great deal of their property behind.

              Judging by the photos in the album, the Gascoignes had a son and daughter. One of the pictures showed two young children playing in the garden of Oak Lodge. It was sunny and they were wearing shorts and T-shirts. The little boy was hanging off the rope ladder which led up to the treehouse Bill had discovered. James slipped it out of the sleeve and turned it over.

              Antonia and Sam, August 1992.              

              He put the photo back and flicked on. There were a few family shots. Lynda Gascoigne was a slender, tanned woman with shoulder length hair. Tim seemed older than his wife, possibly because he’d gone quite grey. Oak Lodge had clearly been a happy family home.

              James rested on his haunches, considering what to do with the contents. It seemed like a terrible shame to throw it out, although no one had touched the stuff for at least sixteen years. He wondered if Adele March had a forwarding address in the US for them. He’d be happy to pay the postage.

              There was a knock at the front door. James levered himself up and jogged down to open it.

              Aiden was standing on the step, without his shotgun this time. ‘Morning. Sorry to bother you. I wondered if you’d decided whether or not to join us for the shoot on Saturday afternoon? I’d enjoy the opportunity to show you how civilised the sport can be.’

              ‘Actually, I’d love to. It’s very good of you to offer. I’ve got no experience, though. I’m bound to be hopeless.’

              Aiden smiled. ‘Come over to the Hall an hour before the guests are due to arrive. I’ll give you a practice session. Before long, you’ll be an expert.’

              ‘Great,’ James replied. ‘I’ll look forward to it.’

*

Dani had some jobs to do whilst she was back at Pitt Street. Eleanor Nicholson’s words were still ringing in her ears as she pottered around her office. For the past couple of weeks, she’d been gearing herself up for the move to Edinburgh. It was clearly what James wanted. But Angus’ stroke changed everything. Dani could become a superintendent
and
remain in Glasgow.

              She sat down at the desk and powered up the Police Scotland database. Dani needed a distraction. She’d already ascertained that Rory Burns had no criminal convictions. Her only other source of information was the DVLA.

              Dani drummed her fingers whilst the system dealt with her request. There were at least a hundred Rory Burns in the UK with current driving licences. The DCI had to then narrow the search down by birth date.

              She’d found him. He’d driven a Vauxhall Nova for two years, from 1995-97. Then the car had been transferred to another named driver. Burns didn’t appear in the records again.

              Dani found it impossible to believe that the man hadn’t owned a vehicle in the intervening twenty years. The last address she had for him was in a suburb of Durham. Dani would drive back east the following day and check it out. For now, all the DCI felt like doing was going home to her own flat, ringing her dad, and getting some sleep.

Chapter 28

H
e gently squeezed the trigger of the shotgun, struggling to remain on his feet as the bullet was violently released. Aiden showed him how to pre-empt the kick by holding the gun very tightly under his shoulder.

              After half an hour of practice, James was starting to get the hang of it. Aiden left him alone when the guests began to arrive, taking care to remove the firearm from James’ hands first. Their Land Rovers seemed to fill every inch of the sweeping drive.

              The men filing in through the front entrance of Langford Hall were dressed in corduroy trousers and tweed jackets. James got the sense that some were competent at the sport whilst others were beginners.

              He was surprised to see Tilly Newton joining the novice group. James moved across to stand beside her. ‘I didn’t expect to see you here. I wouldn’t have thought this was your kind of thing at all.’

              ‘Actually, my dad was a farmer. I know how to use a gun. I’ll be taking the newcomers out to the range. Aiden handles the more experienced marksmen. They go over to a designated area in the woods.’

              James had to admit it was a rather pleasant afternoon. Tilly was a patient teacher. By the time he had become comfortable with the gun, and was hitting the clay pigeons on a regular basis, James was genuinely enjoying it.

              ‘You’re a natural,’ Tilly commented as she came over to check his score.

              ‘I’m not sure about that. At least I’m no longer in pain.’

              She chuckled. ‘Your shoulder will probably be bruised by this evening, maybe the neck too, if you’ve not been holding the gun right. But I think it’s worth it.’

              James lowered the weapon, replacing the ear protectors on the stand. ‘Do you keep any other types of firearms here at Langford – part of your own collection perhaps?’

              Tilly furrowed her brow. ‘We aren’t a bunch of gun-toting maniacs! The shotguns are all kept in the gun room at the Hall. Only Aiden and Mr March have keys. I’d never keep a gun in the cottage. It’s far more likely to get used on us than vice-versa.’

              ‘Of course, it was a stupid question.’

              ‘Not at all. The Earl and his wife seem so old-fashioned. It hard not to assume this place is being run as it was in the nineteenth century. But Aiden is more on the ball than you’d think. He’s very up-to-date with the rules and regulations. I wouldn’t have married him otherwise.’

              James thought this was probably true.              

              ‘Come on, Morrison is serving afternoon tea in the drawing room. The cook will have made a fab selection of cakes. It’s important to impress the clientele.’

              ‘As long as Aiden doesn’t mind?’

              ‘He’ll be glad to see a friendly face. Follow me.’

*

He heard the front door open downstairs, but could barely move a muscle to respond.

              ‘Is anyone at home?’ Dani’s voice drifted up the stairs.

              ‘I’m in the bath!’

              Her footsteps pounded up to the landing, pausing by the bathroom door. ‘Have you been painting again?’

              James shook his head. ‘I’ve been at the shooting event. I’m aching all over. I don’t believe there’s a single part of my body that doesn’t hurt.’

              Dani chuckled, moving over to perch on the edge. ‘You didn’t enjoy it much then?’

              ‘At the time, it was great. But about half an hour after I’d stuffed my face with scones and cream I could hardly move my legs.’ He sat up in the water, showing Dani the huge purple bruise slowly forming on his shoulder and upper arm.

              She gasped, running her hand along the wet skin. ‘Oh my God! It looks awful. Sorry, I shouldn’t have encouraged you to go to it.’

              ‘I did find out some information.’

              ‘Same here.’ Dani grabbed a towel and helped him out of the water.

              James immediately pulled her to his dripping body.

              ‘Hey! My clothes are getting soaking.’

              ‘You could always take them off.’

              ‘I thought that you were sore all over?’

              ‘It’s nothing that a bit of TLC wouldn’t cure.’

              Dani returned his kiss, whilst continuing to rub him dry. ‘Get dressed and I’ll open a bottle of wine.’

              ‘Spoil sport.’

              ‘You’ve clearly had enough sport for one day.’

              He laughed.

Dani sipped her wine while she waited for James to come down. She noticed the photograph albums that had been piled up in the utility room, going across to pluck one out and lay it on the kitchen table.

              ‘They belonged to the Gascoigne family,’ James said from the doorway, running a hand through his damp hair.

              ‘The house looked great back then. The garden was idyllic.’

              ‘There’s no reason why we can’t get it that way again. I’ll find a landscaper in Longniddry to do the job.’

              ‘It’s more than that.’ Dani took another mouthful, pouring James a glass. ‘It’s obvious that someone in the family really loved gardening. There’s a natural look to the planting. Of course, these photos all seem to have been taken during the height of summer, which certainly helps.’

              James slipped onto a seat. ‘You said you had information?’

              ‘Oh yes, I’ve been tracking down your friend today.’

              James looked confused.

              ‘Rory Burns. The last address I could find on the database for him was a flat in Durham City. The place has been re-developed now, but one of the officers down there told me it used to be a street full of student digs.’

              ‘There
must
be some record of his movements since university. That was decades ago.’

              ‘Ah, well, that’s what I found out today. I decided to make a visit to the Scottish Records Office. Burns went travelling in 1997. He went to the Holy Land first and then took a flight to India. Burns was part of a bus tour that set off from Delhi to Agra. The bus crashed and he was killed. I held his death certificate in my hands. To be honest, it never crossed my mind he’d passed away. I didn’t think to check that first. He was so young.’

              ‘So that’s why there’s no further evidence of his whereabouts. It’s very sad. Yet another tragedy.’ James took a healthy gulp from his glass.

              ‘I’ve never had a case that’s come up against so many dead ends. I feel very sorry for Bob Gordon. He must be tearing his hair out.’

              ‘My news won’t help then. According to Tilly, the only guns on this estate are under strict lock and key in the Hall itself. I was inclined to believe her.’

              ‘Tilly Newton was there?’

              ‘Yep, she helps Aiden with the shoots. Her dad was a farmer, so she’s familiar with the equipment.’

              ‘I thought they were an odd couple. Tilly seems fairly right-on but Aiden is quite prudish and old-fashioned.’

              ‘According to her, Newton is more progressive than he appears.’

              Dani raised an eyebrow. ‘I’ll believe that when I see it.’ She flicked through a few more of the pages in the album. ‘The Gascoignes’ children must have been a similar age to Adam and Claudia March.’

              ‘They were called Antonia and Sam. Still are, I expect.’

              ‘The Gascoignes left in 1999, right? Their kids were probably late teens by then.’

              ‘It must have been a lovely childhood, growing up here,’ James muttered. ‘I bet it was a wrench when Tim Gascoigne got that job in Chicago. It’s tough to persuade teenagers to give up everything they know.’

              ‘Hmm. The estate must have been quite different then. Young people change the atmosphere of a place. I bet Adele misses that time dreadfully.’

              James rested his hand on her shoulder. ‘You should ask her about it.’

              Dani nodded, polishing off the contents of her glass. ‘I just might.’

Chapter 29

J
ames opened the door and allowed Bill Hutchison to enter.

              ‘Great to see you. Thanks for coming.’

              ‘Not a problem. Joy is looking after the boys while Louise views a house. She didn’t mind me driving over.’

              James took Bill’s anorak and hung it on a hook. ‘I’m not going to expect any manual labour from you today. It’s purely your knowledge that I’m interested in.’

              ‘Ah yes, DCI Bevan told me about the case of the 1943 Seton shootings. I spent yesterday at the Scottish Records Office in Charlotte Square. Dani said the place proved very useful in her investigation. There was quite a haul of papers on the 1943 incident in their archives. Joy thought I was never coming home.’

              James put the kettle on. ‘Oh, I didn’t want you to go to too much trouble.’