‘Would you believe they’vestillgot no idea who killed my Archie?’ she snapped.
‘I’m sure they’ll find the killer soon,’ Ally replied.
‘Well, I’m not optimistic. And he won’t even let us move toInverness! No offence – you’ve been very kind – but the girls are bored, and I so need a visit to a beauty salon and a nail bar…’ She shook her head at the injustice of it all. ‘I think I’ll pop up to see Uncle Angus.’
Ally had mixed feelings about all this. Yes, like everyone else, she wanted the killer to be found, and she wouldn’t be particularly sorry to see the back of this family. But it was autumn now, and the visitors were dwindling, and so, from a purely financial point of view, Ally was grateful for their custom.
Next out of the sitting room was Greg, looking extremely angry.
‘Goddam detective!’ he roared. ‘That guy couldn’t catch a cold!’
Ally laid down her tray on the hall table. ‘Actually, Greg, I’ve found him to be very efficient, and these cases take time to solve, as I’m sure you’ll agree. It’s just over a week since Archie was killed, and they’re doing their best.’
‘It was definitely that McConnachie guy!’ he ranted. ‘Why the hell they had to let him go I’ll never know.’
‘He had a reliable alibi,’ Ally said.
‘Well, who else could it be?’ Greg’s face was red with fury. ‘These guys were just all so jealous of Archie, so it has to be one of them! I hope you don’t think it was one of us?’
‘No, no,’ Ally replied hastily. ‘Of coursenot!’
‘So it’s got to be the earl or one of his helpers,’ Greg said. ‘Who was the reliable alibi?’
‘As far as I know,’ Ally replied, ‘the earl vouched for him because he saw him at the tent when the shot was fired.’
‘Theearl!’ Greg almost spat theword out. ‘Surely the earl is a suspect too? So how can he give anyone an alibi? And who’s to say he’s not in cahoots with McConnachie? A joint venture perhaps?’
‘The earl had no reason to kill Archie,’ she said defensively, ‘and he’d beveryunlikely to be colluding with any of the McConnachies.’
‘Well,’ Greg said with a sigh, ‘I guess they’re both friends of yours and so I can understand your loyalty, but, from a neutral point of view, I can see the unbiased picture.’
There’s no convincing this man,Ally thought. And the last thing she wanted to do was get into an argument with one of her guests.
Greg didn’t appear to be calming down though, as he stomped his way upstairs, and Ally felt sorry for poor Wendy, who would now be most likely to be at the receiving end of his rants. Not for the first time, Ally wondered why he was so keen to pinpoint the blame on anyone, however unlikely. She could, of course, understand that the man was keen to get back to his cabin building, unfettered by his brother-in-law, and was understandably frustrated by the delay in an arrest.
Ally’s phone was buzzing as she returned to the kitchen. It was Linda.
‘Now that the tourist season has quietened down, I was going to suggest that you and Ross join Callum and myself for a nice meal up at Seascape Saturday evening, but now he’s going to have to run the bar because Ivan is off on some fun run or something. Have you any idea whatthat’sall about?’
‘I do,’ Ally admitted. ‘Hamish thought there’d been a gloomy atmosphere over the village since the murder, and that the suspects needed something to cheer them up – and keep them fit at the same time. So he’s organised this fun run, a race up round Loch Soular, across the moors and ending up at the castle grounds, where Hamish will present the winner with one hundred pounds and lay on a barbecue to boot!’
‘That’s very generous of him, but he’s scuppered my plans for Saturday,’ Linda said sadly.
‘Look, I’m on my own this afternoon,’ Ally said, ‘so why don’t you come up for a cup of tea? I’ve made some shortbread, and I’d really appreciate your expert opinion.’
‘I’ll do that,’ Linda said, ‘and I’ll bring up some cake I’ve just made. You can tell me if it’s good enough as a base for some new desserts for the Craigmonie!’
Ally groaned inwardly at all the calories likely to be consumed, but what the hell! These were tense times.
Linda duly appeared about four o’clock with an orange and lemon cake, and it couldn’t be denied that there was a definite hint of Cointreau in the recipe. It was, as always, absolutely delicious. So much so that she was secretly pleased when Linda accepted a second cup of tea and suggested another ‘teeny weeny’ slice of the heavenly concoction. So much for her worries about her calorie intake, but at least Linda was very enthusiastic about her shortbread.
‘So, how is Callum?’ Ally asked.
‘Oh, he’s fine, and I shouldn’t begrudge Ivan doing his fun run or whatever because he hardly ever asks for an evening off.’
‘I guess the prize is also quite an incentive,’ Ally remarked. ‘None of these lads earn a great deal of money. Hamish thinks it’s about ten or eleven miles, so they’re going to be pretty knackered by the time they get to the castle and the barbecue.’
‘To change the subject,’ Linda said with a wicked grin, ‘how’s the sleuthing going? Have you solved the crime yet?’
