‘So she presumably stole the gun herself and took a potshot at her husband?’
‘She claimed that was Greg, her brother-in-law, who fired the gun. What she hadn’t told her uncle, but did tell Amir, was that she’d been having an affair with Greg and they planned this whole thing together. And, naturally, Amir is sceptical about all this because how can a dead man prove his innocence?’
‘Oh my God! So how will she ever be able to prove this?’ Linda asked.
‘She told Amir that she was queueing up for the loo at the time of the shooting, and she was actually entering the cubicle at the exact moment that the shot was fired. The woman coming out held the door open for her and said something like, “What the hell was that?”’
Linda frowned. ‘Did she have a description of this woman then?’
Ally shook her head. ‘Just that she was “nice”. Amir’s put a notice up outside the police station in the hope of finding this woman, but no response as yet.’
‘Could you describe what this Patti looked like or what she was wearing?’ Linda asked, taking a large gulp of her wine.
‘Well, she’s blonde and very slim, very stylish and she’s usually a bit heavy on the make-up,’ Ally replied.
‘I think,’ Linda said slowly, ‘that this woman they’re looking for is me.’
TWENTY-FIVE
Half an hour later, Ally and Linda walked along to the temporary police station in the vague hope that Detective Inspector Amir Kandahar might actually be there. He wasn’t, of course, but the policeman on duty called him, and Amir said that he’d be there in a couple of hours or so, and he’d go straight to The Bistro.
As they left, Linda once again studied the notice she’d been handed at the police station, appealing for witnesses who could corroborate Patti’s story. ‘That’s definitely her, Ally. She’s got quite a distinctive face and, although we only saw each other for a moment, I’d swear that it was her. I’ll go crazy waiting back at The Bistro on my own. Please, can you stay with me for a bit?’
With no one requiring her assistance back at the malthouse, Ally was happy to oblige.
‘Iknowit was her,’ Linda said again. ‘I thought for sure that she didn’t look like a local resident, and when she thanked me for holding the door open, I thought I could detect a faint American or Canadian accent.’
‘So long as you’re absolutely sure,’ Ally reminded her each time, ‘because the woman’s future may well depend on it.’
Linda had no bookings for her bistro that evening, so they were watchingThe Greatest Showmanwhen they saw Amir’s car draw up outside. Ally said she was going to go home because Amir would want to question Linda on her own.
‘What on earth have I let myself in for?’ Linda asked as she accompanied Ally to the front door.
‘Amir Kandahar is a really nice man,’ Ally assured her, ‘and he’ll listen carefully to what you have to say. Just tell him exactly what you told me, OK? And don’t forget how important this is because it could save a woman a lifetime in prison.’
‘I know, I know!’ Linda still sounded anxious. ‘But you know, there must have been other people in the queue behind her, so why haven’ttheycome forward?’
‘Probably because, like you, they didn’t read the notice outside the police station,’ Ally replied.
‘I’ll phone you later to let you know how it goes,’ Linda said as they parted company on the doorstep.
Ally couldn’t settle to do anything. She desperately wanted to be the bearer of glad tidings to the teenagers, but it would be folly to do so yet, just in case… She phoned Ross and told him about her visit to Linda and Linda’s revelation; she phoned her son, Jamie, in Edinburgh, and her daughter, Carol, in Wiltshire; she cleared all the emails in her inbox, and she swept up all the leaves in the garden – anything to occupy her mind. She was just considering pouring herself a glass of wine when her phone rang.
‘Whew!’ said Linda. ‘That was certainly an in-depth interview! But he did appear convinced that I was telling the truth. I’m really glad I was able to help because I keep thinking about those two daughters…’
‘Yes,’ agreed Ally. ‘I think everyone’s been concerned about them.’
Later, she heard Wendy come in, while Joel remained in the Jeep, engine running, before she reappeared with the two girls and they all drove off together, presumably to eat somewhere.
Ally cooked herself a pasta supper from the freezer, had a glass of wine and had another early night.
Wendy, Julie and Janey all appeared together for breakfast at nine o’clock the following morning. Both girls wanted scrambled eggs on toast again, and Wendy wanted a cheese omelette. Their appetites were on the up again, and Ally wondered if they had some inkling about Patti.
It was half past ten, while Ally was clearing away the empty plates, that Amir appeared. He settled himself at the kitchen table and got out his now bulging file.
‘As you know,’ he said, ‘Mrs Armstrong has been given an alibi.’ He accepted a cup of tea from Ally. ‘Your friend Linda was very definite and has sworn her statement to be true, so we are now obliged to release Mrs Armstrong on bail, for the moment anyway. She’ll still have to face charges of conspiracy to commit murder.’ He paused. ‘I must stress that officially she should remain under house arrest, but I’ve been lenient and told her that she cannot leave the village – no trips to Inverness or Fort William or anywhere like that, but she is free to go in and around the village.’
‘If Patti didn’t fire the shot, then that takes us back to square one, does it not?’
