Hunter's Rules (The Edinburgh Crime Mysteries Book 6) Read online

  “It’s surely likely, because we never revealed that the eyes had been removed from the other corpses,” DS Colin Reid said.

  “How come this one didn’t die?” Bear asked.

  “Her name is Eileen Maguire, Bear. I suspect the only reason she’s alive is because Meera and I found her shortly after the attack and the ambulance got her to hospital quickly. She got fluids and blood to stabilise her blood pressure and the Accident and Emergency Team managed the shock and kept her alive.”

  “But she’s still blind?”

  “She has no eyes, Bear. Of course, she’s blind.” Hunter shook his head.

  “Tim, when Eileen was asked who her next of kin is, she mentioned a sister, Linda.”

  “Shit. Linda Maguire is Jamie Thomson’s girlfriend. I got some rambling message from Ailsa yesterday. That must be what she was trying to tell me.”

  “It may not be the same Linda Maguire, but can you contact Jamie and Linda to find out if it’s possible?”

  “Bloody hell, how do I introduce that into a conversation?”

  “You’ll find a way, lad. Now, uniforms went round the staff in the reception, bar and Pompadour Restaurant to try to get details of the man Eileen was with. She seemed to think his name was Frederick, but I doubt that’s going to be true.”

  “No chance,” Colin said.

  “I agree, Colin. They did manage to get descriptions from four members of staff. They’re all different. Of course, I can’t really criticise, as I was sitting facing Meera and wasn’t aware of Eileen’s table at all. Still, I will file a witness report this morning.”

  “Should you be involved in the case, I mean if you’re a witness, boss?” Colin asked.

  “Are you volunteering to lead the team, DS Reid?”

  “No. Not at all.”

  “I want all the witnesses to go through our mugshots and see if they recognise anybody. Also, our newly qualified victim support officer, DC Anderson, is assigned to our victim when she is sufficiently recovered. Right Rachael?”

  “Yes, boss.”

  Chapter Seven

  “Don’t you think that sounds a bit unkind, Jamie? I mean, the Morrisons have never done anything nasty to us.”

  “You’re soft, Linda. And anyway, they’ve been talking out of turn about Frankie’s twins.”

  “No, surely not! They’re only little girls.”

  “Don’t let them hear you say that. They think they’re big girls now. Let’s get a cuppa tea and I’ll tell you all about Pop’s plan.”

  Jamie followed her into the kitchen. He stood and watched her fill the kettle, take two teabags out of the cupboard, the milk out of the fridge and add three teaspoons of sugar to his mug.

  “You should really take less sugar, you know.”

  “Yes, I know. Shall we have a couple of biscuits?” Jamie reached for the tin. He saw her smile at him. He thought Linda could really be the one.

  “I wonder how Eileen’s date went last night. She was excited. Frederick, I think she said the guy’s name was.”

  “They met online if I remember. Very dodgy if you ask me.”

  “Well, I didn’t. She had talked to him for ages, first online, then on the phone, then facetime.”

  “Yeh, yeh. I know. Hobnob or chocolate digestive?”

  “Chocolate every time. And he was taking her to that fancy restaurant in the Waldorf Astoria. It’s a very public place. Nothing could go wrong there.”

  “Where’s the Waldorf Astoria then?” He picked up the biscuits and followed her back to the living room.

  “You know, it used to be The Caledonian at the west end of Princes Street.”

  “Aye, well, it may surprise you to know that is not one of my usual haunts,” he said. “Cuddle up and I’ll tell you Pop’s plan while Frankie and Donna are out.”

  They sat close together on the sofa and Jamie mentioned how his pop wanted a room when he was released from prison, but Ian thought the house would be much too crowded.

  “That’s true. We’ve already got all three bedrooms taken with Frankie and Donna in the big room, you and me in the second bedroom and Kylie and Dannii in the wee one. Your pop would have to sleep in the bath,” Linda said.

  “Exactly what he thought, so he suggested we move out. After all, this is really Frankie’s house. Pop doesn’t want to go far because he likes to look out for Frankie.”

  “From the big house?”

  “Aye, well. You know what I mean.”

  Jamie reached for a biscuit and explained that his pop had heard the Morrisons in the other half of their semi-detached house planned to move and suggested that Jamie make life a bit uncomfortable for them, so they went sooner rather than later. That way they’d be away by the time pop was out on parole and needed a room. He smiled and told her that pop thought the nuisance he would cause should also make sure the Morrisons were willing to accept a quick sale and a lower price.

  “How does your pop know that they even want to move, Jamie. I mean, he’s inside.”

  “Pop’s got his contacts. Now’t much gets past him.”

  Jamie heard his phone ring and walked back through to the kitchen where he’d left it. Why was a copper calling him? He hadn’t even done anything yet.

  “Blondie, need a new car?” he asked Tim hopefully.

  “Not this time, Jamie. Is Linda about?”

  “Aye. Linda it’s Tim. Here she is.”

  “No Jamie, I don’t want to speak to Linda. I need you to move to where she can’t overhear us.”

  “Hang on, let me check the motor.” When Jamie was seated in the front of his car, he pretended to rummage around in the glove compartment. “Okay, Tim I’m in the car and she’s still in the house. What’s up?”

  “Is it possible that Linda’s sister was having dinner at The Pompadour Restaurant of the Waldorf Astoria last night?”

  “Is that the really posh place, used to be The Caledonian or what?”

  “Yes. Expensive too.”

  “Yep, she was there on a first date with this guy she met online. I think all that’s dodgy, but Linda says no, Eileen was really careful and went slowly, slowly to get to know him. Then, of course, they meet first in a public place, so she’s fine.”

  “Have you heard from her?”

  “No. Why?”

  “Was her date’s name Frederick by any chance?”

  “Yes. Look, how come you’re so interested in Eileen’s love life? You’ve got a bird.”

  “I don’t think Eileen is fine, Jamie. A young woman called Eileen Maguire, who says her sister’s name is, Linda, was attacked last night. We think the attack was carried out by her date, whose name was Frederick.”

  “Fuck. Don’t tell me she’s dead. I can’t tell Linda her sister is dead. What happened, Tim?”

  “I don’t know all the details, but she’s in an induced coma in intensive care at the Royal Infirmary. Do you want me to pick you and Linda up?”

  “No, I’ll drive, it’ll be faster.”

  “I can blues and twos, and you’ll not have to park. I’ll be with you in fifteen minutes.”

  “Right. Fine. Fucking hell, Tim. What do I tell Linda?”

  Chapter Eight

  It’s a shame that the most recent one didn’t die like the others. She could identify me. Wait, no. She can’t she’s blind. I feel a bit bad about that, and I’ve no doubt I’ll be told I botched it. But I really couldn’t have known she’d be found that quickly.

  I wanted her to have that one evening of being treated like a princess and pampered. I suppose I’m too soft. It’s a good job I had a proper look around the hotel before I met her there, otherwise I might have been found too. That can’t happen.

  ***

  Meera and her colleague, David Murray, were the attending pathologists.

  “Did I tell you Chrissie and I are expecting?”

  “Again? How many will this be?” Meera asked.

  “Six. I’m hoping to make it to a football team.” David gr
inned as he washed his hands.

  “I can just hear Chrissie’s views on that, Dr Murray,” Meera said.

  She scrubbed up and disinfected her hands then made her way over to the examination room where David was already waiting for her. He had wheeled in the body of the second victim into the hospital mortuary. Meera looked around her domain and thought how much her post-mortem examination room looked like an operating theatre.

  David had already transferred the corpse to a stainless-steel table that occupied the middle of the spotlessly clean white floor. The victim was lying on her back with her arms loosely resting by her sides. Meera glanced at David and shook her head.

  “This is so vicious,” she said. “And very difficult when we know so little about the victim.”

  “That’s true. But we’ll find out what we can. Who do you think will attend for Police Scotland today?”

  “I believe metallurgists found the corpse in its original site on Cramond beach. PC Neil Larkin was the first officer on the scene. Hunter told me that he planned to second Neil to CID, so I believe he and Nadia Chan have been delegated to come today.”

  “Well I hope Neil manages a little better than some of the other first timers. Didn’t Bear Zewedu faint during his first post-mortem?”

  Meera nodded.

  “But Nadia is a trouper. We can always rely on her, at least to stay conscious.” David smiled.

  Meera turned her attention to the body on the table. She noted the livor mortis on the woman’s body caused by the settling of the blood.

  “She was definitely not killed in the location where she was found.” David frowned.

  “True enough indeed. Oh, it sounds like the boys and girls in blue are arriving,” Meera said.

  As Neil and Nadia walked towards the examination room, Meera looked up and smiled.

  “DC Chan, how good to see you again.”

  “Thanks Doctor Sharma. This is my colleague, DC Larkin.”

  “DC Larkin, hello. Thank you for coming. It seems we were correct on our guess of attending officers, David.”

  “Post-mortems are always interesting, but I would happily never come here again if it meant that people stopped getting killed.” Nadia looked at Meera then at Neil.

  “And I would just quite happily never come here again. It smells awful,” Neil said.

  “We should get gowned up, Neil,” Nadia said. “This way.”

  “There really is a distinctive smell in here, isn’t there?” Neil commented as he followed Nadia.

  “Yes, a bit like a combination of formaldehyde, antiseptic and industrial soap, isn’t it? It’s also a bit chilly, just those few degrees below what would be considered comfortable makes all the difference.”

  “It’s a big room,” said Neil, when Nadia and Neil returned to witness the post-mortem.

  “Yes, well by the time I’ve got my large double sinks along the wall, a metal counter to hold all the tools and the channel leading to the drain, I suppose it has to be big,” Meera said.

  “When you two are finished discussing the equipment, might we get on with the job?” David asked.

  The two DCs moved so that they could see the body on the stainless-steel examination table below the powerful circular halogen lights which were suspended from the ceiling. Meera positioned herself on the other side of the table from the two detectives. They watched in silence as Meera first freed the body from its sandy, laced shoes. There were cuts and grazes on the body’s hands, possibly from a fight she put up against her attacker, and there were animal bites and scratches that she had suffered since death. Meera also noticed the tiny abrasions and colour changes to around the neck.

  “Look at this,” Meera said. “Her neck was bound, held or restrained in some way, by the looks of things. She might have been throttled into unconsciousness before her eyes were removed.”

  David pulled a face as he watched Meera remove the clothes from the top of the body to get a better look. “There’s bits of sand and dirt stuck to that,” he said. “Probably from after she was dumped on the beach.”

  “Yes, that would be right. She was just above the tideline when the metal detecting guys called it in. That’s where I first saw her,” Neil said.

  As each piece of clothing was taken from the body, Meera methodically gave them to David. He put every item carefully into plastic evidence bags which would be handed over to the forensics experts for further examination. Meera then took blood, urine and hair samples as well as oral, vaginal and anal swabs. When Meera removed the victim’s underwear – the next thing she noticed was the large bruise on the victim’s belly.

  “Have you seen this, David?” she asked. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he knelt on her to get the purchase to remove the eyes. We’ll need to check for injuries to the internal organs.

  “Nasty!” David Murray frowned.

  “I don’t suppose there’s much doubt about the cause of death.” Neil grimaced.

  “I don’t like to pre-empt our findings, but the poor soul would have suffered severe shock from the removal of the eyeballs and if we find damage to the internal organs, there could be massive internal bleeding inside the abdominal cavity,” Meera said.

  Then David looked at Neil. “We expect to find evidence that she was drugged like the first victim. If so, she would never have recovered consciousness from that and the strangulation. The victims may not even have felt the pain from the cuts.”

  Nadia gasped. Neil closed his eyes and fell to the floor with a thud.

  “And he was doing so well,” David said.

  Nadia didn’t respond. She just placed Neil gently into the recovery position, apologised to the doctors and invited them to continue with their work.

  David nodded and reached for the digital camera. He documented everything as Meera finished undressing the body. She scraped gently underneath the nails of each of the fingers.

  “I have fragments of skin here that might give us DNA from the attacker,” she said.

  She then sprayed the body with fungicide and used a hose with a powerful waterjet to methodically wash and disinfect the corpse fully. When she was finished, she turned on her voice recorder and dictated the official examination.

  She began by stating the date and time, followed by the case number then she described the general state of the body, before she moved on to describe the grisly details. Meera checked that the directional light in her headset was switched on, although she knew it was, it gave her a couple of seconds to compose herself discreetly before she began checking the skin around the corpse’s neck.

  “No other suspicious bruises,” David commented.

  A touch check of the neck revealed that both the larynx and trachea of the victim had collapsed.

  “And her thyroid bone in the neck is fractured, so it suggests that she was strangled probably before the eyes were removed. The strangulation could have been used to subdue or maybe to move her,” Meera said, glancing at David.

  “There was no sign of anything else that might have been used to strangle her when the body was found, was there?” Meera asked Nadia.

  “Not that I know of. Neil could better answer that if he were awake. Do you want me to give him a shake?”

  “No, just leave him, Nadia.” Meera then turned her attention back to the body. She checked for signs of sexual or any other kind of aggression. She began with the mouth, pulling it open and checking for any trauma or skin and teeth colour alteration in case a poison had been used that discoloured the teeth or tongue or perhaps burned the skin inside her mouth. Meera found no primary indications of poisoning, but samples would be sent for a toxicology report in any event.

  “Hunter and I came across a young woman yesterday who had suffered a similar attack. I think there were about six months between the first victim and this woman, but if it is the same attacker there were only a few weeks between this victim and the woman we found.” Meera sighed.

  “That would be very worrying. It would mean the tim
escale between the assailant’s strikes was decreasing. That would put women in danger from him sooner each time he pounces. You must find this monster, DC Chan,” David said.

  ***

  Nadia jumped into the driver’s seat and Neil crawled into the passenger seat beside her.

  “How long was I out for?”

  “Just over an hour. Don’t worry, it happens a lot. Bear threw up when he attended his first post-mortem. I think the boss was late for a darts match and he was furious.”

  “That doesn’t make me feel any better.”

  Nadia manoeuvred around the carpark. Then with a quick glance about her and up at the tall, black buildings that formed the canyon that is the Cowgate, she pulled into the flow of traffic.

  “Will you say what happened with me?” Neil asked.

  “Of course.” She smiled and headed back to the station.

  Chapter Nine

  Tim pulled up in front of the Accident and Emergency department of the hospital building.

  “She’s in intensive care now, but my sister admitted Eileen when she first came in and she wants to speak to you before you see her.”

  “That the one I’ve met?”

  “Probably. I only have one sister.”

  Jamie nodded and went towards the automatic doors side by side with Linda. He heard Tim slam the car door shut and drive off. There were never enough parking spaces at the hospital.

  He looked around the department and caught sight of Ailsa Myerscough. Even in sensible, flat shoes, Ailsa was taller than most people around her. Of course, Blondie was right tall too. Jamie saw she was deep in conversation with a colleague, but then she caught sight of them. As soon as she did, she appeared to finish up what she was saying. Jamie watched her colleague turn to look at them, grimace then nod while Ailsa sped towards them.

  “Hello, Jamie. And you must be Linda, Eileen’s sister.” She shook their hands. “Follow me, and we’ll go into the relatives room. Would you prefer tea or coffee?” she asked.

  “Tea, Ailsa,” Jamie muttered.

  She made the sign of a letter T towards the colleague she had been speaking to. Then moved towards a door halfway down the right-hand wall. She sat down and motioned for them to use the chairs on the other side of a low coffee table.