Page 62 of Death at a Scottish Halloween

I sagged against the door, and then there was a big bang on it.

“It’s me,” Ewan said. “Are you OK?”

I was proud I hadn’t screamed. “Yes,” I squeaked out as I opened the door. “Did you see them?”

He shook his head. “Akif is checking the mountain path. Did you see who it was?”

“No. It’s not unusual for kids to be back here, but I don’t think it was them this time.”

“Why do you say that?” he shut the door behind him.

“They were trying to come in the backdoor. They turned the knob. There are so many bolts on there now it would have taken them awhile. But I had this creepy feeling and I …”

“What?”

“I yelled out that I didn’t have any of the dead men’s belongings here. I said if they were after the ring, it was at the station. Then the doorknob stopped turning.”

“I told you to go into the autopsy room. How would you have protected yourself if they came in?”

I stuck the pepper spray in the waist of my jeans and pulled my sweater over it before I’d opened the door. I didn’t want to get into trouble for having an illegal weapon.

“I would have been in autopsy with several sharp tools at the ready, and behind a well-protected steel door with top-notch security, thanks to you.”

His phone rang.

“Akif, any luck?” he put his phone on speaker.

“Several boot trails. Some are smaller like kids, but I see two adult male-sized boots, and they’re fresh. Do you want a cast before it rains?”

“Yes. Thanks. Do you want me to organize that?”

“I’ve got it, Constable. Is the doctor OK?”

“She is. Thanks. Let’s also get prints on the back door. They tried to come inside.”

“We’ve got it,” Akif said. He hung up.

“Those boots could belong to anyone. There is a gate to get into the cemetery, it’s a public space.”

“Akif wouldn’t have pointed them out if they weren’t fresh. He’s good at tracking, it’s one of the reasons I wanted him on the team. He’s had great success with search and rescue. It took some convincing, but he didn’t like raising his girls in the city, so we had that going for us.”

I took a deep breath. “I like him, and his family.”

“They’re good people. I want to check the perimeter.”

I laughed.

“What?”

“That sounds so military, but I get it. And thanks for coming so fast tonight.”

“I was already on the way. Henry and Abigail are still helping with the corn maze, or he would have been here as well.”

“I forgot that starts tomorrow night. I’ve never been a fan of mazes.”

“Oh?” he appeared surprised. “Why is that?”

“I can’t get anywhere without GPS, no sense of direction. It’s one of my things.”