Page 83 of Death at a Scottish Halloween

He touched the comm in his ear. “Sorry, there’s something happening at the entrance.” He guided me off the dance floor. “I’ll be back.”

“I’m coming with you,” I said.

He didn’t seem to hear me, but I followed just the same.

As we drew near the entrance, there were loud voices. A crowd had gathered, and Ewan pushed through. I entered through the wake he made. There was an alien arguing with what looked like a lizard. It was hard to tell from my angle.

Akif and Henry, who were also dressed as pirates, were there. Each of them held one of the men who were spouting nonsense at one another.

“Enough,” Ewan roared. The men quieted down.

“He should be in jail,” the lizard said. “Why haven’t you arrested him?”

I recognized that voice. It was Baird. I frowned. The other man was most likely his nemesis Robert McClendon.

“Take it outside,” Ewan said. Both men were shouldered out of the entrance and away from the crowd that had gathered.

Someone sniffled behind me. I turned to find Isobel, in a Celtic dress and a witch’s hat. She looked beautiful and sad.

“Hey,” I said. “Come with me.” I took her down the hallway to the lady’s room. Then I gathered several paper towels for her to dry her tears.

“Thank you, Doc,” she said through her tears. “Baird thought it might be fun for us to get out of the house. We should be mourning, but he begged. I couldn’t say no. Then we ran into Robert and his gang. They are awful men. My brother was right about that. But sometimes Baird’s temper scares me.”

“Has he ever turned it on you?” I held up my hands. “I’m a doctor. Anything you say is confidential. But I do have to ask because this isn’t the first time I’ve seen him that way.”

“Normally, he’s as cuddly as a puppy,” she said. “But Robert sets him off. He feels certain that man killed my brother. The police say there is no way that could have happened.”

“And you don’t know what to think.”

She sighed. “Exactly. Why are Robert and his men even here? They live in Edinburgh.”

“I think that might be the Constable’s fault. He likes to keep everyone close until he solves the case.” That was my best guess. I really had no idea, but I was just as curious. Ewan keptsaying they had alibis, but maybe there was more to that side of the story.

Why are they still here causing trouble?

“Is there more to the story with Baird?”

She blew out a breath. “He was fired a month ago off the rig. My brother went to bat for him, but it didn’t do any good. That was when my brother started gathering evidence against Robert and some others in management. They aren’t all bad, but Robert—my brother said he was the worst of the worst. Anytime anyone spoke out against him, they were fired.

“Luckily, Baird does well with his art, and it makes him happier. But he can’t seem to let the past go.”

“It’s recent past, so that is understandable,” I said. “It takes time to process that sort of thing, and then his best friend being—dying.”

“You can say murdered. The police have. The Constable told us he was stabbed. It’s so horrible.”

“And you don’t have any idea who might have wanted to hurt him, other than Robert?”

“No. He was well-liked on the rigs. That’s what Baird tells me. And as an artist here, we’re all a part of a very welcoming community. Before he died, we talked about getting a place together. He lived in his caravan, which was fine for him, but kind of awkward for the both of us.” She sniffed again. “I can’t seem to process that I won’t see him again.”

“Again, death is big when it comes to processing. Maybe the biggest. You need to give yourself some grace. Feel your feelings. I know you’ve been over it many times with the police, but can you take me step-by-step through the night your brother died?”

I guided her to a velvet settee that was in the outer area of the lady’s room.

“I should probably see what’s going on with Baird. I hope he doesn’t get arrested. He just has big feelings.”

“I’m sure he’s fine, and this won’t take long. Please, I’m hoping we might find something that will help.”

Some other women came in but went straight for the stalls. The door to the area where we were shut softly.