Free A Bone of Contention by Susanna Gregory Page B

would have been difficult to tell whether or not something was valuable, and a thief might have stolen it believing it was worth more than it was.'
    'Have there been others in his family to die violently?' asked Michael, addressing Ruthven.
    'Of course there have,' said Ruthven, as surprised by the question as Michael was by the answer. 'At home we need constantly to defend our lands and property, sometimes from the English and sometimes from our neighbours. And, on occasions, we attack others. Of course Jamie has relatives who have died violently.'
    'I see,' said Michael, bemused. 'But that is not what I meant.'
    'He wants to know whether there is any possibility that the skeleton unearthed yesterday is related to Jamie," said Davy. The student shrugged at Michael's surprise. 'You said Jamie died in the King's Ditch at Valence Marie, and rumour has it that a skeleton was found in the same location yesterday. It does not take three terms of Aristotle to guess why you posed such a question.'
    'Of course Jamie is not related to those bones,' said Ruthven, bewildered. 'Why should he be? Do you know who the skeleton is?'
    Michael shook his head. 'I am merely trying to ensure that I overlook nothing. As Davy has just noted, Jamie and the skeleton were found in the same area within a few hours of each other.'

Davy frowned. 'We have only been studying here for a year. Jamie was the first of his family to acquire learning — he constantly joked that he was the first of his clan to step on English soil without intending to steal the cattle. The skeleton cannot be any of his forebears. '
    'What will happen to us?' asked Ruthven in a low voice, as Michael prepared to leave.
    'You will remain in the hostel, and you will not leave it unless you are in the company of a master,' said Michael.
    'If I hear that any of you has disobeyed me, I will arrest you at once.'
    He turned abruptly and left the room, waiting for Father Andrew and Bartholomew to follow him into the corridor. As Father Andrew closed the door behind them, they heard Stuart Grahame begin to cry again, while Fyvie and Ruthven's voices immediately rose in a clamour of questions and self-recriminations.
    Father Andrew shook his head wearily, and leaned against the door. 'I am so sorry, Brother. I had no idea they would be so stupid as to assist one of their number to spend nights out with his paramour. I should have realised that they would not be subdued as easily as they pretended to be. Do you know who killed Jamie? Was it these friars they mentioned, the ones with whom they brawled yesterday?'
    'We do not know yet,' said Michael. 'His killer may have been a friend. Can you be certain that all four were here last night?'
    Father Andrew nodded. 'I saw them into the dormitory.
    I was still furious with them — if we Scots are seen brawling in the streets, the townspeople may take reprisals. You probably noticed our new door? We were forced to buy that when our last one was kicked to pieces following an argument between the Principal and a baker about underweight loaves. People here still resent the Scots' victory over the English at Bannockburn in 1314, you know — some of the older townsmen were even in King Edward the Second's army at the time. Anyway, suffice to say that our intention is to remain aloof from conflict at all costs. It would not do if our landlord refused to rent us this building next year because we had earned a reputation for fighting.'
    Michael gave him a sympathetic smile. 'I appreciate that maintaining a distance from brawls might prove difficult for these fiery lads,' he said. 'And I appreciate your efforts in attempting to control them. The continued good reputation of your hostel is even more reason why we must resolve James Kenzie's death as quickly as possible. We should take a quick look at his belongings to see if he left some clue regarding the identity of his killer. Where did he sleep?'
    Father Andrew led the way up a narrow wooden staircase