Free Murder in Court Three by Ian Simpson

his own, going down the main corridor leading to Court Three. I was distracted and when I looked again he had disappeared. There were no lights on once you got further down the corridor. Next thing I saw was Mrs Traynor following Mr Knox. I couldn’t see well because of the lack of light, but she disappeared about where the judge’s door of Court Three is. That was it. Mr Knox must have bribed the security staff because all courtroom doors are supposed to be locked.’
    â€˜Can you be certain it was Mrs Traynor?’
    â€˜I believe so, yes.’
    â€˜Did you see her face?’
    â€˜Not actually in the corridor, but I’m sure it was her with her black dress and blonde hair. Who else would it be?’
    Flick ignored the question. ‘What did you do then?’
    â€˜I went back to the archery for a bit and found Rory McIntyre. He’d been fascinated by Knox and Mrs Traynor, and I told him what I’d seen.’
    â€˜Where were you when you told him?’
    â€˜In the hall, where the archery was.’
    â€˜Might you have been overheard?’
    â€˜There were a lot of people nearby.’
    â€˜Was Chief Superintendent Traynor among them?’
    â€˜I honestly don’t know. He might have been.’
    â€˜Lachlan Smail?’
    â€˜Don’t know him.’
    â€˜He was in Archers’ uniform.’
    â€˜There were a lot dressed like that. One or two could have heard me, I suppose.’
    â€˜Gideon Maltravers?’
    â€˜The planning consultant? I don’t remember seeing him close by, but he might have been.’
    â€˜Mrs Nicola Smail?’
    He shrugged. ‘I don’t know the lady.’
    â€˜Did you see either Mr Knox or Mrs Traynor later?’
    â€˜Not Mr Knox. I saw Mrs Traynor making her way towards the Ladies before the dancing started. I remember noticing that her face was flushed.’ He raised his eyebrows.
    â€˜How long after you believe you saw her enter the judge’s door was that?’
    â€˜Twenty minutes, half an hour. I really couldn’t be sure.’
    â€˜How much had you had to drink at that stage, sir?’
    Anger flashed in his dark eyes. ‘It had been a good evening, Inspector. I have no idea exactly how much I’d had, but I was well able to recognise what I saw and remember it.’
    â€˜Did you tell anyone else apart from Mr McIntyre at that time?’
    â€˜Well, yes, I did. It was pretty hot stuff.’
    â€˜And you could have been overheard?’
    He shrugged. ‘Of course. So is the Chief Superintendent your prime suspect?’
    â€˜We don’t have a prime suspect. We think the murder may have been linked to the trial Mr Knox was prosecuting.’ Flick hated to tell Oliphant anything, but the DCC’s instructions to divert attention from Traynor had been clear. ‘Please do not discuss this inquiry further, sir. It is unhelpful if too much information is made public.’
    â€˜From henceforth my lips shall be sealed, Inspector. But the circumstances give rise to the question,
quis custodiet ipsos custodes
?’
    Flick stood up less elegantly than she would have liked and looked down on him. ‘Any complaints should be addressed to the Scottish Police Authority. We’ve come a long way since Juvenal’s day, you know.’ She paused long enough to enjoy the look of astonishment that she should know the author of the quote before marching out into the fresh air.
    â€˜Has he not got the most punchable face, boss?’ di Falco asked.
    â€˜I wouldn’t stop at his face,’ she muttered.
    Appalled by what she had just said, and the look of delight on di Falco’s face, she left a message on Baggo’s voicemail asking him to interview the Lord Provost after court and a similar message on Wallace’s asking him to see the Secretary of State for Scotland.
    â€˜We’re off to talk to the scarlet woman,’ she told di Falco.

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