Free Murder on the Second Tee by Ian Simpson

blood.’
    ‘May I ask what you are doing here, gov?’
    ‘I’m here to catch the person who’s been murdering bankers. The Bucephalus Bank wants it done with discretion.’ He paused, scraped his plate, and continued, ‘You could help me, Baggo. You could have been a good copper. Let me know, will you, if you hear anything that might help. There’d be something in it for you.’ He winked.
    ‘Of course, gov, but mum’s the word. They don’t know about my past life in the police, so please do not spill the beans. To anyone.’
    ‘Well keep in touch. I’m in room 215. And I’ve got a lot of homework waiting for me on my laptop, so must go.’ He burped ostentatiously.
    ‘I am delighted you enjoyed your meal, sir,’ Baggo said loudly. ‘It has been an honour to cook for such a discriminating gentleman.’
    No thought for a moment, fumbled in his wallet and produced a five euro note. ‘The way the euro’s going the only thing this will be good for is wiping the ring of fire the morning after a good curry,’ he said.
    ‘A most superior guest,’ Baggo observed on returning to the kitchen.
    * * *
    ‘Are you sure it’s not some deranged local?’ Fergus Maxwell asked Flick as they cuddled each other on the sofa, disengaged from the film on the TV.
    ‘I just feel there’s something very odd about that bank. The people I saw today are like no one I’ve encountered.’
    ‘You know what they call bankers. But if this is all to do with some great money laundering scheme, would the murder not be pre-meditated? Look, the weapon was found by the murderer or murderers at the scene and left there, and the repeated violent blows are consistent with rage, frenzy even. Don’t you think?’
    She nodded. ‘I see what you mean, and I ask myself how anyone apart from the Eglintons could have known where Parsley was, assuming he was the intended target.’
    ‘In the dark it could have been a case of mistaken identity,’ Fergus agreed. ‘But from what you say, all the directors might have known where Parsley was. They all have rooms on the first floor overlooking the Old, don’t they?’
    She nodded.
    ‘Well, when Parsley and Eglinton walked from the sixteenth to the first green they would have passed in front of the hotel. It’s a terrific view over to the R and A, which is lit up and looks better than it ever does in daylight. It would have been quite natural for any of the directors to go out on their balcony to soak up the atmosphere. And I bet Parsley and his friend were chatting and making a noise as they went. They could have seen Eglinton return to the hotel, too.’
    ‘Good point, darling. Thanks.’ She cursed herself for not thinking of that. In a marriage between two people with the same rank in different divisions, mutually supportive respect was seasoned by unspoken rivalry.
    ‘Would you like me to check on all the recent releases to see if there is someone out there who might have done this? I’ve a better chance of recognising the names of local criminals than you have. I’m not interfering in your case,’ he added, feeling her stiffen.
    ‘Yes, please,’ she said after biting her lip. ‘It’s been a tough day,’ she whispered. ‘I was sick at the crime scene. Made me feel so pathetic. Then at the end, the sheriff refused a warrant to search the bankers’ rooms or even the clothes they sent to the laundry. “Lack of probable cause,” he said, despite what MacGregor told me about blood spatters. How am I supposed to catch whoever did this?’
    Fergus patted her stomach as if it were delicate porcelain. ‘It’s such a difficult time for you. And this case would come along now. How’s your team?’
    ‘Oh, McKellar’s surly. The rest are fine. Wallace is dependable. How did he come to be called Lance? It’s not Scottish.’
    ‘I’ve heard he was conceived after his parents had watched
Camelot.
I’m glad you’ve got him. And don’t under-estimate McKellar. He’s been a bobby in St