‘Of course.’ Willow returned the handshake and wondered why women in power felt the need to play games. ‘You found the body, I understand, in the racing yoal.’

‘As I explained to Sergeant Wilson.’ The Fiscal nodded. There was a breeze from the sea, but her hair didn’t move. Either she’d had a fantastic haircut or used a serious amount of spray.

‘And you live locally?’

‘In the Old Schoolhouse.’ Rhona Laing nodded to a square, solid house on the bank behind them. ‘I thought some children had pushed the yoal into the water for a prank and I went to retrieve it.’ She gave a little smile, but her eyes were wary.

‘Thanks very much for coming to meet us.’ Willow made her voice sincere. She’d been in the drama club for a while at uni. ‘Perhaps we could take up a little more of your time when we’ve finished here. If you’ll be in, that is. I don’t want to eat into your weekend, and I don’t know how long we’ll be.’ She glanced towards the white tent, making it clear that she was keen to move on.

There was a pause.

‘Of course,’ Rhona Laing said. ‘I’ll make myself available.’

It was only as they’d put on the paper scene-suits and pulled the boots over their shoes that it occurred to Willow that the Fiscal had expected to be invited to join them. The older woman hadn’t realized that finding the body had put her in an ambiguous situation. Legally she was supervising the investigation, but she was a witness and might even become a suspect.

James Grieve, the pathologist, was walking away from the body. Well outside the cordon he stripped off the scene-suit. He was a small man, smart and dapper, with shiny black shoes. He greeted Vicki with a smile and a peck on the cheek. ‘Miss Hewitt, we should stop meeting like this.’

Willow introduced herself. She felt awkward because she was taller than him. And a whole lot younger. She should be accustomed to both these things by now.

‘Inspector.’ He gave a gallant little bow. ‘I’m away back to civilization. Or at least to Aberdeen. Everything, I suppose, is comparative. I’m assuming that you’ll be too tied up here to be present at the postmortem. You can give me a ring tomorrow. Early afternoon. I’ve arranged for the body to go south on this evening’s ferry and I should have something for you then.’

‘Cause of death?’ she asked.

He raised his eyebrows as if she were an impertinent schoolgirl who was pushing her luck in class. Then he smiled. ‘It looks as if he was hit very hard by the traditional blunt instrument. But after a quick glance at the body, you’d be able to tell that for yourself.’ He bowed again and walked away.