Willow Reeves was back in the station. The lay-by with the skid marks was taped and guarded, and the mist had cleared enough for the planes to be running. Vicki Hewitt had arrived on the overnight ferry and Sandy had picked her up from the Holmsgarth terminal in Lerwick. They would be at the crime scene now. But Willow was restless and impatient. She got on the phone to Perez. No reception. Willow wanted to know if the manager of the Bonhoga coffee shop had recognized Rhona Laing as the strange woman who’d met Markham on the morning he was killed. Surely Perez should have news by now. Why hadn’t he been in touch? She still wasn’t sure what she made of the man. She brooded on the matter for a moment and then phoned her DC in Inverness.

‘Have you found any link yet between Rhona Laing and Jerry Markham?’

‘Nothing. And really, Boss, I don’t think there’s anything to find. No contacts in common. I don’t think he ever even reported any of the cases she worked on before she moved to Shetland.’

So it’s here. Willow stretched. Her muscles were tight and tense. She needed exercise. Yoga. A run. Whatever was going on between Markham and the Fiscal happened here. Or were the Shetlanders right, and there was no connection?

‘Any news on Markham’s phone?’

‘Not yet. I’ll chase it up again.’

She thought she needed to get more of a handle on the case, a better perspective. Maybe she should meet some of the people involved and not rely on the opinion of the local officers.

She found Evie Watt’s work phone number and tried that. A woman said that Evie was out of the office that morning and passed on a mobile number. That connected, though the reception was poor. It sounded as if Evie was driving, using a hand-free device. Willow introduced herself and suggested that they might meet for lunch. ‘If you haven’t eaten already. That way I don’t take up any work time. I’m a veggie. Verging on the vegan. Can you think of anywhere?’ She sensed that the woman on the other end of the phone was surprised by the call, but after a moment’s silence there was a response.

‘I’ve been out onsite. I’m on my way back to town, but I’ll be there in half an hour. What about the Olive Tree in the Tollclock Centre? Close to work for me, and you’ll find something there to eat.’ Then clear directions.