I stood as the judge took his place at the bench and addressed the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen, as you are well aware, there are extraordinary circumstances surrounding this case, and you are to be commended for your patience and understanding. Mr. Rael, is the defense prepared to continue its case?"

"We are, my lord."

"Lord Advocate?"

Mitchell Obrecht nodded. "Her Majesty's Advocate is ready, my lord."

"Very well. Mr. Rael, when last in session, you were questioning your witness, Dr. Zachary Wallace. Do you have any further questions of the witness at this time?"

"No, my lord."

"Lord Advocate, would you like to cross-examine the witness?"

"Indeed we would, my lord."

I was recalled to the witness box and sworn in. Angus seemed almost amused as he watched from his seat behind the prosecutor's table.

"Welcome back, Dr. Wallace. What happened to your foot?"

"Camping accident."

"Camping. Yes, I understand you've spent the better part of the last two weeks camping and exploring Loch Ness."

"Yes."

"When court was last in session, Mr. Rael asked you, and I quote, 'hypothetically speaking, if a large water creature did prey in Loch Ness, is it possible it could have developed a taste for human flesh?' To which you responded, 'Hypothetically, yes, but only if this creature was a predator and not a vegetarian, and only if the creature's diet had been substantially altered by some unusual break in the food chain,' end quote. My question then, Dr. Wallace, is if, in the last two weeks, your investigation has proven either of these conditions to be true?"

He knows something…

"Doctor?"

"Justin Wagner's injuries indicated he'd been attacked by a predatory animal. None of the other deaths could positively be linked to a water creature."

"Thank you, but that wasn't my question. What I asked was whether there was anything in your investigation that's shown either of your two previously mentioned conditions to be true."

I hesitated. "It seems certain populations of fish that normally frequent Loch Ness at this time of year may not be present." Murmurs filled the chamber, quieting quickly.

"In other words, a break in the food chain?"

"Yes."

"And which species of fish are missing from Loch Ness?"

"Numbers are significantly down among the larger breeds, specifically among the salmon."

"And how do you know that, Dr. Wallace?"

The waiter! "I've uh, I've been provided with access to the monster hunter's sonar array."

"Ah. So let me be clear here, you found no salmon in Loch Ness?"

"None. At least within the limits of the array."

"Maybe you could quickly walk us through the salmon's spawning routine."

"Salmon are born in the rivers feeding Loch Ness. As they get older, they migrate into the Atlantic, where they grow quite large.

When it's time to spawn, a salmon may travel thousands of miles, using the Earth's magnetic field to direct it back to the freshwater pool where it hatched."