By All Means (Fiske and MacNee Mysteries Book 2)

by Alan Alexander

  ‘How so?’ asked the Chief.

  Vanessa looked at Harry, aware that she might be about to encroach on his territory. ‘Because some time today, some media outlet or some blog will say that the arrested man has been “named locally” as Paul MacIver.’

  The First Minister was getting to her feet.

  I cannot comment on rumour, especially in connection with an ongoing police investigation.

  The Labour Leader was rising before the FM had resumed her seat. He was striving to appear both statesmanlike and emollient.

  I understand, and support, the First Minister’s position, Presiding Officer, so perhaps I can turn to another matter. Colleagues in this Chamber, and members of the press, have noted today the quite unprecedented absence from her side of her special adviser, Mr Paul MacIver. Is he perhaps indisposed?

  The Chamber was silent, except for a low hum as members whispered to each other. The FM did not move. She was rescued by the Presiding Officer, who reminded members that questions should relate to the substance of the First Minister’s statement. But the damage was done. The arrest of Paul MacIver was almost in the public domain.

  *

  ‘If any of you hasn’t already guessed what I’m about to tell you, you don’t deserve to be detectives, so I may have to recommend that you return to pounding the beat.’

  DCI Fiske was opening the team meeting that she had asked her administrative support to call for six o’clock on Tuesday evening. She needed to bring them up to date on the arrests, on the first round of questioning and on the preliminary analysis of the evidence gathered from the suspects’ homes. She also had to put in place contingency plans for getting to Edinburgh by six o’clock on Wednesday morning if she got approval, from the DCS and the Chief, to arrest MacIver.

  ‘I’m pregnant. Eight weeks.’ There was a ripple of applause and some drumming of fingers on the table. ‘Colin already knew because I had to explain the inexplicable when I asked for a fizzy water rather than my usual half-pint of Sauvignon Blanc when we went to the pub last week. And Sara, who’s spent a lot of time in my company over the last couple of weeks, has given me the odd knowing look but has, I think, remained shtum. So, thanks to them for being discreet. And I had to tell the DCS why I couldn’t conduct an interview with him late this afternoon.’

  Esslemont smiled, and Vanessa went on.

  ‘I had to go to GRH for a scan. I know you will all be delighted to know that everything seems fine. In fact, more than fine, because it’s twins. Came as a bit of a shock, and I shall be investigating their father’s background to discover if there’s anything I should have known. However, there’s nothing like a double murder investigation to remind a happily expectant mother that there’s still more than seven months to go. The work goes on, as I said to Neil as he dropped me back here after a cup of sweet tea.’

  She was suddenly aware that she was, quite involuntarily, rubbing her stomach, so she leaned both hands on the table and turned to the business of the meeting.

  ‘Colin. You arrested MacIlwraith in what you picturesquely described as the Jewel of North Ayrshire and you and Aisha interviewed him this afternoon’.

  ‘Yeah. And we got more out of his house than we’ve so far been able to get out of him. He refuses to tell us what he was doing with the syringes. No residues in them, by the way, so the lab can’t discover what they were used to inject. Claims he has no idea how the sodium thiopental box with the Russian script came to be in his bedroom, hidden at the back of a drawer.’

  ‘Did you ask him what he was doing in GRH while Keller was there?’

  ‘We showed him the enhanced CCTV images and asked him to identify himself but, on the advice of his solicitor, he said “no comment”. So if he wasn’t prepared to admit he’d been there, there seemed little point in pursuing the matter any further. He did look very nervous and shifty, though. But it’s quite difficult to use that as evidence.’

  Esslemont leaned forward so that he could see Colin. ‘What did he have to say about the emails and texts?’

  ‘Nothing, sir. He wouldn’t tell us who the texts from his burners went to and he simply “no commented” on the emails.’

  DCI Fiske intervened. ‘Neither MacIlwraith nor Mathieson has been told that the other is in custody, though we should assume that their lawyers have met in the canteen and exchanged a few words. I’d really like to question them some more before we decide to charge them. Their statutory twelve hours expires about now, but the custody officer has agreed, because of the time it took to get them here, to extend that by another twelve hours, so we’ll have to charge them by early tomorrow, or release them, and that’s not an option.’

  ‘What about Mathieson?’ Esslemont asked.

  ‘For reasons already explained, I haven’t been able to talk to him yet about the Jamieson murder. I’ll do that as soon as we’re done here. Before I went to the hospital, I interviewed him about Nuttall’s birth certificate. He admitted that he had applied for it – he could hardly deny it – but refused, on the advice of his solicitor, to say why he wanted it.’

  ‘Have we got enough to charge them?’ The DCS was beginning to sound a little impatient, probably because he knew there was other business to be considered.

  ‘Fiona thinks we’ve got enough to charge them with conspiracy to murder and that after further interviews, when we’ve put to them all the evidence gathered from their homes, we’ll probably be able to add murder to the sheet.’

  *

  As they left the Chief's office after they had decided to arrest MacIver the next morning, DCS Esslemont asked DCI Fiske whether she thought she had to make the arrest personally.

  'Absolutely, sir. Why wouldn't I? I'm the SIO and I can't duck the responsibility of making the highest profile arrest this force will see in a long time. If it goes political, I need to be able to tell the Chief, and you, that it was all done exactly by the book.'

  'I see that, but you've been working really hard on this and I just wondered whether, given your condition, you might want to avoid getting up at three o'clock in the morning to go to Edinburgh.'

  Christ almighty, Vanessa thought, he's gone from old style to Neanderthal! She had to nail this here and now.

  'Sir, I'm not ill, I'm pregnant. I'm also a senior professional police officer in the middle of a difficult, high profile case. I haven't decided when to take my maternity leave but I'm not taking it now.'

  Esslemont seemed genuinely surprised, even shocked, by her response. 'I just thought you might welcome a good night's sleep before interviewing MacIver tomorrow. I wasn't questioning your commitment or your ability to do your job.'

  'With respect, sir, that's not how it sounded. If I go home now, I can get five hours sleep and possibly a bit more on the way to Edinburgh. We'll have MacIver back here by ten o'clock. His lawyer will take a bit longer, so we might be able to fit in another session with Richard Fleming. It's a lower priority, but it needs to be done.'

  'I'll try to set that up for eleven.'

  'Thank you, sir. We really ought to get that sorted now that we're linking the murders to the Last and Mercury attacks. We'll need to be sure that Fleming's connection to Mancuso, Last's security chief, was purely social. And we still don't know why Fleming was feeding information to Gilbertson.'

  Vanessa hadn't set out to demonstrate that she was completely on top of her job, but that was the effect. Esslemont got the message, wished her good night and success in Edinburgh, and turned towards his office.

  *

  By half-past-eight, Vanessa had finished her second interview with Mathieson. It had been no more productive than MacNee’s questioning of MacIlwraith. She had decided not to bring up what she already knew about the search history on his computers. She had suggested to Colin that he should also hold back on this when questioning MacIlwraith. They had preliminary analyses from Dongle and from the Strathclyde hi-tech unit, but she wanted to see the full reports before she confronted the suspects. She also needed
some early indication of what was on MacIver’s computers.

  When she was done, Vanessa checked with Fiona Marchmont and with the lawyer in the procurator fiscal’s office and then instructed the duty chief inspector to formally charge McIlwraith and Mathieson with conspiracy to murder. She asked Fiona to see if she could arrange for their first court appearance to take place on Wednesday afternoon, ostensibly so that she could be present, but also because she wanted an opportunity to question Mathieson again when she got back from Edinburgh. Colin MacNee would interview MacIlwraith again as soon as he had all the details from the computers. Both Dongle and the Strathclyde people had said that their full reports would be emailed by eight o’clock on Wednesday morning. Admin support would confirm their arrival to DCI Fiske as she travelled back from Edinburgh.

  By ten to nine, Vanessa was sitting on the sofa in their flat while Neil Derrick made her a pasta.

  ‘I really need to get to bed. I’m being picked up at half-past-three and a slightly surreal conversation with Esslemont earlier makes it even more essential than usual that I’m on the ball tomorrow. It’s been some day! Twins? Fucking twins! Is there any history of twins in your family, because there certainly isn’t in mine.’

  Neil paused in his stirring of the bolognese. ‘I don’t think so, but my mother is checking with her sisters and aunts. And I’ve had a little surf around the internet. Apparently…’

  Vanessa interrupted him. ‘I know. If there’s no history, there’s a greater likelihood of identical twins, which would mean that the ideal outcome of a boy and a girl is less likely. But, do you know what? I don’t care! I’m shocked, shaken and very happy. I couldn’t believe how professional I was after I went back to the office after the scan. That’s what made Esslemont’s “concern” so hard to take. As Chris Jenkinson said, pregnancy lays prejudices bare. Big news, big case. Let’s have that pasta, then all three of us are off to bed. You can make it four if you like.’

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  At DCI Vanessa Fiske’s request, Harry Conival had called a press conference for 1430 hrs on Wednesday. The timing allowed Vanessa to be in court at two o'clock to see all three men charged and remanded. The call to the press conference was accompanied by a press release announcing that Paul MacIver, 32, of Edinburgh, had been arrested at his home that morning and brought to North East Constabulary Headquarters in Aberdeen. He had been questioned by DCI Fiske and subsequently charged with conspiracy to murder both Peter Keller and Harvey Jamieson. Further possible offences were being investigated, but no other charges had yet been laid. The press conference would be taken by DCI Fiske. DI Colin MacNee, as the Senior Investigating Officer on the Keller case would also be there, as would Detective Chief Superintendent Campbell Esslemont, Head of NEC CID.

  Before the First Minister made her statement to Parliament, at 12.30 pm, Paul MacIver had, indeed, been ‘named locally’ as the man arrested in Edinburgh's New Town early that morning. The information had been posted immediately on most news media websites and there was febrile speculation about the political significance of the involvement of the First Minister’s most trusted adviser in two murders and, possibly, other serious offences. The investigating officers had so far said nothing publicly about why the men had been killed, and the announcement from Hedelco and Burtonhall about the release of the emails had led the smarter journalists, especially Ben Aaronson of the Financial Post, to conclude that they had contained nothing that the police would recognise as a motive for murder.

  Aaronson's conclusion, on the FP website, was clear and unequivocal:

  The emails were posted on the Hedelco website as soon as they were released to the police investigating Peter Keller’s murder, largely to limit the damage to the company’s reputation, and to that of its secretive parent, private equity giant Burtonhall. US media had attacked them for obstructing enquiries into the death of a US citizen.

  By asserting ‘commercial confidentiality’ as their reason for withholding the emails from the police, the companies may have been stating nothing but the truth. Whether it was the whole truth remains to be seen. Things might be clearer if the emails to Ebright, the owners of the Vermont One oil rig, where Harvey Jamieson was murdered on the same day that Keller died, were made public. For now, we must assume that, just as the Hedelco emails call into question the financial position of the Grampian Royal Hospital contract, the Ebright emails almost certainly show the precarious profitability of Vermont One. The government inspectors are already heading for the hospital. If the performance or safety of Vermont One were called in question, the possibility of Burtonhall pulling the plug on both of these substantial investments in Scotland would become very real.

  As to the real motives for the murders, and any links there may be to other recent crimes in Scotland, police investigations continue. The North East Constabulary press conference this afternoon may clarify the political ramifications of this complex affair.

  *

  When Vanessa entered the briefing room she saw even more reporters than had turned out for her press conferences during the Balmoral murder investigation some months before. She was particularly aware of the line of cameras and microphone booms set up at the back, and she immediately spotted the logos of the BBC, ITN, Channel 5 and Sky News. Two of the four major American networks were also there, as were all the usual suspects, local and national.

  She and Colin MacNee sat at a table on the raised dais at the front; Esslemont took a seat at the end of the front row of seats; Harry Conival hovered about by the door through which the officers had come in. As soon as the expectant hum had died down, Vanessa stood up and made an opening statement that did little more than rehash what had been in the press release.

  She finished by saying, as usual, that she would try to answer questions as fully as possible, but that she might have to withhold some information in the interests of what was still an ongoing investigation.

  Dozens of hands shot up. Vanessa nodded at Jason Sime of the G & T, in recognition of the piece he had written for the Boston Globe. ‘I think you should have the first go, Jason, as the local boy.’

  Sime stood up, looking slightly embarrassed. ‘It’s pretty clear from the Hedelco emails that there is no financial or commercial motive for the murders. And I assume that you’ve ruled out the possibility of two muggings gone wrong on the same day. We now know, that you’ve arrested and charged a very highly placed political figure. Are we looking at a political motive for these killings?'

  ‘You know I try to resist descending into cliché, Jason, but I have to say that we are keeping an open mind on that.’

  ‘What’s the connection between MacIver and the other two men you’ve charged? Do they know each other?’

  ‘We believe that there is a historic connection between them and we are investigating the possibility of more recent contacts.’

  Vanessa pointed to another reporter.

  ‘Kevin Bennett, Glasgow Banner. Can you tell us what contacts you’ve had with the First Minister in the course of your investigations?’

  Vanessa glanced at Esslemont who gave her a look that suggested she should be careful.

  ‘Early in the investigation, the First Minister spoke, in her capacity as a local MSP, with the Chief Constable. Also, at her request, we arranged for her to be briefed, daily, through the Justice Secretary, on progress with the various investigations underway.’

  Bennett stood up. ‘The FM told Parliament that the Justice Secretary was being briefed about the Last Cairngorm and Mercury Fulfilment attacks. Was he also briefed on the murders, and if so, are you connecting all of these crimes?’

  Vanessa knew this was a good question. She considered quickly, but carefully, how to respond.

  ‘In the first instance, it seemed sensible to use the briefings to report any progress on the murders, given the FM’s constituency interest. More recently, we have begun to look at the possibility of the kind of connection you mention.’

  Esslemont no
dded. It was going to come out as soon as the press began digging into MacIver and sniffing around the Major Crimes Unit at Govan, so it was as well to put it into the public domain now.

  ‘David MacKay, BBC Scotland. Who briefed the Justice Secretary? And was anyone else present during the briefings.’

  Vanessa had been in this game long enough to recognise a question to which the questioner already knew the answer. If she dodged it, the reporter would simply come back with a second question naming the people he knew to have been present.

  ‘The briefings were undertaken by a Deputy Chief Constable from Lothian and Borders and on all but one occasion the Justice Secretary was accompanied by a member of the First Minister’s staff.’

  ‘Was that member of staff Paul MacIver?’

  Vanessa smiled. ‘I’m sorry, but that’s one of the things I can’t tell you.’