Raven Black by Ann Cleeves Read Free Book Online Page B

a silence. Magnus knew he'd made a mistake. He continued quickly, 'She wanted to take my photo. For a project. She wanted to come.'
    'Did she take the photo?'

    'She took several.'

    'Had she been in the house before?' Perez asked.
    He didn't seem troubled by what Magnus had told him. There was no fuss, no threat, no outrage.
    'New Year's Eve. Catherine and Sally. They were on their way home. They saw the light and called in to wish me happy new year!
    'Sally?'
    'Sally Henry, the teacher's lass!
    'But yesterday Catherine was on her own?'
    'On her own. Yes!
    'Did she stay long?'

    'She took some cake,' Magnus said. 'A cup of tea! 'So she wasn't here all afternoon?'
    'No. Not long!
    'What time was it, when she left?'
    'I can't say for sure!
    Perez looked around the room. 'That's a fine clock' 'It belonged to my mother!
    'It keeps good time?'
    'I check it with the wireless every night!

    'You'd have noticed what time the girl left, surely.
    The clock, sitting there on the shelf. You'd have glanced at it when she went out. It would be automatic!
    Magnus opened his mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't come out. His thoughts seemed frozen, sluggish.
    'I don't remember,' he said at last. 'Was it light when she left you?' 'Oh yes, it was still light!

    'Because this time of the year, it gets dark so early. . ! Perez paused," looked towards Magnus as if expecting him to change his mind. When there was no response he continued, 'Where was she going?'

    'Home!
    'Did she say that was where she was going?'
    'No, but that was the direction she was headed in. 'To that house halfway down the bank where the building work was done. The one with all the glass at the front. She lives there!
    'Did you see her go in?'

    Was that another trick? Magnus looked at the policeman. He became aware that his mouth was open and he shut it.
    'It'd only be natural,' Perez said. 'You'd watch her go down the hill, wouldn't you? Nothing wrong with watching a pretty young girl anyway. But you must spend a lot of time sitting here looking at the view.

    This weather, there's not much else to do!
    'Yes,' Magnus said. 'I saw her go in!
    They sat. The silence lasted for such a long time that Magnus wondered if that was it, if the policeman would go now and leave him alone. Suddenly he wasn't even sure that was what he wanted. 'Would you like some tea?' he asked. He frowned, imagining how it would be in the house, with the policeman gone, and only the noise of the ravens calling from the hill outside.

    'Yes,' Perez said. "Tea would be fine!

    Neither of them spoke until the tea was made and they were sitting together back at the table.
    'Eight years ago,' Perez said, 'a girl went missing. She was younger than Catherine, but not that much younger.
    Catriona, she was called. Did you know her, Magnus?'

    Magnus wanted to shut his eyes to shut out the question, but knew that if he did, he'd imagine himself back in the police station with the fist pulling back from his face, the taste of blood in his mouth.
    He stared into space.

    'You did know her, didn't you Magnus? She came to visit you for tea too. Like Catherine. She was very bonny, I hear!
    'She was never found,' Magnus said. He tried to compose the muscles in his jaw to stop the dreadful smile. He fixed his lips tight shut and remembered his mother's words. Tell them nothing.

Chapter Eight
    Perez drove back to Lerwick after leaving Magnus Tait's house. He wanted to talk to Catherine's father and knew that the man was still at the high school. There might not be much he could do at this stage the man would be in shock - but it seemed respectful to introduce himself and explain the procedures. He couldn't imagine what it must be like to lose a child.

    Not really. Sarah, his wife, had had a miscarriage, and that for a while had seemed like the end of the world. He'd tried not to show how much it hurt him. He hadn't wanted Sarah to feel that he loved her any less, or blamed her for the loss of the baby. Of course