Windchill by Ed James Read Free Book Online Page B

his eyes at Cullen. "How have you two fared?"
    "Not bad." Cullen flicked open his notebook with a flourish. "We spoke to Eric Young. He reckons it's going to be a bit of a nightmare sorting out the company ownership now McCoull's dead."
    "In what way?"
    "His shares will go to his estate, I'd imagine."
    Methven jotted on the whiteboard - Estate?? . "Do you think Young is a suspect?"
    "Possibly." Cullen raised his hands in the air. "Young did sleep with McCoull's wife."
    "I think you're reaching here, Constable." Methven switched his gaze to Angela. "What have you found on the business?"
    "Nothing yet. Companies House not getting back to me is the main reason. Well, the only reason."
    "I see." Methven jangled change in his pocket. "Did you do any further digging on Mr McCoull?"
    Angela got out another sheet of paper. "Still waiting on some reports back from HMRC and Companies House again. I've made myself pretty unpopular on Christmas Eve. Shouldn't be too much longer, mind. I've been chasing them every fifteen minutes."
    "Do you expect it back today?"
    "I hope so." Angela nodded. "Didn't sound like they had much else on so they were happy to help, just not particularly quick."
    "You've earned a good couple of days off." Methven beamed at her. "Leave it with DC Cullen when it turns up."
    "Thanks, sir." Angela rolled her eyes, just enough for Cullen to notice.
    Cullen turned to Rarity. "Have the door-to-doors turned anything up?"
    "Just salacious gossip, really." A shrug. "Nothing we don't already know."
    "Did anyone else confirm the story from the neighbour who reported it? A Mr Walker, wasn't it?"
    "What, about him seeing Mr McCoull with someone?" Rarity tapped her pen on the tabletop. "Nothing concrete, I'm afraid. A curtain twitcher across the road saw someone with him, but she's not given us anything like a concrete description."
    "So we still don't have an ID of his companion?"
    "No."
    "Okay." Cullen looked at Methven. "Could it be Young?"
    Methven frowned. "Doesn't he have an alibi?"
    "He does." Cullen raised his shoulders. "He could be lying, though. It's been known to happen."
    "What is the alibi?"
    "Says he was visiting friends in Linlithgow."
    Rarity got out another sheet of paper. "I think we had a statement saying the Young family left home about six o'clock last night."
    "That tallies with his story. Said McCoull dropped some Christmas presents off for his kids."
    Rarity scowled at her own notebook. "I don't have that."
    "Interesting." Cullen checked over the page. "What about coming back from Linlithgow?"
    "Their car turned up later on, as per the other statements."
    "Okay." Methven added another box to the board, Young alibi? . "Let's check it out. Catriona, can you get some of the street team reallocated to checking the CCTV?"
    "Will do."
    Buxton exhaled. "Thank God it's not me."
    "It might be." Rarity winked at him. "Let's just say it's in your best interests to get down to the CCTV suite after this."
    "Bloody hell." Buxton stabbed his pen against his notebook. "Sure thing, sarge. I was already heading down there anyway."
    Methven jotted an action on the board then stared at Cullen. "What else did you two do? You've been gone a while."
    "We spoke to one of the guys McCoull was out drinking with last night. Bloke called Robert Heald. We backed up his statement with a visit to the Living Room afterwards to validate."
    Methven scowled. "You mean you went to the pub?"
    "We didn't drink anything, sir." Cullen ground his teeth. Cheeky bastard. "Anyway, he left halfway through the evening, quite suddenly according to the guy serving them. He reckons McCoull might've seen something out of the window. We need to speak to the other people he was with."
    Buxton raised a hand. "I'll do it."
    "Thanks, Simon." Methven drew a box and labelled it Leaving Bar . "So he just upped and left last night?"
    "That's the exact phrase they used."
    "That certainly sounds odd." Methven made another note. Trigger for leaving? "So he