The Pretender’s Gold. Scott Mariani
bunch. Who knew what they might be capable of?
Breaking windows and vandalising construction machinery were one thing. Murder was something else entirely. But given that both Ewan and Ross were widely known to be associated with the project, albeit only indirectly, what if …
Jesus. Maybe it was true!
The more Ewan thought about it, the deeper his panic grew. He wanted to call Mairi to tell her. But he didn’t want to alarm her until he could be more certain of his facts. Who to talk to, then? The police again? Perhaps Grace Kirk? Even if he’d had her number, she’d only think he was crazy. He had no real evidence. What if it was all a lie?
It took a long time for Ewan to think of who to call for help and advice. His uncle was retired and had been enjoying a quiet life in the Italian countryside for the last few years, with his Neapolitan wife Mirella. He’d always been there for his nephew, since Ewan’s parents had passed away. He’d spent his career in the army, though he’d seldom ever spoken about the things he’d done and his crazy adventures back in those days.
Though you weren’t supposed to talk about it, everyone in the family had known Ewan’s uncle was no ordinary soldier, but was involved for a long time in the secretive and hidden world of Special Forces. He was older now, but still strong and wise, a rock you could cling to. Someone you could truly confide in.
Yes, that’s what Ewan needed to do.
He soon found the number in his address book. Feeling a little more settled, he managed to doze off for a few hours on the sofa. At six in the morning, seven a.m. in Italy, he brewed a strong coffee, then picked up the phone.
Ewan’s uncle was called Archibald, but nobody called him that. For some reason that had never been too clear to Ewan, the name his uncle had always gone by was Boonzie. Boonzie McCulloch. Ewan thought it might have been an old army nickname that stuck.
It was a great relief to hear his voice on the phone. Despite having lived for years in Italy, Boonzie’s accent was still as strong as the day he’d left Scotland. He was delighted to hear from his only nephew. But Ewan thought his uncle sounded tired, his voice a little weaker than the last time they’d spoken.
After spending a couple of minutes on the usual pleasantries, Ewan bit the bullet. ‘This isn’t just a social call, Uncle. I wish it was. Fact is, I’ve got a problem.’
‘What kind o’ problem, laddie?’
‘The kind I need someone like you to advise me what to do about.’
Boonzie listened calmly and quietly as his nephew related the whole story: Ross’s death, Ewan’s initial speculations about possible suicide, and the anonymous phone call from the man he could only refer to as ‘the poacher’, which had blown away all the previous theories about the drowning and left him, Ewan, in such a quandary. He told it exactly as it had happened, leaving nothing out. When he finished, Boonzie methodically broke down the facts and went through all the questions that had been flying around Ewan’s mind. Was this real? Could it be some kind of prank? How plausible was the witness’s claim? Could it be verified? Was there any way to identify this mystery caller and get him to come forward, or at least reveal more about what he’d allegedly seen?
Nobody with a background as tough and dangerous as Boonzie McCulloch’s could have survived as long as he had without being extremely cautious. He was nobody’s fool and his mind was as sharp as the wicked double-edged blade on a Fairbairn-Sykes commando dagger. But after a long discussion, Ewan’s uncle could come to only one conclusion. ‘I trust ye, laddie. If it sounds real to you, then it sounds real to me.’
‘Part of me wishes you’d dismissed the whole thing as total bollocks,’ Ewan said. ‘I’d have been happy to believe you, and try to forget this nightmare ever happened.’
‘Ye say this person sounded familiar,’ Boonzie said thoughtfully.
Ewan replied, ‘I thought so at the time, yes. I was sure I’d heard his voice before somewhere. But the more I try to remember where, the less sure I am about it. I might have imagined it. I’m going out of my head with confusion. What the hell am I going to do?’
Boonzie’s reply was unhesitant. ‘Do nothing. Sit tight and wait for me tae get there.’
Ewan realised how foolish he’d been not to anticipate that this would be his uncle’s instant reaction. ‘No. I can’t accept that. I’m not asking you to drop everything and come here. I just thought … to be perfectly honest I don’t know what I thought.’
‘Aye, well, two heads’re better than one. Give me a day to sort things oot here and make the travel arrangements. I’ll be with you as quick as I can.’
‘I hate to drag you away from your home.’
‘The middle of winter’s no exactly the busy season for us,’ Boonzie said with a chuckle. He and Mirella had a seasonal business growing tomatoes and basil, which they canned into purée and pesto for the restaurant trade in their region of Campobasso. They’d never be millionaires, but it was a blissfully peaceful life and exactly what the couple wanted to be doing.
‘All the same. I feel like shit about it.’
‘Wheesht. It’s the least I can do. We’ll have this thing worked oot before ye know it.’
Despite his sense of guilt Ewan was already feeling much better. ‘And then? Take it to the police?’
‘Maybe. First let’s make sure we know what’s going on here. One step at a time, Ewan. One step at a time.’
‘Thanks, Uncle. You’ve no idea how much this means to me.’
‘I promised yer father on his death bed that I’d look after ye, Ewan. That’s what I mean tae do. You’re like the son I never had.’ The fearless Boonzie McCulloch wasn’t afraid of sounding corny, either.
‘Och, stop it. You’re embarrassing me.’
‘I mean it. So you stay put, keep yer head doon and dinnae move a muscle until I get there. Okay?’
‘I will.’
‘Swear?’
‘Absolutely.’
But despite his promise, as the hours passed following their conversation Ewan found it progressively harder and harder to sit twiddling his thumbs waiting. The morning seemed to drag on for ever and he didn’t know what to do with himself. Impatience was building like steam pressure inside him. Shortly after eleven a.m. his rising tension was suddenly interrupted when his landline phone rang again, louder than a train whistle, making him jump.
As he hurried over to pick up, the thought hit him that this could be the poacher calling back to say he’d had second thoughts and would agree to meet and tell him the rest of what he knew. Or else maybe it was Boonzie, telling him he was already at the airport and would soon be winging his way to Scotland. Boonzie to the rescue!
It was neither.
‘Oh, hello, Mr Campbell.’ Ewan felt awkward talking to Ross’s father and didn’t know what to say. The agony of the man’s grief was palpable over the phone line. He sounded like death.
‘It’s about Ross’s van,’ Mr Campbell explained. ‘It’s still here and I suppose you’ll be needing it back.’
Ewan had forgotten all about the van. For some bizarre reason the police had had the recovery service tow it to Ross’s place. Now that he was effectively running the business alone for the foreseeable future, Ewan had little use for two company vehicles, but he replied, ‘Oh, aye. Yes, I suppose I will.’ Then he gritted his teeth and asked how he and Mrs Campbell were doing.
Not well, came the predictable answer.