‘Of course not, but isn’t that what makes me perfect as your wingman? You’ve often been close to the victim in various different cases and that’s your motivation. Helping Carole is mine,’ Bob explained.
‘That’s very true, but I’ve never been close to the person who committed the crime,’ Leger said. ‘Except for that one time when it turned out to be Hugh, but I didn’t know he was involved when I was investigating. And that time when it was Tony.’
‘Face it Leger, you can’t use that argument. We both like Carole. Perhaps I like her more than you do but neither of us want to believe that she is the murderer in this incident. Lily is the only one who seems to want Carole to be guilty.’
‘I don’t think it’s that she wants Carole to be the murderer. I think she is simply less biased than we are,’ Leger frowned.
Bob stared at Leger for a moment then said,‘So, am I in?’
‘Yes. I say this because, in my heart, I don’t believe Carole is involved in the death of Sean Gilbert.’
‘Great,’ Bob said. ‘I’ve been brainstorming and I had some ideas.’
Leger’s whiskers twitched with amusement. Bob was clearly taking this seriously and although it was surprising, it was welcome. Leger had never seen Bob so enthusiastic about an investigation. Usually the only times he got this excited involved food or walks.
‘Now, what I thought we could do is ask some of the other animals in the village. Hugh will take me for a walk at some point today. If I whine a lot, he might do it right away. It will give him a chance to look around for Carole anyway.’
‘Good thinking,’ Leger began to say, but was interrupted as Bob pressed ahead with his own ideas.
‘Now, you’re too scared – sorry, I mean safety-conscious – to go to the loch by yourself and that’s fine. That’s another place I can drag Hugh on the walk, and I can speak to the swans when we’re there. Kevin probably won’t hurt a dog, especially one with a human.’
‘Excellent idea,’ Leger said, but he was interrupted yet again.
‘What I also thought we could do is talk to Louis. We’ve heard what Brianna has to say when she spoke to Annabella and Hugh but Louis might be able to shed some more light on where Carole was going. Human adults often say things to babies that they wouldn’t say to other adults or older children.’
‘Actually, that’s true but the problem with that is that babies cannot talk,’ Leger pointed out.
‘What do you mean, they can’t talk? Louis and I talk all the time!’ Bob cried.
Leger kept his eyes fixed on his canine friend as he assessed whether Bob was joking and if not, whether he was of sound mind.
‘What’s the matter Leger? You’ll be telling me next that animals can’t talk and our conversations with each other are all imaginary!’
‘Well, clearly you and Louis have some kind of rapport that he and I don’t share. Brianna and I were always close when she was little, but she’s what I would describe as a cat person. Perhaps Louis is more a dog person, like his mother,’ Leger decided.
Hugh appeared in the doorway, clutching his newspaper and the phone with a scowl on his face, clearly still concerned about Carole’s whereabouts.
He perched on the edge of his armchair and typed a number into the phone.
‘Carole? It’s Uncle Hugh again. Your Aunty Anna and I were just wondering when you’ll be back. We’re getting a bit worried. Give us a ring and tell us what your plans are. The wee ones are just fine but Brianna’s asking where mummy is. Just, let us know,’ he said, then pressed the button to end the call.
Leger and Bob watched him rub his eyes until they were red, then he sat back with his newspaper still in his hand, making no attempt to read it.
‘Time for a walk!’ Bob barked. ‘Come on, Hugh. Time to go. Get up. I want a walk.’
Leger heard Lily yowling to be quiet from the other room, her nap no doubt disturbed, while Hugh scratched Bob’s ears.
‘Do you want to go out? I suppose we should. You still need a walk, no matter what’s happening around this place,’ Hugh smiled down at his best friend.
‘Nicely done,’ Leger complimented, striding to the door, ready to follow the pair of them out when they left.
Within a few minutes, Hugh had put on his jacket and clipped Bob’s leash onto his collar. When Hugh opened the door, the trio left. Hugh didn’t even comment on Leger following them, as he occasionally did so.
Leger peered over at the tree between the house and the hotel as Bob pulled Hugh in the direction of the loch. He saw the usual clowder perched on various branches of the tree. Massingham had his head down, which was entirely unexpected since Leger had run from their fight the day before and he expected Massingham to gloat. Leger couldn’t help noticing that the clowder seemed to be collectively subdued.
‘Just a second, Bob. I’m going to check what’s occurring over at the tree,’ Leger said.
‘Be quick! I can’t look so eager then suddenly take my time. Hugh will end up turning back at this rate!’
Leger sprinted to the tree and stared up at the clowder.
‘Good day to you all. I can’t help noticing you don’t seem your usual selves,’ he noted.
Piper was the only one who acknowledged his presence. She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again when Massingham hissed.
‘Has something happened?’ Leger pressed.
‘Yes!’ Piper squeaked, desperate to spill the beans.
Domino and Oreo tutted to show their contempt but said nothing. Massingham was next to speak.
‘I took a walk back to the loch this morning to get that cygnet back. It seems he has protection from his father,’ Massingham said.
‘Yes, he does,’ Leger agreed. ‘I knew that already. I discovered that when I took him back to his father yesterday.’
‘And you walked away from that swan? The one who killed a human in cold blood?’ Piper swooned. ‘That’s so awesome!’
‘Impressive indeed,’ Massingham purred. ‘How did you manage to escape him?’
‘I got off with a warning,’ Leger smirked. ‘I assume you did too?’
‘Not exactly,’ Massingham said. ‘Once the cygnet mentioned that his father had killed a human, I got a little spooked and walked away. Decided he wasn’t worth the trouble. When I came back here and told the others the story of what had happened, they told me all about how that cob is a local legend. I can’t believe a wimp like you escaped him.’
‘Whatever do you mean?’ Leger said.
‘Well we all knew he was vicious but he apparently killed a human and nobody expected that. That is not the kind of animal I want to come in contact with,’ Massingham stated. ‘I would much rather just stay here on this tree.’
Leger walked, very calmly, around the side of his house until he was out of sight of the clowder then picked up the pace, sprinting to the loch to be with Hugh and Bob again. When he arrived he found Bob scouring the place, sniffing various patches of grass, but did not see the swans.
‘Find anything, Bob?’ Leger asked.
‘I can smell them, but I can’t see them,’ he said. ‘Tell me something. I always thought swans mated for life and swan around in pairs but I can only smell two here. One is the male, presumably the father who threatened you and the other is the young cygnet. Where’s the mother?’
‘I did notice there was a lack of female presence here,’ Leger noted.
‘I wonder if maybe he’s a single dad and that’s why he’s so protective,’ Bob said.
Leger sighed. It was a possibility, but he found his empathy was lacking at that precise moment. Perhaps if he had not been threatened the day before and didn’t already have enough on his plate trying to find Carole and the person who killed Sean Gilbert, he would have been far more interested in Iain’sfamily situation.
‘I just had an interesting conversation with Massingham,’ Leger said.