"I'm no' a marine biologist, I jist saw whit I saw."
"Let's return to what you said. In your testimony, you claimed Mr. Cialino owed you a final payment on land you had sold him. How much was the final payment for?"
"Fifteen thousand pounds."
"And he never paid you?"
"Naw."
The prosecutor walked over to his assistant, who handed him two manilla envelopes.
From the first, Obrecht removed a Xeroxed copy of a bank check. "Do you recognize this, Mr. Wallace?"
Angus stared at the note. "Aye. It's a cancelled cheque for my last payment."
"And what's the date on the cheque?"
"February 23."
"Paid a week after Mr. Cialino's death. And upon whose account was the money drawn?"
"Theresa Cialino."
The courtroom buzzed with opinion.
"So Mrs. Cialino paid you a week after you were arrested for her husband's murder? Do you find that a bit suspicious, Mr. Wallace?"
"Since when is honesty suspicious? Theresa kent whit happened tae her husband wis an accident, an' I needed the money for my heart medicine. They've got my land. A deal's a deal."
"Yes. The question, of course, is what deal you're referring to. The real estate transaction… or something else." The prosecutor opened the second folder, removing a set of color photographs. "Mr. Wallace, do you recognize these?"
Angus leafed through the set. "It's a bed "n' breakfast in Dores. One photie's o' me, another's o' Theresa Cialino. Whit' yer point?"
"How often did the two of you rendezvous at this particular bed and breakfast?"
"Rendezvous? Ye make it sound as if we were sneakin' around."
"Just answer the question," Judge Hannam said.
"Dinnae really ken. Maybe half a dozen times. The chef's an auld pal o' mine. Makes the best oatcake an' haggis, neeps an' tattie this side o' Fort William. Been there wi' Johnny an' a'."
"And how long have you known Mrs. Cialino?"
"We met seven or eight years ago."
"Did her husband know the two of you had been meeting at a bed and breakfast in Dores?"
Another murmur rose, but quickly died.
"I widnae ken. Ye'd need tae ask him."
Obrecht returned to his desk, his assistant Jennifer, exchanging the photos for a thick file. "Mr. Wallace, would it surprise you to learn that John Cialino had hired a private investigator to follow his wife?"
"No' at a'. Theresa's awfy bonnie, as ye can see, an' Johnny wis awfy paranoid."
"Yes or no, Mr. Wallace, were you and Mrs. Cialino having an affair?"
I glanced from Angus to the widow, as did most of the courtroom. She sat stoically, staring straight ahead, but her jaw muscles were clenched.
"There wis no affair, Mr. Obrecht. Sorry tae disappoint ye."
"You never slept with Mrs. Cialino?"
"Objection." Max was on his feet. "My lord, I'd say Mr. Wallace has answered the question, yes?"
"Overruled. The defendant will answer the question."
Angus averted his eyes, mulling over his reply. "Aye, once, but it wis quite a while ago."
"Had the two of you ever discussed problems in her marriage at these bed and breakfast rendezvous?"
"We discussed many things ower breakfast, Mr. Obrecht."
"Including her husband's murder?"
"Objection!"
"Sustained."
The courtroom held its collective breath while Mitchell Obrecht gazed at the jury, confirming his message had been delivered. "No further questions for this witness, my lord."
Court adjourned for the day, releasing dozens of reporters to file their stories in time to hit the evening news. Feeling bad about my testimony, I waited around, hoping to speak with my father.
When the crowds had thinned, I signed in at the security check point, then limped down the stone stairwell into the bowels of Inverness Castle, pausing at the bottom step when I heard a woman's voice.
Quietly, I peeked around the corner.
It was Theresa Cialino, and she was speaking to Angus, her tone quite anxious.
"They won't make me testify, will they?"
"Theresa, calm doon."
"I don't want to testify, Angus. What if he asks me directly?"
"Darlin', relax. Obrecht disnae ken enough tae ask."
"He knew enough to ask about the salmon. And he found the cheque."
"A' o' which is circumstantial, though I telt ye no' tae pay me after whit happened."
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry… you know I was a lunatic that week. I had to run the company, I just started paying stacks of bills… I never knew what you'd told the police."
"Shh, calm doon. In the end, none o' it'll matter anyway."
"Angus… maybe we should just come forward, I mean, it's not too late. Maxie could recall Calum. He could question him about everything that happened last winter. His testimony alone might—"
"No, no, an' no! Bad enough I wis kicked oot o' the Order. Damn if be subjectin' my best friend tae Alban MacDonald's fury. No, Theresa, we stick tae the plan, that's the best bet. You watch, Zachary'll soon find the monster, then a' this'll be behind us."
"I wouldn't get your hopes up. Your son's no closer to locating the creature than he was when he first arrived. And despite your prodding, he still hasn't approached me about borrowing our boat."
"He will."
"What if he doesn't? Face it, Angus, your son's still afraid."
"No he isnae! Zachary's got Wallace blood runnin' through him, an' he'll come through, jist as I predicted. Where's yer trawler?"
"Docked in Fort Augustus."
"Contact the captain. Have him bring her up tae the Clansman's Wharf. Be easier tae get Zack tae board her an'—"
"And what?" Revealing myself, I stomped over to his cell, fists balled, my veins boiling. "I'm no' a murderer, Zachary, I didnae dae it, son. Liar!"
Angus looked deathly pale. "Son, it's… it's no' whit ye think."
"Shut up! You used me in court, then you prodded and pushed me, baiting me to go after the creature just so I could solidify your alibi… your lie. Well it's over. I've testified, now I'm going home, and you and the merry widow here can rot in hell for all I care."
"Zack, wait! Dinnae leave, son, ye cannae go now!"
Ignoring the pain in my foot, I hurried down the corridor and back up the stairwell, covering my ears against his rants and wails.
Chapter 28
In the summer of 1986 we ran sonar tests in preparation for Operation Deepscan, the most extensive search of Loch Ness ever conceived. Laurence Electronics agreed to supply us with Simpson-Lowrance X-16 sonar units, selected because they'd record anything seen in the Loch's depths onto a paper chart. Each unit had a range of thirteen hundred feet and could target objects as small as twelve inches and one inch apart.
On October 9th, 1987, Operation Deepscan began — the largest sonar sweep of a freshwater body ever attempted. Over 250 news reporters and 20 television crews attended the event, more than showed up for the Gorbachev-Reagan summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, in "86. We began our search in the waters off the Clansman Hotel. Nineteen boats formed a line across the width of Loch Ness, each outfitted with an X-16 sonar unit. Following the flotilla was the New Atlantis, a faster boat fitted with a Simrad Scanning sonar, designed to home in on any identified contacts. On the first day, three strong sonar contacts were recorded between 78 meters (256 feet) and 180 meters (590 feet). The best of the three was recorded over 140 seconds at 174 meters just off Whitefield, opposite Urquhart Bay. After a thorough analysis, David Steensland of Laurence Electronics stated that the three targets were larger than a shark, but smaller than a whale.