The Loch

Chapter 27

The high court of justiciary, case number C93-04, is now back in session, Lord Neil Hannam presiding. All rise."

I stood as the judge took his place at the bench and addressed the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen, as you are well aware, there are extraordinary circumstances surrounding this case, and you are to be commended for your patience and understanding. Mr. Rael, is the defense prepared to continue its case?"

"We are, my lord."

"Lord Advocate?"

Mitchell Obrecht nodded. "Her Majesty's Advocate is ready, my lord."

"Very well. Mr. Rael, when last in session, you were questioning your witness, Dr. Zachary Wallace. Do you have any further questions of the witness at this time?"

"No, my lord."

"Lord Advocate, would you like to cross-examine the witness?"

"Indeed we would, my lord."

I was recalled to the witness box and sworn in. Angus seemed almost amused as he watched from his seat behind the prosecutor's table.

"Welcome back, Dr. Wallace. What happened to your foot?"

"Camping accident."

"Camping. Yes, I understand you've spent the better part of the last two weeks camping and exploring Loch Ness."

"Yes."

"When court was last in session, Mr. Rael asked you, and I quote, 'hypothetically speaking, if a large water creature did prey in Loch Ness, is it possible it could have developed a taste for human flesh?' To which you responded, 'Hypothetically, yes, but only if this creature was a predator and not a vegetarian, and only if the creature's diet had been substantially altered by some unusual break in the food chain,' end quote. My question then, Dr. Wallace, is if, in the last two weeks, your investigation has proven either of these conditions to be true?"

He knows something…

"Doctor?"

"Justin Wagner's injuries indicated he'd been attacked by a predatory animal. None of the other deaths could positively be linked to a water creature."

"Thank you, but that wasn't my question. What I asked was whether there was anything in your investigation that's shown either of your two previously mentioned conditions to be true."

I hesitated. "It seems certain populations of fish that normally frequent Loch Ness at this time of year may not be present." Murmurs filled the chamber, quieting quickly.

"In other words, a break in the food chain?"

"Yes."

"And which species of fish are missing from Loch Ness?"

"Numbers are significantly down among the larger breeds, specifically among the salmon."

"And how do you know that, Dr. Wallace?"

The waiter! "I've uh, I've been provided with access to the monster hunter's sonar array."

"Ah. So let me be clear here, you found no salmon in Loch Ness?"

"None. At least within the limits of the array."

"Maybe you could quickly walk us through the salmon's spawning routine."

"Salmon are born in the rivers feeding Loch Ness. As they get older, they migrate into the Atlantic, where they grow quite large.

When it's time to spawn, a salmon may travel thousands of miles, using the Earth's magnetic field to direct it back to the freshwater pool where it hatched."

"And when do the salmon usually start arriving in Loch Ness?"

"At the end of each winter when they're large and well fed. The fish must wait until the rivers are swollen, since they often have to leap up waterfalls and beyond strenuous currents. Once a salmon returns to its birth pool it spawns, and it usually won't eat again until it returns to the ocean in the fall."

"According to your testimony, when you fell into Loch Ness seventeen years ago, you were surrounded by a school of salmon. Is that correct?"

"Yes."

"What month was that?"

"August."

"Then summer is the season a school of salmon would be found in Loch Ness?"

"Spring and summer, yes."

"But not this summer?"

"So far… no."

"And what might cause the salmon population to avoid Loch Ness this season?"

I hesitated, not wanting to bring up the subject of pollution until I had proof. "When a salmon approaches Loch Ness, a chemical memory enables the fish to literally smell its own river. It's possible something's interfering with that process, but that's just conjecture. For all we know, they may have diverted to another Highland loch or river—"

"But not Loch Ness? At least not this season?"

"No, not this season."

"And if not this season, then certainly not this past winter?"

"No. The water's too cold to spawn."

"I see. Then February is certainly out?"

"Yes."

"Thank you, Dr. Wallace. No further questions."

The judge looked at Max. "Mr. Rael?"

"My lord, the defense has no further witnesses."

"Lord Advocate?"

"Yes, my lord, we'd like to recall Mr. Angus Wallace to the stand."

My father shot Max a worried look, then strutted to the witness box. The clerk of the court verified that Angus knew he was still under oath, while the prosecutor circled like a shark.

"Mr. Wallace, I'm going to read back to you your testimony regarding the death of John Cialino… a death that occurred on the fifteenth of February. And I quote, "so I hit him, square in the nose. It was a good shot, and he stumbled back a few steps, then twisted his ankle on a rock and tumbled over the edge, right into Loch Ness. I dropped to my knees and looked over the slope. John was treading water, in fair shape, though blood was pouring from both nostrils. Suddenly the water came alive with salmon, must have been hundreds of them. Some were leaping straight out of the water, a few smacking John right in the head. Then I saw a huge animal, long and serpent- like, at least fifteen meters, and it was circling John and those salmon like a hungry wolf.' End quote."

Angus looked pale.

"Salmon, Mr. Wallace. In your testimony, you saw hundreds of salmon, yet according to the expert testimony of your own son, there are no salmon in Loch Ness this season, and certainly not in a winter month. So how do you explain seeing so many salmon on February the fifteenth?"

"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.