are you going to tell the press?’
The team had seen the sense in keeping a lid on this new piece of evidence, even Duncan Sutherland had nodded his approval as Lorimer had outlined the need to keep the press away from the possibility that Pattison had been out looking for a prostitute on the night he had died.
What would not have gone down so well would have been any suggestion that the three men who had been killed might somehow be linked to the ongoing prostitute murder case. That was something that Lorimer kept to himself for now but it was a matter he felt needed urgent discussion with the one man he knew would not rubbish the idea.
Solly rubbed his eyes then replaced the round horn-rimmed spectacles that gave him the appearance of a wise old owl; at least that had been the caricature some wag of a student had drawn in the Glasgow Guardian and somehow the perception had stuck. For once the psychologist was looking forward to the weekend and the chance to catch up on some much needed sleep. Baby Abigail was his heart’s delight but after yet another broken night, Solly wished that his little daughter would not wake quite so often between midnight and six in the morning. So it was that he arrived in his large office overlooking University Avenue each morning almost glad of the peace and quiet that pervaded this part of the building. And, if he did have to stifle a few yawns by late afternoon, these were shared by many of Solly’s students whose lives were bound by the frantic need to cram as much activity into each of the twenty-four hours in a day as they could possibly manage.
It was fortunate for the psychologist that he was in between classes when the call came from Pitt Street.
‘Solly, I need to talk to you about this case. Something’s come up. Are you free any time later this afternoon?’
Solly glanced at the clock on his wall. There were two classes left today: a lecture and a seminar. He had planned to leave right after the latter and walk home through the park, but he recognised a quality of urgency in Lorimer’s voice and his curiosity was aroused.
‘Do you want me to come into town?’
‘No. I’d rather we met somewhere outside headquarters. This is really big stuff, Solly, and I don’t want the press to get wind of it.’
‘Come up here, then,’ Solly said with a smile. ‘It is as private as you could wish for, my friend. Say a little after four o’clock? Gives me time to shoo any earnest young things out of my office.’
Lorimer studied the forensic report that ran to several pages. There were plenty of pieces of fibre, hair and other materials that had been taken from Pattison’s car, all listed according to their chemistry as well as giving their possible sources. The most interesting ones were the hairs taken from the passenger seat, five different types in all. These could be DNA tested and matched against family members and Pattison himself, just like the fingerprints had been. If there were any rogues among them then that would prove to be very interesting indeed, Lorimer thought. The image of a smart, blonde woman came into Lorimer’s head. He would bet a month’s salary that Zena Fraser had sat in the Mercedes passenger seat plenty of times and that one of these hair samples belonged to her. Was it worth asking her to give a DNA sample for elimination purposes? She could easily arrange to go along to her local police station and have it done.
The thought was no sooner in his mind than Lorimer was lifting the phone off its cradle and dialling the number at Holyrood that he now knew off by heart.
‘Zena Fraser, please,’ he asked the voice on the switchboard. ‘It’s Detective Superintendent Lorimer calling.’
By the time Lorimer arrived in the west end of the city, darkness had begun to cover the skyline with leaden clouds and a light rain was falling. Parking the Lexus was not a problem, for once, as there were now several empty bays along the avenue, most lectures being over for the day. Pulling up his coat collar, the detective hurried across the road and looked up at the double windows on the first floor where Solly had his domain. Since becoming a professor, the psychologist had enjoyed the luxury of one of the university’s most coveted rooms.