* * *
Logan left the Royal Scots Club. She walked back to Queen Street where she stopped a taxi. It took her back to London Road. She got a cup of coffee and sat in her office. She looked out of the window. In the garden on the other side of the street some children were playing in the snow. They were laughing and shouting and building a snowman.
Logan's phone rang. She answered it.
'Logan,' she said.
'This is your favourite newspaper journalist speaking.' It was Tam's voice.
Logan smiled to herself. 'Hi, Tam!' she said. 'If you're phoning about the Maclennan murder, I'm afraid I haven't got anything for you.'
'That's OK, Jenny,' said Tam, 'because I could have something for you.'
Logan pulled her notebook out of her bag.
'What is it, Tam?'
'How much do you know about Donald Johnstone?'
'Well, we know all about his business and his problems with the bank,' said Logan.
'Ah!' said Tam. 'Then you don't know that he nearly killed a man three years ago.'
'What!' Logan almost shouted into the phone. 'How do you know that?'
'Interesting, isn't it?' said Tam. 'Another journalist here at the News is working on the Maclennan murder. He was talking to someone who knows Johnstone and this story came out.'
'Go on,' said Logan.
'Well, I don't know if this is true, but anyway... you know Johnstone buys and sells used cars.'
'Yes,' said Logan.
'Well, three years ago a man called Neil Erskine came to Johnstone. Erskine said he had three BMWs to sell. He told Johnstone that he had an expensive taxi company for rich business people. He was buying some new cars for the company and he wanted to sell the old ones.'
Logan could see what was coming.
'How much of the story was true?' she asked.
'You are good at your job, Jenny,' he laughed. 'Well, he wanted to sell three BMWs, but nothing else was true.'
'But Johnstone believed him?' said Logan.
'Yes. He bought the BMWs, and then about a week later the police came round and took all three of them away. They weren't Neil Erskine's at all. Two of them were from the south of England and one was from Liverpool.'
'And where was Neil Erskine?' asked Logan. But she knew the answer.
'Gone,' said Tam.
'So what happened?' asked Logan.
'Well, Neil Erskine wasn't his real name. His real name is Neil Gordon and he's from Glasgow. But Johnstone didn't know that. Anyway, about a year later Johnstone was over in Glasgow doing some business. He was in a pub and...'
'He saw Neil Gordon,' said Logan.
'Right again,' said Tam. 'Well, Johnstone followed him home. Later that week he went back with three of his friends. Neil Gordon spent the next three months in hospital. And now, three years later, he still can't walk very well.'
'He didn't tell the police about Johnstone.'
'No, he didn't. If the police found out about the cars Tam stopped speaking.
'I see what you mean,' said Logan.
She said nothing as she thought about Johnstone. She knew that he got angry very quickly. But she didn't know that he could do something like this.
'Are you still there?' asked Tam.
'Oh! Sorry, Tam,' she said. 'Look, thanks very much. What you've told me is a real help. You journalists have some very interesting friends.'
Tam laughed. 'I'll speak to you later,' he said.
'Bye,' said Logan and put the phone down. Tam's news about Johnstone was interesting, but what could she do with it? It didn't mean Johnstone was a murderer. But now Logan was sure he could kill, if he wanted to.
She looked out of the window. The children's snowman was finished and snowballs were flying through the air.
She let different ideas run through her head. After a time one idea stayed there and she thought about it very carefully.
Some time later Logan heard the one o'clock gun and Sergeant Grant put his head round the door.
'Come in, Grant,' she said. 'Tell me what you think of my idea.'
It took Logan about twenty minutes to tell Grant what she wanted to do. Then they got everything ready. After that Logan phoned Alice Maclennan and told her that she would like to come round and see her again.
She stood up and turned to Grant.
'Get three officers and I'll see you in about half an hour,' she said.