So all the painfully built-up theories about political corruption and police cover-ups came down to this. It turned out Hanna had been right when he sensed a difference between Ogilvie’s murder and the attack on me. They’d had nothing to do with each other at all.

Or had they?

This woman and her confederates killed Salton because he discovered their criminal enterprise. But if Salton hadn’t died, neither Ogilvie nor I would have come to Campanilla. And if we hadn’t come to Campanilla, Ogilvie would still be alive. So in a way it could be said that Mrs Haslam and her crew killed Ogilvie. And they were responsible for a lot more than that, too. Because of them, fourteen Campanillans died in the Fleming Square mayhem. Because of them, the whole island was in turmoil. Because of them, Joe Hawke was inciting the people to riot. All because they had killed a man called David Salton.

It was a chilling illustration of the domino effect.

I said, ‘Do you really have any idea what you’ve done?’

‘We know what we’re doing,’ she said confidently. ‘We can’t lose.’

I shook my head. ‘You’ll lose this one, whatever it is. You’ve caused too many people too much trouble. Too many lives have been lost. I know of at least a dozen myself. And there’ll be more.’

‘What the hell are you talking about?’ she demanded. ‘We haven’t killed a dozen people. You’re crazy.’

‘Don’t you read the newspapers? Don’t you know what’s been going on?’

‘Oh, that,’ she said. ‘The political stuff. That’s nothing to do with us. It keeps the cops busy, though. That’s a real bonus.’

‘What are you going to do?’ I said. ‘Raid Mr Black’s casino? Rob a bank in Cardew Street?’

She smiled. ‘You really want to know, don’t you? That curiosity is going to be the death of you. But I’ll tell you this much, Kemp. You limeys hold the world record for the biggest ever theft. The Great Train Robbery was such a sweet job – nearly seven million dollars, and they got back peanuts.’

‘And you think you can beat that?’

‘I know we can beat it,’ she said.

‘Most of those robbers ended up in jail,’ I said. ‘Is it worth it?’

‘That won’t happen to us,’ she said briskly. ‘It’s all planned. A lead-pipe cinch.’

Over seven million dollars. But from where? And how?

I said, ‘I don’t believe a bloody word of it. You’ve been drinking too many margaritas.’

‘Two years in the planning, Kemp, and nothing is going to louse it up now. Today’s the day.’ She laughed delightedly. ‘You might call it Instant Millionaire Day.’

‘You’re out of your mind. There’s not that much money on the island.’