‘Not quite. But the political group he built around him since coming back to the island is full of young idealists, and none of them has any real experience outside of Campanilla. It was the money that put him in pole position – without that, he wouldn’t have had a look-in, especially as a white islander who’d been away for so long.’

‘So Conyers wins after all.’

‘Maybe – you never know with elections.’

‘Thanks for everything you’ve told me,’ I said. ‘It’s cleared my mind about a lot of things.’

He stood up. ‘That crack you made about Salton being murdered. Do you believe that, or did you just say it to open me up?’

‘I don’t know,’ I said slowly. I tapped the side of my head. ‘There’s a little man who lives in here and every so often he gives me a kick in the hunch-box. I’ve found him very useful in the past because he’s right a lot more times than he’s wrong.’

‘I don’t run down that kind of talent,’ said Negrini thoughtfully. ‘Out there on the tables I have an edge. In roulette I have a steady 5.71 per cent advantage so I know I’ll come out on the right side in the long run. But there are some people who can come in and buck the tide consistently. I don’t mind that either because it’s good for trade – a winner encourages others to play. But they scare me because I don’t know how they do it.’

‘I don’t suppose they do themselves. I know I don’t.’

‘And your little man says Salton was murdered?’

I got to my feet. ‘Every time I think of Salton and murder, something goes clang. It’s nothing to do with the insurance. Mrs Salton gets paid out come what may.’

Negrini was acute. ‘If she didn’t do it.’

‘That makes no difference to us in the end. Someone gets paid. In the event that Mrs Salton killed her husband – which, incidentally, I think highly improbable – then the money would go to the next heir after Mrs Salton. I presume he has a family.’

Negrini nodded. ‘There’s an older sister.’ He looked me in the eye. ‘I’m glad your little man doesn’t think Jill did it. David was a good man and Jill is a good woman.’ He took me by the arm. ‘Shall we join the lady?’

‘There’s just one more thing,’ I said. ‘I’ve been asking a lot of awkward questions and Mrs Salton picked up the drift. To pack it small, it’s possible she thinks that you were responsible for the death of her husband. I haven’t told her about your contributions to Salton’s fighting fund because I don’t think she knew about it.’

‘She didn’t,’ said Negrini. ‘David said she wouldn’t understand.’