After another ten minutes or so, it was time to join my guests. Most but not all had arrived. I circled round the lounge, a tall glass of sparkling water, ice and lemon in my hand, making my apologies for my delayed appearance.

Jarvis arrived, followed by Tobey only a few minutes afterwards. I acknowledged them both with a brief nod. After making the obligatory circuit of the room, I had to discipline Kellan for bad-mouthing me to Tobey. That somewhat soured the atmosphere, which I then had to work hard to repair. Once the air had been cleared, and most people were chatting again, I sought out Tobey who was still talking to Kellan.

‘Tobey, may I see you in my study?’ I said rather formally.

He frowned. ‘Of course.’

As we walked side by side along the east hall, Tobey kept throwing curious looks my way.

‘What’s Sephy Hadley doing here?’ he asked.

‘Sephy Ealing.’

‘Whatever. What’s she doing here?’

‘I invited her.’

Tobey’s impatient intake of breath had me smiling inwardly.

‘I gathered that. I’m asking why?’

‘She’s my insurance.’

‘Insurance? I don’t understand.’

‘You will before the night is out. Sephy and I have unfinished business, as do you and I,’ I said pointedly.

‘I didn’t know Sephy was on your radar,’ said Tobey.

‘Maybe you don’t know me as well as you think you do,’ I said silkily. ‘By the way, a while ago, when we were both drunk at my birthday party, you told me that if you ever became PM you’d use all your power to win back Callie Rose Hadley. Is that still your endgame?’

‘Why?’

‘Just curious.’

Tobey shrugged. ‘You shouldn’t believe a word anyone says when they’ve had a skinful.’

People inevitably spoke a lot of shit when they were drunk and their guard was down, but they also sometimes spoke a lot of truth too. ‘In vino veritas,’ I pointed out.

‘In wine maybe. In the forty-five-per-cent-proof firewater you were serving at that birthday party, not so much,’ said Tobey.

‘If you say so.’ I wasn’t about to argue.

Another speculative look from Tobey. We entered the study. I indicated he should sit down before I did the same behind my desk.

‘Strange mix of guests you’ve brought here tonight,’ Tobey pointed out.

I shrugged.

‘You’re not a fan of Bruemann,’ Tobey said. ‘And yet you invited him here and, even more bizarrely, he showed up.’

‘Of course he did,’ I replied with a curl of my top lip. ‘That scrounger would turn up to the opening of a fridge door if he thought he’d get a free drink out of it. The world is full of parasites.’

Silence.

‘Dan, are you all right?’

‘Why wouldn’t I be?’ I asked.

‘My brother, I know you. You seem a bit … off,’ said Tobey. ‘What’s wrong?’