“Most popular vote is it’s a stickup,” Amanda said. “Someone comes in, trying to hold up the bar. Tells the pair to lie flat on their stomachs like she’s doing.” She pointed to the dead girl. “Keema and Andrew think they’re going to be tied up while he raids the safe, probably. Instead he executes her. Bang. Andrew freaks out and tries to make a run for it. He gets it next. Bang, bang. He doesn’t go down right away. Keeps trying for the door. He cops the rest of the clip for his troubles. Bang-bang-bang-bang-bang!”

Amanda had her fingers out in a pistol shape, pointing at the body by the door, one eye closed for aim. People were staring at us. I pushed her hand down.

“What do you think?” I asked Sweeney.

“The setup works,” Sweeney said. “Cash register and safe are empty. Safe was full from the week’s takings, about to be emptied today. So it was a hell of a convenient time for someone to come in and knock it off. We’re rounding up all current and ex-employees.”

“Bit of an odd thing to do, kill them both, if it’s just a robbery.” I looked at the girl’s limp, inward-turned feet. I ducked to get a better view of her face. There was a flashy necklace in the blood at her throat. “Why shoot them? Did they recognize the robber?”

Neither woman answered.

“Anyone weird hanging around the bar before closing time?”

“We’re bringing in the last customer, Darren Molk, a Holloways Beach postman. His was the last transaction on the readout of the EFTPOS machine, and he says he was the last to leave. We’re going to see if he saw anything strange. He’s a regular. Apparently it was just Darren for the last half an hour or so before closing. Usually went like that.”

“What time did Darren say he left?”

“About two a.m.”

“Two?” I said. “That’s odd.”

“Why?”

“I worked in bars while I was at uni,” I said. “Tough work. Takes a long time to close a bar down for the night. You’ve got to wash and polish all the glasses. Do the mats. The kegs. The fridges. Put all the chairs up. Do the floors. It sucks. You think the night is over when the last customer leaves and then you’re there for ages trying to get the place cleaned up.”

“What’s your point?” Sweeney asked.

“Well, if they’d only had the one customer since one thirty a.m., why didn’t they start the closing process then so that when the guy left they could just about walk out?” I shrugged. “Why hang around for forty-seven more minutes than you have to?”

“Maybe they had staff drinks,” Sweeney said.

“What? Just the two of them? Together?”

“Men and women can be colleagues without being romantically involved,” Sweeney offered.

“We better hope so.” Amanda nudged me in the arm.