Cab wondered how far to go. How much to say. ‘Enough to get Diane into political trouble?’

‘Yes,’ she acknowledged. ‘Probably enough to ruin her.’

‘And yet nothing has been exposed. You’re showing remarkable restraint when it comes to a political opponent.’

Ramona switched off the machine and slowed to a stop. She wiped her forehead with the towel. ‘What are you suggesting, Cab?’

‘Caprice suspects you’re behind everything that’s going on. She thinks you know damaging secrets about Diane and Frank Macy. You can’t release anything about it yourself, so you’re using me to bring it out into the open. Destroying Diane’s political ambitions and furthering yours at the same time.’

‘Do you believe her?’

‘I don’t believe any politician. That includes you.’

She chuckled. ‘Well, you’re right. For a politician, the agenda comes first. Ahead of friends, if we’re lucky enough to have any. Even ahead of family, as much as it pains me to say so. As long as we get what we want, the ends justify the means.’

‘That’s what everyone tells me,’ Cab said. ‘Does that mean you’d jump at an opportunity to wipe out a political enemy? An opportunity with Frank Macy’s name on it?’

Ramona sighed and pointed at Cab’s bottle of water. She waggled her fingers at him, and he handed it over. She took a sip. ‘Look, Cab, I’m not asking you to trust me. I’m asking you to look at it from my perspective, which is political self-interest. Frank Macy was my client, and any communication between him and me is still governed by attorney–client privilege. If I were to violate that privilege, I could be disbarred, which would be something of a political liability for the Attorney General of the State of Florida.’

Cab smiled. ‘True enough.’

‘Even if I wanted to find a way around privilege – say, by using a rich, handsome, ridiculously tall investigator to do my dirty work for me – I would still be putting my head on the chopping block. My connection to Frank Macy is a matter of public record. As soon as his name starts popping up in the media, so does mine. That’s not politically helpful. So as much as Diane wants to keep her interactions with Frank a secret, you can be assured that I want to keep my name away from him, too.’

‘Maybe so,’ Cab said, ‘but Frank’s still a threat to Diane.’

Ramona climbed off the treadmill. She continued to drink Cab’s water. ‘Why are you so sure? You have no reason to think he was involved in the Labor Day murders, do you?’

‘I thought I did, but apparently I was wrong about that,’ Cab admitted.