‘I’m stepping into his shoes, Peach. I have a right to know if I’m putting myself at risk.’ Annalie reached out and put a hand on Peach’s wrist. ‘Do you know what Justin was working on before he was killed?’

‘I don’t.’

Annalie shivered, even in the heat. ‘I have to tell you, all this dirt-digging we do gives me the creeps.’

‘So why’d you take the job?’

‘Why else? I need the money.’

‘I thought your father worked for a big foundation donor.’

‘He does, but he’s not rich. Besides, I pay my own bills. I never had any interest in political crap, but after nine months without a job, I was running pretty low on cash. So my dad made a couple calls.’

‘I assumed you had Washington ties,’ Peach said.

‘Why’d you think that?’

Peach pointed at Annalie’s DC tank top, which was ringed with sweat on the hot afternoon. The woman looked down, as if she’d forgotten what she was wearing. She shook her head and smiled.

‘Never been there. Somebody gave it to me.’ She added: ‘Listen, I know this isn’t just a job for you. It’s a cause. I get it.’

‘You’re right,’ Peach said.

‘That must have been awful for you and Deacon ten years ago.’

Peach watched the translucent green water. The waves swelled and broke in white ribbons. She saw a sailboat jutting like a shark’s fin out of the distant horizon line. ‘Yeah. It was even harder on him than me. I mean, just like that, Lyle was gone and Deacon had to take care of me. I didn’t make it easy.’

‘Seems like you guys get along now.’

‘Oh, yeah. We couldn’t be more different, but we’re a team. It helps that we’re working on Lyle’s legacy. The Common Way Party was everything to Lyle. So much that he didn’t always have a lot of time for us. Especially not that last summer.’

‘I’m sorry.’

‘Hey, campaigns are crazy. I get it now.’

‘Do you know Diane Fairmont well?’ Annalie asked.

Peach dipped a hand in the surf and let warm water spill through her fingers. ‘I’ve met her. I don’t know her well. She doesn’t come over to the research wing very often. We’re the dirty little secret that nobody wants to talk about.’

‘Dirty?’

‘Some people think so,’ Peach said.

Annalie was quiet. A small Cessna flew over the beach, its motor whining. ‘Can I ask you something?’

‘What?’

‘A few months ago, the Governor was looking unbeatable. He was way ahead of Ramona. Then his chief of staff got caught taking kickbacks from construction contractors, and his numbers tanked. Diane got in the race and vaulted ahead of both of them in the polls.’

‘What’s your point?’ Peach asked.

‘Is it possible that Common Way was involved?’