‘So, let me get this straight,’ she said once Camilla had finished. ‘She hired you to set Owen up, telling you he was her husband, and you were happy to do so for what I presume was a lucrative pay day.’

‘That’s the long and short of it,’ replied Camilla. She looked steadily at Steph. ‘You do know what my profession is, don’t you?’

‘I do now,’ replied Steph as all the pieces of information lined up neatly in a row.

‘And don’t judge me on it,’ said Camilla.

‘I wasn’t. Not at all. I’m not in the business of judging other women.’

‘I’m glad to hear it.’

‘Do you know if Elizabeth actually did anything with the recording? Did she blackmail Owen? Although I can’t think why she’d want to.’

‘There are usually two reasons why a woman blackmails a man. One is money and the other is sex. Either Elizabeth wanted some money from Owen in exchange for her silence or she wanted him to leave his wife for her.’

‘You think it’s that simple?’

‘I know it.’

Steph contemplated the scenarios before speaking again. ‘Do you think Owen had anything to do with Elizabeth’s death?’

‘Hooray! The penny is finally dropping. For a reporter you’re slow on the uptake.’ Camilla smiled and then signalled to the waiter for some more drinks.

‘I’ll pay for these,’ said Steph as a few minutes later two more pink gins were placed in front of them.

‘No, these are on me. You’re going to need to save your money.’

Steph looked at Camilla with interest. ‘Am I?’ It was true her finances were pretty dire, but she had a feeling Camilla wasn’t referring to that.

‘All in good time,’ replied Camilla. She checked her watch. ‘I need to go soon. I have a meeting with a client in half an hour.’

‘If you think Owen had something to do with Elizabeth’s death, why didn’t you go to the police and tell them what happened?’

‘It wasn’t any of my business,’ said Camilla simply. ‘It wouldn’t be good for my own business to be associated with the police or for my clients to think I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. Not only that, but if Elizabeth was murdered, intentionally or otherwise, I might be putting myself in danger.’

‘But if she was murdered, as her mum seems to think she was, surely that’s worth more than just protecting yourself?’

‘I did say don’t judge me.’ Camilla’s tone took a dip. ‘And besides, I’m protecting lots of people, not just me. All my clients expect and receive confidentiality.’