“What do you want me to say? I didn’t know about his problem. It has nothing to do with me. You can either believe that or not. But my offer still stands. I want to do business with you on a bigger scale than López said was possible. Maybe this changes things. I don’t know, but we’re not going to get anywhere if you accuse me of something that I don’t know anything about and didn’t do.”

“You can understand why I am sceptical. You can see how convenient this looks.”

“Yes, of course. It is. But it’s a lucky coincidence. You want me to say it again? It has nothing to do with me.”

Del Pozo got up from his seat and walked across the veranda to the balustrade. He folded his arms and leaned against it, gazing out into the quickening gloom.

“You say your offer still stands?”

“It does.”

“What is the maximum amount that you would be looking to buy?”

“A million dollars.”

“And how much do you expect to receive in return for that?”

“Fifty keys.”

Del Pozo turned around, leaned back against the balustrade and looked down at Milton, his arms crossed. “Twenty thousand per kilo?”

“That’s right,” Milton said. “Plus shipping.”

Del Pozo shook his head. “No,” he said. “Twenty-five.”

“I just paid that for a key,” Milton said. “Now I’m buying in bulk. I don’t think it would be unreasonable to ask for a discount.”

“We can go to twenty-three,” del Pozo said. “But that is as far as we would be prepared to move. It’s either acceptable to you or it isn’t.”

Milton drew in a deep breath. “No,” he said. “Too much. What was Jackson’s price?”

“That’s none of your business.”

“Of course it is. You’ve been doing business with someone indiscreet enough to get caught by the police with product—I’m assuming it’s your product—in the back of his car. He’s unreliable. He makes mistakes.”

“What does this have to do with you?”

“I don’t want to tell you your business, but can you afford to take another chance? You need someone who can reliably move as much of your product as possible. But not just move it—move it in a way that is completely under the radar, in a way that won’t lead to a situation like this happening again.”

Del Pozo still looked unconvinced.