I think I used too many words for one sentence, because the brat looked up at me with big, blue, uncomprehending eyes. I’m sure his father told him from the time he was a little boy: If you’re ever in trouble, Daddy will send the best lawyers in the world to help you.

“You…you can’t do this!”

I had Halsey right where I wanted him, of course. Trapped, with no way out. Which was the right moment to throw him a little lifeline.

“Come on, get up,” I said. “I’m not here to arrest you. I’m just here with some information you might find useful.”

The brat relaxed a little, now that I was taking handcuffs and a perp walk off the table. “What kind of information?”

The funicular came to a stop. We disembarked and Halsey tottered along next to me like a reluctant puppy. We found two cushioned chairs in an empty cabana. I told him where to sit. He sat. I took the opposite chair and stared at him.

“So…what is it?”

I continued to stare at him.

“You said, uh, that you had some, uh, information for me.”

As you know, most people can’t stand a long silence. They are very eager to fill the void. And the brat did not disappoint.

“Look, I know you’re here about that girl.”

“What girl would that be?”

“What’s her name, Paige something. I’m telling you, I barely even talked to her. She came with a couple of chicks—and I didn’t know them, either. Somehow word spreads about a boat, and suddenly the whole friggin’ island shows up, you know? But anyway, I definitely saw her leave with her friends. So whatever happened to her didn’t happen on my boat. It’s not my problem.”

I asked Halsey, “Are you familiar with the term bouquet of death?”

He blinked. “What?”

“It refers to the chemical by-products of decomposition that only cadaver dogs can detect. Did you know that the nose of a German shepherd, for instance, contains 200 million receptor cells, while human beings have barely a tenth of that?”

“Lady, I don’t know why the hell you’re telling me this.”

“There’s also ground-penetrating radar, and chemical analyses of soil and air samples. There’s even this cutting-edge method involving tubes and air pockets that can detect a corpse under a concrete slab. Isn’t that incredible?”

Halsey stood up to leave. “I don’t have to listen to this.”

I grabbed his wrist and squeezed. He winced at the sudden pain radiating up his arm.

“Ow!”

“What I’m saying is that it’s only a matter of a day, maybe even a few hours, before they find Paige Ryerson’s body.”

“So what? I told you, that has nothing to do with me.”

“I’m also hearing that there is concrete evidence linking you to her death.”

“Evidence? Of what?”

My eyes bored into his. “I want you to think about this carefully, Jamie, and answer me honestly. Your freedom may depend on it. Are you sure there’s nothing that would link you to this girl?”