Dan was embarrassed. He thought of scrolling through the pictures of Griff’s family, hunting down the articles, the records at Companies House.

‘No, no, no,’ said Arun, ‘neither of those. It’s offshore.’

‘Switzerland?’

Griff snorted. ‘Not these days. That’s over.’

‘I thought Paligny belonged to Alex,’ said Dan.

‘No,’ said Arun.

‘No,’ said Griff.

‘The company is based in Cayman.’

‘The company that owns the hotel?’ asked Dan.

‘Yes,’ Arun answered.

‘What’s it called?’

‘The details aren’t important.’

‘So why are you telling me?’

‘Well, you see,’ said Arun, ‘Griff’s initial thought was to sell the property, which he has no use for.’

‘Yeah, I know.’

‘However, it’s becoming clear that the police will require access to all aspects of Alex’s life. And that means the hotel, and of course the family, will be under scrutiny.’

‘Yeah, OK.’

‘And,’ said Griff, waking from his doze, ‘the French are bastards when it comes to property. Total bastards. Especially since we’re reverting to pre-1973 rules. I never would have bought the place if Alex and Liv hadn’t had one of their whims. Bad move. Stupid.’

‘Never mind, never mind, on we go,’ said Arun, his eyes twinkling at Dan. ‘So, here we are. It is really so simple, and not clandestine at all.’

‘I’ve got nothing to hide,’ said Griff, eyes closed once more.

‘The company I mentioned owns Paligny, and – with one or two steps along the way – Griff is the CEO of the company. Ergo, Griff owns the hotel. You see?’

‘Yes, of course,’ said Dan. ‘So?’

‘So we thought we might transfer the company into your name.’

‘Sorry, mine?’

‘The company that owns Paligny.’

‘The company in the Cayman Islands?’

‘It’s based in Cayman, yes,’ said Arun. ‘It’s not as big a thing as you might imagine.’

‘Oh, really?’ said Dan, amused. He was beginning to get the feeling he was out of his depth. Arun wasn’t an idiot. He was the lawyer who’d helped Griff make his millions, not to mention keeping him out of court for forty-five years which, if Dan’s recent investigations were accurate, hadn’t always been easy. ‘How is it not a big thing?’ he asked.

‘Well, for one thing, the company’s assets are very, very safe. All very steady, very low-volatility investments,’ said Arun.

‘Yes, but what’s it called?’

‘It doesn’t matter.’

‘I think it does. If you’re talking about a company, some offshore company, you want me to – what? – front up? And you don’t want to disclose its name. I should probably know something about it. Some fucking thing.’

‘Calm down, dear,’ said Griff.

‘Hey!’

‘Why don’t we take a walk outside?’ said Arun. ‘There’s no need to get excited. I promise you, these things take place every day.’ He sounded like a surgeon getting out the scalpel.

Dan’s phone chirped in his pocket.