- [Examining the body of a man who has been tied to a chair in his living room and then stabbed]
- DI John Rebus: Do we know with whom the good doctor shared his final repast?
- DS Siobhan Clarke: [reading from notebook] Er, Sir James Hogarth.
- DI John Rebus: One of the wealthiest men in Edinburgh. Private banker.
- DS Siobhan Clarke: The super-rich usually are.
- DI John Rebus: Usually are what?
- DS Siobhan Clarke: Private bankers. That *is* rhyming slang, isn't it?
- DI John Rebus: No, that's what he actually does - he's a private banker.
- [Miranda is lying in bed, covered by a sheet but clearly naked beneath it. Rebus is sitting beside the bed, sketching her]
- Miranda Masterson: Did I say I was going to America soon?
- DI John Rebus: America? I do not recall you saying that, no. Not for ever, I hope.
- Miranda Masterson: Six month exchange. I just thought you should know that, so that instead of sitting there colouring, we might use our time more... fruitfully.
- [she grins seductively at him and he grins back]
- DI John Rebus: Fruitfully? I like the sound of that.