Shooting in the Dark

he wasn’t a survivor.
    ‘Sam Turner, isn’t it?’ the man said. ‘Quintin Reeves. I spoke to you on the phone.’
    ‘Yeah. Good of you to see me.’
    ‘How could I refuse when you’re retained not only by my wife, but by my sister-in-law as well?’ A thin and begrudging smile creased his features. The smile wasn’t frequently resorted to by this man. Sam guessed he allowed himself one a month, sometimes two.
    ‘I have a confession to make,’ Reeves said. ‘I promised I’d answer your questions, and I will. I’m a man of my word. But I wanted to meet you face to face because I’m worried about Angeles.’
    ‘But not about Isabel, your wife?’
    ‘Isabel too, but in a different way.’
    ‘Yeah, Angeles’s under some pressure.’
    ‘Precisely, Mr Turner. You must be aware that she’s letting her imagination run away with her?’
    Sam shook his head. He hadn’t got that impression. He’d talked to a woman who was facing up to it. She was looking for help along the way, but she wasn’t cracking.
    Reeves folded his hands and leaned forward in his chair conspiratorially. ‘You haven’t known her long, Mr Turner. Angeles isn’t as strong as she’d have you believe. Oh, I don’t think she’s going to crack up. I certainly hope not. She’s had delusions before, and I’m sure she’ll have them a gain. What I’m concerned about is that she isn’t taken advantage of. What are your fees, Mr Turner?’
    ‘You think I’m charging her over the odds?’
    ‘Not intentionally, no. But anything my sister-in-law Pays for an investigation into something she’s imagined Would be over the top.’
    ‘If I’d’ve thought that was true, I wouldn’t have taken the case.’
    Reeves clapped his hands together, but not with enough enthusiasm to make a sound. ‘You’re a moral man, Mr Turner. I don’t want to take this any further. I only needed to tell you what was on my mind, to share it with you. I’ve got one more thing to say on the subject. After a| few days, a week maybe, you will no longer be so sceptical about my comments. When that time comes, I hope you’ll|| see that to prolong your investigation will not be to Angeles’ benefit. That her general health will be improved. if her fantasies are not given free rein.’
    ‘If I arrive at that decision,’ Sam said, ‘I’ll tell my client how I feel.’
    ‘That’s all I ask,’ said Reeves. ‘And I’ll see to it that you aren’t out of pocket. I and my wife are the only family that Angeles has, Mr Turner. She would have you think otherwise, but she does need looking after a little.’
    Sam eyed the guy squarely. ‘My business is with Ms Falco. Not with you or anyone else, Mr Reeves. If I end up out of pocket, I’ll chase her for it or take the loss.’ Reeves nodded. ‘Of course. Forgive me. I’m something of a clodhopper. When you’re touched by tragedy, you sometimes become his student.’
    ‘Tragedy. You refer to Isabel?’
    ‘Yes, Isabel, my wife.’
    ‘Do you know where she is, Mr Reeves?’
    ‘No, but I’ve a good idea what she’ll be doing. It’ll be a young man with a big dick and a surfeit of energy.’
    ‘You knew she was having an affair?’
    Reeves laughed ironically. ‘I don’t remember a time when she wasn’t.’
    ‘But I understood that her present affair was serious. That she was in the process of leaving you.’
    ‘All of Isabel’s affairs are serious. But not so serious that she’ll get around to leaving me. She needs the illusion of being in love. She flits from lover to lover in the same way that a bee flits from flower to flower. She takes what she wants, and moves on. I accepted the situation long ago. Had affairs of my own from time to time. Ours is a modern marriage, Mr Turner. We are both errant, but we know which side our bread is buttered on.’
    ‘And her boyfriend, the present one, is no different to the others?’
    Reeves shook his head. ‘They’re going through the making-plans stage, swearing undying devotion to each other. But they haven’t got to the point where she has to make the actual decision. Once that time arrives, Isabel will back out. If she hasn’t already.’
    ‘D’you know why she’s gone away?’
    ‘She thinks she’s going blind. It may well be true. There’s this wretched disease they have. Retinitis pigmentosa. Hereditary. She’s seen what it’s done to Angeles, and she can’t face the same thing happening to her. I think it’s been playing on her mind,