Chapter 167

No, that beast was not one to give up; all this was amply demonstrated. Was he delirious, suffering a crisis of conscience?

No. Psychopaths have no conscience.

Haydar Al-Brahkhan was a monster. But I had to know.

—Why did you come? You knew you wouldn’t have a chance, and you’re smarter than this.

That was what worried me the most, the feeling of insecurity. For long seconds I waited for an answer, even if it was complete nonsense far from anyone’s understanding, a lie, a mockery, even a perfectly valid, complex, and sinister reason.

Anything, but not that:

“I came to die, like she died,” I heard him say, firmly. “She was the only one who was always with me, and I wasn’t there.”

I couldn’t be talking about my wife. Or could I?

No, this wasn’t about Anya. But who could be so relevant to him? It didn’t have to do with a lover either. It was more than that, deeper, older. It took me a few seconds to figure it out, but it made a lot of sen