'What's that,' Z said.
'Form a hypothesis and test it,' I said.
'A hypothesis.'
'Yep.'
Z picked up his bourbon and drank the rest of it. I looked at the colorful pattern of the booze bottles stacked behind the bar. I listened to the soft human sound of the half-full bar. I thought about the evenings alone, perhaps with Pearl asleep on the couch, when I would have a couple of drinks before supper and think about me and Susan and all that had happened and all that we had done. No matter how many moments I had like that, they were all intensely moving for me.
'I don't want to start today,' Z said.
'You're not doing it for me,' I said.
'Meaning?'
'You don't drink because I'm watching,' I said. 'Doesn't really count much.'
'So you're saying I shouldn't start not drinking while you're watching.'
'Start when you're alone,' I said. 'And remember, it may be temporary.'
'A hypothesis,' he said.
'That you're testing,' I said.
'Like today,' Z said again.
'Which worked out quite well,' I said.
'I'll drink to that,' he said.
'Me too,' I said.
I signaled the bartender.
41
A YOUNG MAN who needed a haircut came into my office wearing a seersucker suit, a white shirt, a blue tie, and a woven straw snap-brim hat.
'Spenser,' he said.
'I am he,' I said.
'My name is Corky Corrigan,' he said. 'From the law offices of Morris Hardy.'
He took a card from his shirt pocket and laid it on my desk.
'Wow,' I said. 'I've seen Morris's ads on television. He looks implacable.'
'Right,' Corrigan said. 'We represent Thomas and Beatrice Lopata.'
'You and Morris,' I said.
'Yes,' Corky said.
'Have you ever met Morris Hardy?' I said.
'Certainly,' Corky said. 'He spoke at one of our associate meetings.'
'You work for Morris?' I said.
'We are associated,' he said.
'And you do the case,' I said. 'And Morris looks implacable and takes a third of the fee.'
Corky gave a little head shake, as if there was a bug on his nose.
'We are bringing a wrongful-death suit,' he said, 'against Jeremy Franklin Nelson in the death of Dawn Ellen Lopata.'
'Good for you,' I said.
'I know you've been investigating the case,' he said. 'And as we assemble our witness list, I thought it might be wise to see what you've learned.'
'I've learned that I don't know what happened,' I said.
'But you must have a slant on things,' Corky said.
He had a little notebook resting on his thigh, and had his Bic pen poised to transcribe things.
'My slant is pretty much a combination of subjective impressions and hearsay,' I said.
Corky nodded.
'Useful background,' he said.
'It is,' I said.
'So go ahead,' Corky said with a smile. 'Don't worry about hearsay, leave the legal stuff to me, just relax and
