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accept it as long as it was discreet. He understood that Madeleine needed more than he could offer and, if there had to be someone else from time to time to give her a break from the burden of looking after him, he would rather it was me than someone else he didn’t know. We never talk about it when the three of us are together. It’s a bit as if I’m Madeleine’s safety valve, which, as a couple, they need.
    “As for me, it suits me perfectly. You know that I never married again after my wife died. It was business, business, business. It doesn’t mean to say I didn’t have the odd fling, but nothing serious. And I’ve got used to the freedom of being a free agent. I am also very fond of Madeleine and being able to see each other every couple of months or so suits us very well.”
    “Well, I think she’s great and I hope it continues to work well. It sounds like a very healthy triangle to me.”
    It also made me reflect on the burgeoning relationship I had with Maggie. My wife, Liz, had died three years before and I had been resigned to a quiet widowhood until, just after I had met Pierre, Maggie had entered my life under somewhat strange circumstances. It was an issue that was going to need to be resolved. Pierre’s solution seemed to be rather attractive at first sight but, in our case, there was no Antoine – and I admit that I wasn’t yet sure how I wanted things to develop. That discussion was still to be had.

Chapter 4
    Liam and I parked outside the residence where he had been staying and I left him to proceed with the loading of his effects into the car. He hadn’t much and there would be just enough room.
    I then left him, asking him to go down to the bar to try to find out from Will if there might be any clues as to where Rémy had gone. I’d meet him there later.
    I walked over to the Innovation Park where I hoped that Helen Mackie would be prepared to receive me.
    Her company, BioScope, occupied a small corner on the ground floor of one of the several blocks on the site.
    She did agree to receive me – but coldly. No smile, no offer of coffee. I had never met her before because Liam’s hiring had all been done by email and telephone but she knew who I was. Trim, attractive, mid- thirties and an open intelligent face, she sat behind her desk waiting for what I had to say and looking as if she had other things to do.
    “Mrs. Mackie, I’ve come over to help Liam to remove his belongings from his room and I wanted to drop by to see you to express how sorry I am about what has happened. Liam explained to me last night how he seems to have accidentally been the cause of a major problem for you.”
    No reaction. I tried again.
    “I understand from Liam that you were very angry when you heard that LyonPharma had lodged a patent application practically identical to the one you were preparing and he told me that you accused him of passing on to them the details of your discovery. He said you were so angry that he didn’t get a chance to explain. He was so completely astounded that he couldn’t think straight at the time. I just want you to know that he didn’t do anything of the kind. Now that he’s had time to think about it he is convinced that he was set up.”
    “What do you mean ‘set up’?”
    A reaction, at least. Perhaps we could now have a conversation.
    “Well, he has explained to me what he thinks might have happened. While he has been here he became friends with a young man called Rémy – a Frenchman. The night after you had made your accidental discovery he was just so pleased to have been a part of it that he went out for a few drinks in the Atrium to celebrate. His friend Rémy asked him why he was so cheerful and all he said was that that it was because he had helped BioScope solve a problem thanks to ‘ultra-violet’ lighting. That’s all he said. He saw absolutely no harm in it because he knew that Rémy knew nothing about science. He couldn’t see how on earth that that