A car he didn’t care anything for, so long as it could go forward when engaged in a gear. He wasn’t fussy about which gear. The first trip was to La Cienega. A trip he had taken for granted, but Lomita was not really prepared for his departure anywhere. She stated clearly that he was not fit. Could she tell? Could she sense that there had been a further collapse in the night? Paranoia and an inability had descended on him, he seemed to have forgotten how to act to show that he was normal, fit for purpose. He was behaving awkwardly, was he? He had no idea. How do you behave, when you are telling someone that you are going to return your rental car? Negotiation, you negotiate, you convince, you do normal things like say—

‘Oh, I would love a cup of coffee.’

Which he said, not wanting one.

‘I’ll pick one up from—’

Not completing the sentence as he couldn’t think of a coffee place; Starbucks wasn’t exactly a memory tester, really. Trust, he had to build trust.

‘I’ll be fine, back in a couple of hours.’

Not even beginning to explain the piece of crap that he would be returning with, that was going to be parked on her elegant driveway. No, it could go in the garage. It was a four-car garage. No problem. Straight in there, really.

He hadn’t got back to sleep since his remote episode and felt nervous at touching or leaving or inhabiting any space, or light switching, or door closing, or any action that might involve the cold creeping horror of repetition. It was in this state that he felt the respectful need to convince Lomita that he was safe to go and purchase this car on his own and return his Discovery to Sixt on La Cienega. It was a matter of economising.

She was not convinced he was in any state to do anything, sensing the edge that a lack of sleep gives to a person. She could tell, God, she could tell. That feeling of alienation, of not being in the game. Not playing. Being inanely insane.

Manita was to accompany him.

‘I really don’t want to put Manita through this – it’ll just be boring.’

‘Then company will relieve the boredom.’

This was a really bad idea. For all the reasons that anybody could immediately think of.

Including Ever, who was way ahead on these reasons, also realising he had to take a trip to the ATM; in his head he started to panic again; the not getting his own way; the knowing it was wrong but not wanting to be told he was wrong.