Mr French and Ms Coogan had been carefully chosen from a long list. Alec predicted that their financial circumstances would ink their contracts without great debate. Neither of them had any children. And they each possessed the essential skills that he had been searching for. On paper they were the perfect candidates.

His only regret in his handling of this project was that he hadn’t organised it sooner in the year. Other matters had demanded his attention, as choppy waters call the captain to the quarterdeck until he sails again through the calm. This storm had, unfortunately, lasted late into the summer. Alec emerged from it unscathed. But the long evenings had been squandered. Daylight truly was more valuable than gold, and one of the few luxuries that Alec’s commanding wealth could not buy.

The October days were too short. With any luck, Mr French had the know-how to organise his interviews before nightfall. Otherwise, it would all have been for nothing. The man’s master’s thesis had certainly shown some promise, and judging by his focus during Alec’s presentation, he also shared a keen eye for cartography. Nevertheless, it bothered Alec like a loose marble rolling between his thoughts.

Alec was only a boy of seven years the first time he saw him. It wasn’t an act of disobedience, nor was it truly his parents’ fault. At that age and having demonstrated the care that would come to define his life, they assumed that he was safe to be left alone. But he was still a child and still susceptible to childish curiosity. It took something as simple as a noise he didn’t recognise to draw his eyes outside, into the night, where he saw him standing at the edge of their estate. Strike one, and he hadn’t even hit puberty. Panels were added to the windows shortly after, becoming a staple of Alec’s life from that point onward.

The second mishap occurred fifteen years later. His father was still alive. Alec had to visit the university for the sake of sitting an examination. It was scheduled to finish later than the hour he would have liked to be home, but there was no evading the issue. The university had already been accommodating enough, and Alec was confident that he would be safely indoors before dark. Of course, the car’s unprecedented breakdown could never have been foreseen.