“You know her? She knows herself! We had quite a little talk, she and I. The strongest person you know? Perhaps because she’s become so conditioned to the punishment she’s inflicted on herself. She knows exactly how to respond to keep her balance. Your wife is an extraordinary woman, I knew that before I realized that she had tricked me, but she’s precariously situated—you know that. After she told me what really happened when she was seeing Jerry Palmer—and she did tell me, although I had had an idea all along—I asked her how she was doing now. Better all the time, she said, which I don’t doubt, but she added that she still has her moments, which the two of you managed to keep in the family. Those are her words. But then—this is the thing—Norma came by, and, Joe, it was interesting to see your wife. She watched Norma the way I’m trying not to watch that gun. It’s something for you to think about—one thing among many. For another, no matter what you do in relation to Norma personally, even if you suddenly decide to change wives, nothing, nothing will protect her from the damage she will suffer if you pursue the case. Forget what MacIver did years ago. Just Rainbow.

“But I’m assuming that you’re an honorable man. Jerry Palmer told me that things happened to you, too, during the war, that she—Karen—learned long before you told her. That’s over. The war did terrible things to everybody. I have children seeing me now who were born during the war. Suppose you stay with your wife and pursue the case to the end. You’re going to have to continue to see Norma. There’ll be no way to avoid that. Karen felt threatened tonight, whether or not you told her anything to give her cause. What possible assurance can you offer next week or next month, after she knows the emotional charge of the thing you’ve uncovered?”

Leland’s wrist was aching. He rested the pistol butt on the top of the desk. Roberts could not fail to see. Leland moved his finger to the forward end of the trigger guard. He had not been touching the trigger since he had sat down, but Roberts did not seem to have seen that. “You don’t know us, Wendell.”