“There were three of them in the room now, where only two had first come in. Death was in the room with the two of them.”

“There were two now where they had been three. David's death had dismantled the triangle, and an enclosed space was now open. Two points are unreliable; with nothing to anchor them, there is nothing to stop them drifting in opposite directions. If it is string that binds, it will eventually snap and the points will separate; if elastic, they will continue to part, further and further, until the strain reaches its limit and they are pulled back with such speed that they cannot help but collide with devastating force.”

“If it was true that all effort led to a vast abyss, she had two recommendations to begin with, first, not to cheat people, and, second, to treat them properly. Beyond that, there was room for discussion.”

“My mother buried three husbands...and two of them were only napping.”

“One is greater than two amongst three men where only one of them is intelligent!”

“Neither of the two people in the room paid any attention to the way I came in, although only one of them was dead.”