On the nights when I didn’t go out, I’d sit at my computer in the apartment, using Bonnie’s telephone line for hacking while she read by herself, watched television by herself, and then went to bed by herself. I could say it was my way of handling the disappointment of those two almost-but-oh-never-mind jobs, but I’d be lying. Sure, I was having problems handling the massive disappointment. But that wasn’t the reason. The real reason was simply that I was in the thrall of a powerful obsession.