The Descent of Man - 9781609530433

A quiet man living a domestic life with a wife he loves turns the tables one night on two thieves trying to steal his car and, as a consequence, his life spirals into a nightmare in which he finds himself risking everything to regain what he can of his life before that night.Jim wakes one night to find two men trying to steal his car, and against the petitions of his wife he goes outside to get the plate number of the car thieves' truck. Instead he drives away in the truck, and soon finds himself over his head in a mire of sinister events. Jim learns from Police Sergeant Rainey that the two thieves are brothers with a history of violence, and they may hold him responsible for the loss of their truck, though he denies having taken it. Taking the police sergeant's advice, Jim drops the attempted theft charges, but one of the thieves begins stalking him, and during a desperate chase on the freeway Jim causes a wreck that kills the man. While Jim can't tell his wife what has happened, the sound of the impact keeps him up at night. He first paces at home then begins to drive around, finding he can't sleep unless he's parked somewhere away from the house.When Marla realizes Jim is leaving the house at night, she moves in with her brother across town until Jim can sort out whatever is causing him to behave in this inexplicable way. Then Jim realizes that the other car thief, the brother, is staking out the house. He overhears the man make threatening remarks about Marla, and he also learns that the man has a pistol. Jim acquires his own pistol. In a remote spot, taking care to cover his tracks, he ambushes the man, fatally shooting him. The next day Sergeant Rainey visits Jim at work to say that the second car thief had been found shot to death, and let Jim know he won't be on their list of suspects if he keeps quiet. Now Jim has to reconcile with Marla by telling her the whole truth about everything in order to can truly win her back.