Over the course of the Casebook series, Elisha Grey, consulting detective to the constabulary of the capitol of Atlantis during the Second Era, has demonstrated many things about himself -- that he is a scholar and polymath, that he is an astute observer of people's manners, that he can employ logic as well as subterfuge in conversation to gain the facts he needs to solve a case, and that he is willing and eager to rely upon friends to help him.
He has also demonstrated that he's not so adept at deeper interpersonal relationships, especially in Casebook VI and Casebook VII.
As Casebook VIII opens, he is challenged to mend fences between the people who are closest to him. At the same time, Elisha Grey will be drawn into a crime where the witness is someone more unable to engage in relationships with other people than he ever has been.
It's been a test to write about a character I have known so long and reveal his flaws. Yet, that is what the storytelling requires. We all have them. Whether or not, and how, we overcome them is another story entirely. In Casebook VIII, Elisha Grey will have that opportunity to overcome -- but will he take it?
Artwork: "Listening", artist unknown. If you recognize it, and know the artist, please let me know and I will credit them. Originally found on Facebook several years ago.