The narrator introduces us to his partner, whom he describes as both an average, nice guy and an alcoholic. He tells us that his partner’s alcoholism has created a rift between the two of them, as he knows that there will always be a certain point in the evening when his partner will become unreasonably drunk and he will then have to take his leave of him.

When the narrator arrives at the office, his partner is already sipping a whiskey. He greets the narrator, asks him about his recent divorce, and then worries aloud to him that their business has become corrupt and exploitative, if also lucrative. The narrator laughs away these concerns: “‘Exploitation doesn’t exist. It’s a fairy tale’” (57). This brief conversation (and chapter) is a prelude to the real business that the narrator’s partner has called him in to discuss: that of the “strange man.”

The narrator’s partner now describes the strange man of the chapter’s title to the narrator. He describes the strange man as an elegant, inscrutable-looking man who came into the office earlier that morning, while the partner himself was out. The man spoke to their secretary and said that he would wait until the partner returned.