Cyprian May

Cyprian May is Ursula May’s husband and a senior partner at Landry, May, Patterson. The evidence presents him through other people’s accounts: as a man whose wealth disappointed his wife’s expectations, a senior partner whose secretary is Alison, and the person who sent Alison to Oxford to find Tony Landry on 7 January.## Marriage and moneyBryony Radford describes Ursula as one of two Chillingham sisters who married older, wealthy men in pursuit of money. In Bryony’s sharply contemptuous account, Ursula believed she had secured a fortune by marrying Cyprian, but he did not have nearly as much as she wanted. Bryony adds that, as Ursula approached forty, she had fewer opportunities to improve her position through another marriage. This is Bryony’s judgment, coloured by her own resentment: Ursula had accused her of listening to voicemail messages after handing her a mobile phone and asking her to call a cab. Bryony says she hit the wrong button because she is dyslexic, and Ursula screamed at her.## Work and connection to Tony LandryCyprian is a senior partner at Landry, May, Patterson, where Alison serves as secretary to him and Tony Landry. Alison distinguishes her position from John Bristow’s: John uses the typing pool, while she works at a different level and has nothing to do with him professionally. The distinction clarifies that Alison’s connection to John is not through her secretarial duties.## The Oxford journeyOn 7 January, Cyprian sent Alison to Oxford to find Tony. When Cormoran Strike raises the journey, Alison initially denies the accusation under discussion with fierce insistence. Asked why Cyprian sent her, she explains that Tony had forgotten to sign some documents. Strike immediately presses her on why Cyprian did not use a fax machine or courier instead. The evidence does not provide her answer, leaving the errand—and its unusual circumstances—as an unresolved point in the inquiry.