AwokenRecon's Clan

He merely replied, without looking at the police officer, that "a secret grief" described it well enough. The inspector then asked him peremptorily if he intended to "have another go at it." Showing more animation, Cottard said certainly not, his one wish was to be left in peace"

Cottard’s "secret grief" is certainly one form of suffering we see in The Plague. So great is his suffering, in fact, that it drives him to attempt suicide. Is his grief best described as guilt over whatever crime he committed, or as fear of being caught?