More on this book
Kindle Notes & Highlights
For the second time, Ducrau was overcome by a fit of laughter which left him gasping. ‘Can you imagine?’ He had not protested when the doctor had put the sheet back over the body and was not sure whether he should stay there, go downstairs, stand or walk about. ‘It’s not true!’ he said once again. Eventually, he laid a large hand on Maigret’s shoulder, a heavy, weary hand. ‘I’m thirsty!’ His cheeks were almost purple, his forehead glistened with sweat, and his hair was stuck to his temples. And the undeniable smell of ether, which had been used on a woman who had fainted, filled that attic
...more
Every morning for the last ten days, the same sun had shone with the tart aftertaste of gooseberries. There was a stronger smell of springtime in the air along the Seine than elsewhere, and when Maigret reached Quai des Célestins he cast an envious glance at a student and several elderly gentlemen who were rummaging through the dusty boxes of the booksellers.
The inspector was in a good mood, or rather he was fully himself. He felt on top form. It was a state of heightened receptivity which allowed him to think what the other person was thinking, and sometimes even before he thought it.
It was a Sunday, one of those Sundays which do not exist outside childhood memories, everything spruce and newly minted, from the periwinkle-blue sky to the water which reflected elongated images of the houses. Even the taxis were redder or greener than on other days, and the empty, echoing streets playfully bounced the smallest sounds back and forth.
‘Isn’t this enough for you?’ asked Maigret so quietly and with such unconcern that anyone would have wondered if in fact he’d spoken at all. Ducrau halted and spent ages staring at a melon cloche. When he looked up again, his expression was quite different. Before, he hadn’t been wearing a mask: he’d been a man who was worried, hesitant, anxious. But that was all changed. His features had hardened. An unpleasant smile lurked around his mouth. He did not look at his visitor but all around him, at the sky, at the windows of the large white house.
