‘Then come into the study. You’ll perhaps find something to read in these book-cases.’
‘I thank you, monsieur.’
The hands of the clock on the study chimney-piece were pointing to half-past eight when M. Boirac re-entered. Sinking into an easy-chair, he said:—
‘Now, monsieur, I am at your service.’
‘The matter is a somewhat difficult one for me to approach, monsieur,’ began Lefarge, ‘in case it might seem to you that we had suspicions which we do not really entertain. But, as a man of the world, you will recognise that the position of the husband in unhappy affairs such as this must inevitably be made clear. It is a matter of necessary routine. My chief, M. Chauvet, has therefore placed on me the purely formal, but extremely unpleasant duty of asking you some questions about your own movements since the unhappy event.’
‘That’s rather roundabout. Do you mean that you suspect me of murdering my wife?’
‘Certainly not, monsieur. It is simply that the movements of every one in a case like this must be gone into. It is our ordinary routine, and we cannot consult our inclination in carrying it out.’
‘Oh, well, go ahead. You must, of course, do your duty.’
‘The information my Chief requires is a statement from you of how you passed your time from the night of the dinner-party until the evening of the following Thursday.’
M. Boirac looked distressed. He paused before replying, and then said in an altered tone:—
‘I don’t like to think of that time. I passed through a rather terrible experience. I think I was temporarily insane.’
‘I still more regret that I must persevere in my question.’
‘Oh, I will tell you. The seizure, or whatever it was, is over and I am myself again. What happened to me was this.
‘From the Saturday night, or rather Sunday morning, when I learnt that my wife had left me, I was in a kind of dream. My brain felt numb, and I had the curious feeling of existing in some way outside of and apart from myself. I went as usual to my office on Monday, returning home at my ordinary time in the evening. After dinner, in the hope of rousing myself, I unpacked the cask, but even that failed to excite my interest or lighten my depression. On the following morning, Tuesday, I again went to the office at my customary time, but after an hour of effort I found I could no longer concentrate my mind on my work. I felt that at all costs I must be alone so as to relax the strain of pretending nothing had happened. Still like a man in a dream, I left the office and, going down into the street, entered a Metro station. On the wall my eye caught sight of the notice, “Direction Vincennes,” and it occurred to me that the Bois de Vincennes would be the very place for me to go. There I could walk without fear of meeting any of my acquaintances. I accordingly took the train there, and spent the morning pacing the more sequestered paths. The physical exercise helped me, but as I grew tired my mood changed. A great longing for human sympathy took possession of me, and I felt I must confide in some one, or go mad. I thought of my brother Armande, and felt sure I would get the sympathy I wanted from him. He lived not far from Malines, in Belgium, and I determined to go and see him at once. I lunched at a little café at Charenton, and from there telephoned to the office and to my house that I was going to Belgium for a couple of days. I instructed François to pack a handbag of necessaries and leave it immediately at the cloak-room at the Gare du Nord, where I should call for it. While sitting at lunch it occurred to me that if I went by the 4.05 p.m. train—the first I could get—I would not arrive at my destination till the middle of the night, so I decided I would wait till the evening train and see my brother the following day. Accordingly, I went for a long walk up the Seine, returning by a local train to the Gare du Lyon. I dined at a café in the Place de la Bastille, and finally went to the Gare du Nord, got my bag, and left by the 11.20 for Brussels. I slept well in the train and breakfasted in one of the cafés off the Place du Nord. About eleven I left for Malines, walking the four miles to my brother’s house for the sake of the exercise. But when I reached it I found it empty, and then I recollected, what had entirely slipped my memory, that my brother had spoken of a business trip to Stockholm, on which he was going to take his wife. I cursed my forgetfulness, but my mind was in such a state I hardly realised my loss of time and money. Walking slowly back to Malines, I considered returning to Paris that evening. Then I thought I had had enough travelling for one day. It was pleasant in the afternoon sun, and I let the time slip away, returning to Brussels about six. I dined at a café in the Boulevard Anspach, and then, thinking I would try and distract my thoughts, decided I would turn in for a couple of hours to a theatre. I telephoned to the Hôtel Maximilian, where I usually stayed, to reserve a room, and then I went to Berlioz’s Les Troyens at the Théâtre de la Monnaie, getting to my hotel about eleven. That night I slept well and next day my brain seemed saner and better. I left Brussels by the 12.50 from the Gare du Midi, arriving at Paris about five. Looking back on that abortive journey is like remembering a nightmare, but I think the solitude and the exercise really helped me.’
When M. Boirac ceased speaking, there was silence for a few moments, while Lefarge, in just the same painstaking way that Burnley would have adopted, went over in his mind what he had heard. He did not wish to question M. Boirac too closely lest, in the unlikely event of that gentleman proving guilty, he should put him on his guard; but he was anxious to miss no detail of the statement, so that he might as far as possible check it by independent testimony. On the whole, he thought the story reasonable, and, so far, he could see no internal reason for doubting it. He would, therefore, get a few details made clearer and take his leave.
‘Thank you, M. Boirac. Might I ask a few supplementary questions? At what time did you leave your office on Tuesday?’
‘About nine-thirty.’
‘What café did you lunch at in Charenton?’
‘I don’t remember. It was in a street about half-way between the station and the steamboat wharf, a rather poor place with an overhanging, half-timbered front.’
‘And what time was that?’
‘About one-thirty, I think. I am not sure.’
‘And from where did you telephone to your house and office?’
‘From the same café.’
‘About what time?’
‘About an hour later, say half-past two.’
‘Now, the café in the Place de la Bastille. Which one was it?’
‘I am not very certain. I think it was at the corner of the rue St. Antoine. At all events it faced up the rue de Lyon.’
‘And you were there about what time?’
‘Eight-thirty, I should say.’
‘Did you get your bag at the Gare du Nord?’
‘Yes, it was waiting for me at the left luggage office.’
‘Did you have a sleeping berth on the train?’
‘No, I travelled in an ordinary first-class compartment.’
‘Was there any one else in it?’
‘Three other men. I did not know any of them.’
‘Now, all that day, Tuesday, did you meet any one who knew you, or who could confirm your statement?’
‘Not that I can remember, unless the waiters at the cafés could do so.’
‘On the next day, Wednesday, from where did you telephone to the Hôtel Maximilian?’
‘From the café where I dined. It was in the Boulevard Anspach, just before it opens into the Place Brouckère. I don’t recall the name.’
‘What time was the message sent?’
‘Just before dinner, about seven, I should say.’
The detective stood up and bowed.