This is good work, but its the murder were supposed to be dealing with here,
Bruno, not another drugs ring, she said. Our elegant young Monsieur Tavernier
seems mainly interested in the drugs charges as a way to put pressure on
Jacqueline and keep detaining her. That and the politics, discrediting the Front
National boys.
Its all crime, and I get worried at the thought of serious drugs in St Denis,
said Bruno. And its strange to me that Jacqueline would rather be the main
suspect in a murder inquiry than cover herself by admitting she visited some
Dutch men at a camp site.
She nodded. Ill brief
J-J
and send off a report to Tavernier. Well need J-Js
signature to send the request to the Dutch police. I presume the Dutchmen have
all left St Denis, so theyre out of our reach? He nodded, still standing
before her desk. And I presume you also realise that this could give the girl
an alibi for the period when the murder was committed?
Maybe, he said. It looks as if she left her car at the camp site and then
went out in one of the Dutch vans. Look at the page of the visitors book, and
the times of various vehicles coming and going while her car was there. You
might want to ask the Dutch police to check whether any of those lads had
connections with the extreme right.
You sure you want to remain in the Police Municipale, Bruno? We could use
someone like you in the real police. She put her hand to her mouth. Sorry, I
didnt mean that the way it came out. Its not that I think you are not a real
cop, its just that its clear that you have talents that could be used at a
national level. Youre a natural, and
J-J
thinks the same.
Yes, and every time I see him
J-J
tells me how much he envies my life here,
Bruno protested, laughing to take any sting out of it. Im just useful for my
local knowledge, you know that.
He just says that. He thinks the world of you, but
J-J
loves his work. Hes
dedicated to what he does, even when there are things about the work that he
hates.
Like Tavernier, you mean? And the politicking?
Dont change the subject, Bruno. Why not transfer to the Police Nationale? Make
a career of it. I wont say youre wasted here, but look at this new evidence
you brought in about the camp site. Nobody else thought of that. And then
tracking down the photo. You ought to be in the detectives. We need people like
you.
He heard something like urgency in her voice. This was not light banter. Bruno
paused for thought, studying the pent-up energy in her pose. She was sitting
squarely, her back forward from her chair, her arms on the desk and her jaw
slightly tilted. She was making him an invitation, he thought, and not
necessarily about police careers. So how could he answer her without sounding
defensive or complacent?
Im happy here, Isabelle, he said slowly, not knowing if she would understand.
Im busy, I think that Im useful, and I live in a place that I love among a
lot of people that I like. Its a way of life that pleases me and I can
understand why
J-J
feels wistful whenever he sees me. I like him, but I would
not want his life.
You dont want more?
More what? More money? I have enough to live as I please and I even manage to
save a little. More friends? I have many. More satisfaction in my work? I have
that. Bruno stopped himself, knowing from the look on Isabelles face that he
was not saying this well. This was a strange conversation to be having in a
police office. He started again. Let me tell you what I think, Isabelle. I
think there are two kinds of people in this world. There are those who do their
work for eight hours a day and they dont enjoy it and dont respect themselves
very much for what they do. And then there are those who dont see much
difference between their work and the rest of their lives because the two fit
happily together. What they do to earn their living doesnt seem like drudgery
to them. Around here there are a lot of people who live like that.
And youre saying that I dont? she challenged, looking at him intently.
Youre able and ambitious and you want to follow your talents as far as they
will take you. You like challenges. Thats your nature and I admire it. He
meant it.
But were different people with different priorities and our lives will take
different trajectories. That is what youre saying. Am I right?
Trajectories? Now theres a word. Our careers will probably take different
trajectories because you have that kind of drive. He got the feeling he had
suddenly been drawn into a different kind of conversation altogether, where the
language was different and the meanings had shifted.
Drive for what? she persisted. He noticed her fingers were clenched around her
pencil.
To get to the centre of things, to fulfil your talents.
You mean I want power? She was looking almost fierce. He threw up his hands.
Isabelle, Isabelle. This is me, Bruno, and yet from my side this feels like an
interrogation. Youre putting words into my mouth and I like you too much to get
into a confrontation. Her fingers seemed to relax on the pencil. What Im
saying is that youre a dynamo, Isabelle, youre full of energy and ideas and
you want to shape things, to change things. Im the kind of person who likes to
keep them the same, but I have been around long enough to know that people like
you are needed, probably more than people like me. But we have our uses too.
Thats how le bon Dieu made us.
All right, Bruno. Interrogation over, she said, smiling and laying the pencil
down on the desk. You promised to take me to dinner, remember?
Of course I remember. Around here we have a choice of bistro, pizza, not very
good Chinese food, several restaurants serving the Périgord cuisine you are
probably tired of by now, and a couple of places with a Michelin star, but we
would have to drive to those. Your choice.
I was thinking of something less formal, more in the open air like a picnic. I
liked your cooking.
Are you free this evening? She nodded, suddenly looking happy and very young.
Ill pick you up at seven. Here, or at your hotel?
The hotel. Id like to bathe and change.
Okay. Dont dress up. Picnic-style it will be.
He had to rush, and Bruno hated that. There were the final details to clear with
the company that had the contract for the three firework displays of St Denis
the June eighteenth event that really launched the season, the usual national
celebration on the fourteenth of July, and the feast day of St Denis at the end
of August, which the town celebrated as its birthday. The company had wanted
60,000 euros for the three events, but with a little trimming of the display and
a lot of negotiation he managed to reduce the bill to 48,000, which was just
short of his 50,000 euro budget. That meant more money for the sports club fund.
Then he had to call all the local businessmen to persuade them to take out their
usual ads in the tournament brochure for the tennis club, and each had to
grumble about the bad season and cancellations, but finally it was done. A
tourist had lost a purse and he had to take a statement. He had to brief the
Mayor on the latest developments in the murder case, fend off two interview
requests, and check over the Mayors deposition describing the riot. He just had