Read Online Maigret by Georges Simenon - Free Book Online Page A

for whom he appeared to have a profound admiration.
    ‘The hunting season’s not
     over yet, is it, Louis?’
    This time it was Louis who was
     bemused.
    ‘How do I know? Why are you
     asking?’
    ‘Because I was thinking about
     going after rabbits.’
    Again, it was Maigret who was the butt
     of his comment. The explanation followed, as the cards were dealt and each player
     arranged them in a fan in his left hand.
    ‘I went to see the man,
     earlier.’
    Which translated as: ‘I went to
     warn Cageot’.
    Audiat abruptly looked up.
    ‘What did he say?’
    Louis frowned, probably thinking that
     they were going too far.
    ‘He’s laughing! Apparently
     he’s on home ground and he’s planning a little party.’
    ‘Diamonds trumps …
Tierce
     haute
… OK?’
    ‘Four of a kind.’
    Eugène was all keyed up and it was clear
     he was not concentrating on the game but on coming up with fresh witticisms.
    ‘The Parisians,’ he stated,
     ‘go and spend their holidays in the country – in the Loire, for example. The
     funny thing is, that the people from the Loire come and spend their holidays in
     Paris.’
    At last! He hadn’t been able to
     resist the urge to let Maigret know that he knew all about him. And Maigret sat
     there, puffing away on his pipe and warming his calvados in the hollow of his hand
     before taking a sip.
    ‘Keep your eyes
     on the game,’ retorted Louis, who kept darting anxious glances in the
     direction of the door.
    ‘Trumps … and double trumps. A
     twenty-point bonus, plus ten for the last trick …’
    An individual who looked like a modest
     Montmartre shopkeeper walked in and went over to wedge himself between Eugène and
     his friend from Marseille, without saying a word. He shook both their hands and sat
     slightly back, still without opening his mouth.
    ‘All right?’ asked
     Louis.
    The newcomer’s lips parted, and a
     thin, reedy sound came out. He had lost his voice.
    ‘All right!’
    ‘You got it?’ Eugène bawled
     in his ear, revealing that the man was deaf as well.
    ‘Twigged what?’ replied the
     reedy voice.
    They must have kicked him under the
     table. Finally the deaf man’s gaze lighted on Maigret and rested on him for a
     long moment. He gave a faint smile.
    ‘I get it.’
    ‘Clubs trumps … Pass …’
    ‘Pass …’
    Rue Fontaine was coming back to life.
     The neon signs were lit and the doormen were at their posts on the pavement. The
     Floria’s doorman came in to buy cigarettes, but no one took any notice of
     him.
    ‘Hearts trumps …’
    Maigret was hot. He felt stiff all over
     but he gave no sign of it and his expression remained the same as when he had begun
     his long vigil.
    ‘I say!’
     said Eugène suddenly to his hard-of-hearing neighbour, whom Maigret had recognized
     as the owner of a brothel in Rue de Provence. ‘What do you call a locksmith
     who doesn’t make locks any more?’
    The comical aspect of this conversation
     came from the fact that Eugène had to shout, while the other man answered in an
     angelic voice:
    ‘A locksmith who—? I don’t
     know.’
    ‘Well, I’d call him a
     nobody.’
    He played a card, picked up and played
     again.
    ‘And a cop who’s no longer a
     cop?’
    The penny had dropped. His
     neighbour’s face lit up and his voice was reedier than ever as he said:
    ‘A nobody!’
    Then they all burst out laughing, even
     Audiat, who gave a snigger. Something was stopping him from joining wholeheartedly
     in the general mirth. He was visibly anxious, despite the presence of his friends.
     And it was not solely on account of Maigret.
    ‘Léon!’ he shouted to the
     night waiter. ‘Bring me a brandy and water.’
    ‘You’re drinking brandy
     now?’
    Eugène had noticed that Audiat was
     losing his nerve and he was keeping a close eye on him.
    ‘You’d better go
     easy.’
    ‘Go easy on what?’
    ‘How many Pernods did you have
     before dinner?’
    ‘Damn you!’ replied Audiat