The Brutal Telling (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache #5)

“For the most part,” said Myrna, turning to Gabri. “Some strangers come to your B and B, don’t they?”

He nodded. “I’m really an overflow if people run out of space in their homes.”

“What I’m getting at,” said an exasperated Beauvoir, “is that the people who visit Three Pines aren’t really strangers. I just want to get this straight.”

“Straight we don’t specialize in. Sorry,” said Gabri. This brought a smile to even Olivier’s tired face.

“I heard something about a stranger,” said Myrna, “but I didn’t really pay any attention.”

“Who said it?”

“Roar Parra,” she said, reluctantly. It felt a bit like informing, and no one had much stomach for that. “I heard him talking to Old Mundin and The Wife about seeing someone in the woods.”

Beauvoir wrote this down. It wasn’t the first time he’d heard about the Parras. They were a prominent Czech family. But Old Mundin and The Wife? That must be a joke. Beauvoir’s lips narrowed and he looked at Myrna without amusement. She looked back, also without amusement.

“Yes,” Myrna said, reading his mind. It wasn’t hard. The teapot could read it. “Those are their names.”

“Old and The Wife?” he repeated. No longer angry, but mystified. Myrna nodded. “What’re their real names?”

“That’s it,” said Olivier. “Old and The Wife.”

“Okay, I’ll give you Old. It’s just possible, but no one looks at a newborn and decides to call her The Wife. At least I hope not.”

Myrna smiled. “You’re right. I’m just so used to it I never thought. I have no idea what her real name is.”

Beauvoir wondered just how pathetic a woman had to be to allow herself to be called The Wife. It actually sounded slightly biblical, Old Testament.

Gabri put some beers, Cokes and a couple of bowls of mixed nuts on the table. Outside the villagers had finally gone home. It looked wet and bleak, but inside they were snug and warm. It was almost possible to forget this wasn’t a social occasion. The Scene of Crime agents seemed to have dissolved into the woodwork, only evident when a slight scratching or mumbling could be heard. Like rodents, or ghosts. Or homicide detectives.

“Tell us about last night,” said Chief Inspector Gamache.

“It was a madhouse,” said Gabri. “Last big weekend of the summer so everyone came by. Most had been to the fair during the day so they were tired. Didn’t want to cook. It’s always like that on Labor Day weekend. We were prepared.”

“What does that mean?” asked Agent Lacoste, who’d joined them.

“I brought in extra staff,” said Olivier. “But it went smoothly. People were pretty relaxed and we closed on time. At about one in the morning.”

“What happened then?” asked Lacoste.

Most murder investigations appeared complex but were really quite simple. It was just a matter of asking “And then what happened?” over and over and over. And listening to the answers helped too.

“I usually do the cash and leave the night staff to clean up, but Saturdays are different,” said Olivier. “Old Mundin comes after closing and delivers the things he’s repaired during the week and picks up any furniture that’s been broken in the meantime. Doesn’t take long, and he does it while the waiters and kitchen staff are cleaning up.”

“Wait a minute,” said Beauvoir. “Mundin does this at midnight on Saturdays? Why not Sunday morning, or any other reasonable time? Why late at night?”

It sounded furtive to Beauvoir, who had a nose for things secretive and sly.

Olivier shrugged. “Habit, I guess. When he first started doing the work he wasn’t married to The Wife so he’d hang around here Saturday nights. When we closed he’d just take the broken furniture then. We’ve seen no reason to change.”

In a village where almost nothing changed this made sense.

“So Mundin took the furniture. What happened then?” asked Beauvoir.

“I left.”

“Were you the last in the place?”

Olivier hesitated. “Not quite. Because it was so busy there were a few extra things to do. They’re a good bunch of kids, you know. Responsible.”

Gamache had been listening to this. He preferred it that way. His agents asked the questions and it freed him up to observe, and to hear what was said, how it was said, and what was left out. And now he heard a defensiveness creep into Olivier’s calm and helpful voice. Was he defensive about his own behavior, or was he trying to protect his staff, afraid they’d fall under suspicion?