Le crime d'Orcival. English

  VIII

  Dr. Gendron had just finished his sad task in the billiard-room. He hadtaken off his long coat, and pulled up his shirt-sleeves above hiselbows. His instruments lay on a table near him; he had covered the bodywith a long white sheet. Night had come, and a large lamp, with acrystal globe, lighted up the gloomy scene. The doctor, leaning over awater-basin, was washing his hands, when the old justice of the peaceand the detective entered.

  "Ah, it's you, Plantat," said the doctor in a suppressed tone; "where isMonsieur Domini?"

  "Gone."

  The doctor did not take the trouble to repress a vexed motion.

  "I must speak with him, though," said he, "it's absolutelynecessary--and the sooner the better; for perhaps I am wrong--I may bemistaken--"

  M. Lecoq and M. Plantat approached him, having carefully closed thedoor. The doctor was paler than the corpse which lay under the sheet.His usually calm features betrayed great distress. This change could nothave been caused by the task in which he had been engaged. Of course itwas a painful one; but M. Gendron was one of those experiencedpractitioners who have felt the pulse of every human misery, and whosedisgust had become torpid by the most hideous spectacles. He must havediscovered something extraordinary.

  "I am going to ask you what you asked me a while ago," said M. Plantat."Are you ill or suffering?"

  M. Gendron shook his head sorrowfully, and answered, slowly andemphatically:

  "I will answer you, as you did me; 'tis nothing, I am already better."

  Then these two, equally profound, turned away their heads, as if fearingto exchange their ideas; they doubted lest their looks should betraythem.

  M. Lecoq advanced and spoke.

  "I believe I know the cause of the doctor's emotion. He has justdiscovered that Madame de Tremorel was killed by a single blow, and thatthe assassins afterward set themselves to disfiguring the body, when itwas nearly cold."

  The doctor's eyes fastened on the detective, with a stupefiedexpression.

  "How could you divine that?" he asked.

  "Oh, I didn't guess it alone; I ought to share the honor of the theorywhich has enabled us to foresee this fact, with Monsieur Plantat."

  "Oh," cried the doctor, striking his forehead, "now, I recollect youradvice; in my worry, I must say, I had quite forgotten it.

  "Well," he added, "your foresight is confirmed. Perhaps not so much timeas you suppose elapsed between the first blow and the rest; but I amconvinced that the countess had ceased to live nearly three hours, whenthe last blows were struck."

  M. Gendron went to the billiard-table, and slowly raised the sheet,discovering the head and part of the bust.

  "Let us inform ourselves, Plantat," he said.

  The old justice of the peace took the lamp, and passed to the other sideof the table. His hand trembled so that the globe tingled. Thevacillating light cast gloomy shadows upon the walls. The countess'sface had been carefully bathed, the blood and mud effaced. The marks ofthe blows were thus more visible, but they still found upon that lividcountenance, the traces of its beauty. M. Lecoq stood at the head of thetable, leaning over to see more clearly.

  "The countess," said Dr. Gendron, "received eighteen blows from adagger. Of these, but one is mortal; it is this one, the direction ofwhich is nearly vertical--a little below the shoulder, you see." Hepointed out the wound, sustaining the body in his left arm. The eyes hadpreserved a frightful expression. It seemed as if the half-open mouthwere about to cry "Help! Help!"

  Plantat, the man with a heart of stone, turned away his head, and thedoctor, having mastered his first emotion, continued in a professionallyapathetic tone:

  "The blade must have been an inch wide, and eight inches long. All theother wounds--those on the arms, breast, and shoulders, arecomparatively slight. They must have been inflicted at least two hoursafter that which caused death."

  "Good," said M. Lecoq.

  "Observe that I am not positive," returned the doctor quickly. "I merelystate a probability. The phenomena on which I base my own conviction aretoo fugitive, too capricious in their nature, to enable me to beabsolutely certain."

  This seemed to disturb M. Lecoq.

  "But, from the moment when--"

  "What I can affirm," interrupted Dr. Gendron, "what I would affirm underoath, is, that all the wounds on the head, excepting one, were inflictedafter death. No doubt of that whatever--none whatever. Here, above theeye, is the blow given while the countess was alive."

  "It seems to me, Doctor," observed M. Lecoq, "that we may conclude fromthe proved fact that the countess, after death, was struck by a flatimplement, that she had also ceased to live when she was mutilated bythe knife."

  M. Gendron reflected a moment.

  "It is possible that you are right; as for me, I am persuaded of it.Still the conclusions in my report will not be yours. The physicianconsulted by the law, should only pronounce upon patent, demonstratedfacts. If he has a doubt, even the slightest, he should hold his tongue.I will say more; if there is any uncertainty, my opinion is that theaccused, and not the prosecution, should have the benefit of it."

  This was certainly not the detective's opinion, but he was cautious notto say so. He had followed Dr. Gendron with anxious attention, and thecontraction of his face showed the travail of his mind.

  "It seems to me now possible," said he, "to determine how and where thecountess was struck."

  The doctor had covered the body, and Plantat had replaced the lamp onthe little table. Both asked M. Lecoq to explain himself.

  "Very well," resumed the detective. "The direction of the wound provesto me that the countess was in her chamber taking tea, seated, her bodyinclined a little forward, when she was murdered. The assassin came upbehind her with his arm raised; he chose his position coolly, and struckher with terrific force. The violence of the blow was such that thevictim fell forward, and in the fall, her forehead struck the end of thetable; she thus gave herself the only fatal blow which we havediscovered on the head."

  M. Gendron looked from one to the other of his companions, who exchangedsignificant glances. Perhaps he suspected the game they were playing.

  "The crime must evidently have been committed as you say," said he.

  There was another embarrassing silence. M. Lecoq's obstinate mutenessannoyed Plantat, who finally asked him:

  "Have you seen all you want to see?"

  "All for to-day; I shall need daylight for what remains. I am confident,indeed, that with the exception of one detail that worries me, I havethe key to the mystery."

  "We must be here, then, early to-morrow morning."

  "I will be here at any hour you will name."

  "Your search finished, we will go together to Monsieur Domini, atCorbeil."

  "I am quite at your orders."

  There was another pause.

  M. Plantat perceived that M. Lecoq guessed his thoughts; and did notunderstand the detective's capriciousness; a little while before, he hadbeen very loquacious, but now held his tongue. M. Lecoq, on the otherhand, was delighted to puzzle the old man a little, and formed theintention to astonish him the next morning, by giving him a report whichshould faithfully reflect all his ideas. Meanwhile he had taken out hislozenge-box, and was intrusting a hundred secrets to the portrait.

  "Well," said the doctor, "there remains nothing more to be done exceptto retire."

  "I was just going to ask permission to do so," said M. Lecoq. "I havebeen fasting ever since morning."

  M. Plantat now took a bold step.

  "Shall you return to Paris to-night, Monsieur Lecoq?" asked he,abruptly.

  "No; I came prepared to remain over-night; I've brought my night-gown,which I left, before coming up here, at the little roadside inn below. Ishall sup and sleep there."

  "You will be poorly off at the Faithful Grenadier," said the old justiceof the peace. "You will do better to come and dine with me."

  "You are really too good, Monsieur--"

  "Besides, we have a go
od deal to say, and so you must remain the nightwith me; we will get your night-clothes as we pass along."

  M. Lecoq bowed, flattered and grateful for the invitation.

  "And I shall carry you off, too, Doctor," continued M. Plantat, "whetheryou will or not. Now, don't say no. If you insist on going to Corbeilto-night, we will carry you over after supper."

  The operation of fixing the seals was speedily concluded; narrow stripsof parchment, held by large waxen seals, were affixed to all the doors,as well as to the bureau in which the articles gathered for the purposesof the investigation had been deposited.