you?'
'That a man was going to kill him? No, sir.'
'Had he spoken of any threat, any danger impending?'
'No, sir.'
'Had he mentioned any recent event, anything done or said by somebody, that might have suggested a possibility of danger?'
'No, sir.'
'But you have seen him and spoken with him recently? Yesterday?'
'Of course. I'm in the kitchen, and he's in front, but we usually eat lunch together in the kitchen. We did yesterday. I didn't see him Sunday; of course, we're not here Sunday.'
'When did you hear-learn of his death?'
'The radio this morning. The eight-o'clock news.'
'Only five hours ago. You were shocked, and there hasn't been much time. You may recall something be said.'
'I don't think I will, Mr. Wolfe. If you mean something about danger, about someone might kill him, I'm sure I won't.'
'You can't be sure now. Memory plays tricks. This next question is important. He told Mr. Goodwin a man was going to kill him, so something had hap- pened that put him in fear of his life. When? Just last evening? It would help to know when, so this is important. What was he like yesterday at lunch? Was he completely normal? Was there anything unusual about his mood, his behavior?'
'Yes, sir, there was. I was remembering that when you asked if he said anything about danger. He didn't seem to hear things I said and he didn't talk as much. When I asked him if he would rather eat alone he said he was sorry, that he had got orders mixed at lunch and served people wrong. I thought that explained it. Pierre was a very proud man. He thought a waiter should never make a mistake, and he thought he never did. I don't know, maybe he didn't. You can ask Felix. Pierre often mentioned that when you came you always liked to have him. He was proud of his work.'
'Had he actually done that? Got orders mixed?'
'I don't know, but he wouldn't have said that if he hadn't. You can ask Felix.'
'Did he mention it again later?'
'No, sir. Of course I didn't.'
'Had he been like that Saturday? Distraught?'
'I don't -' Philip frowned. 'No, sir, he hadn't.'
'I suggest that when opportunity offers you sit and close your eyes and try to recall everything he said yesterday. If you do that, make a real effort, you may surprise yourself. People frequently do. Will you do that?'
'Yes, sir, but not here. I couldn't, here. I will later.'
'And tell me or Mr. Goodwin.'
'Yes, sir.'
'Good. We'll hope to hear from you.'
Wolfe cocked his head. 'Now. Another important question. If he was killed by someone who works here, who was it? Who might have had reason to want him dead? Who feared him or bated him or might have profited by his death?'
Philip was shaking his head. 'Nobody. Nobody here. Nobody anywhere.'
'Pfui. You can't know that. Obviously you can't, since someone killed him.'
He was still shaking his head. 'No, sir. I mean yes, sir. Of course. But I can't believe it. That's what I thought when I heard it-who could have killed him? Why would anybody kill Pierre? He never hurt anybody, he wouldn't. Nobody hated him. Nobody was afraid of him. He was a fine man, an honest man. He wasn't perfect, he had that one fault, he bet too much on horse races, but he knew he did and he tried to stop. He didn't want to talk about it, but sometimes he did. I was his best friend, but he never tried to borrow from me.'
'Did he borrow from anyone?'
'I don't think so. I don't think he would. I'm sure he didn't from anybody here. If he had, there would have been talk. You can ask Felix.'
Apparently the idea was that Felix knew everything.
'Did he bet large amounts?'
'I don't really know. He didn't like to talk about it. Once he told me he won two hundred and thirty dollars, and another time a hundred and something, I forget exactly, but he never spoke about losing.'
'How did he bet? Bookmakers?'
'I think he used to, but I'm not sure. Then OTB. He told me when he started at OTB.'
'OTB?'
'Yes, sir. Off-Track Betting.'
