‘You’re absolutely right. And I, in politics, used to think that it was simple to arrange things, to pass sensible laws, and to bring the conditions for a happy existence to the people. What a mistake! As a technician, you have quickly demonstrated that that would change the equilibrium between the parties, and that the question of whether a handful of votes could change the government is more important than the lives of thousands of individuals.
‘And what gets me even more upset,’ continued Bernès, disdaining sarcasm, ‘is that we can’t do without technicians. Modern life has become so complicated that they are necessary even for the most minor of things. Has your car broken down? Only an automobile technician can coax it back on the road. To change a fuse, you have to use an electrical technician. Soon, we won’t be able to eat a steak without the assistance of a gastronomic technician. And, in the same vein, we can’t put any minister in charge of any department without assigning him a technician. You could assign Finances to a dancer....’
‘It’s usually a high-jumper.’
‘But you would have to teach him how to use a calculator. I tell you, it’s impossible.’
‘Right. I would even go so far as to say that you, for love, are obliged to confide in technicians.’
‘Touché! But let’s get back to the subject. I wasn’t unaware of your point of view but, when I spoke of madness, I meant it in the vulgar sense which doesn’t care about the subtleties of technicians.’
‘I understand. And let me say straight away that you’re barking up the wrong tree. The man in the grey overcoat isn’t a raving lunatic, far from it. His crimes are too simple, too clean. They have the purity of works of classical art. There are no sadistic or even equivocal elements. So I can predict he’s going to give you a lot of trouble. Murderers who think they’re clever always lose because they want to complicate things. He, on the contrary, simplifies, a sign of superior men.’
‘But there’s no motive for any of these crimes.’
‘There’s always a motive. The question is always badly put. The importance of a motive varies by individual: what is a trifle to you could be the cause of an uncontrollable fury to someone else. In the present case, we have no idea what has motivated these murders, but I can assure you a motive exists and there is a link between the four murders.’
‘Why? If our man is in the grip of homicidal mania.’
‘First of all, that’s wrong, his whole comportment gives the lie to that hypothesis. And, in any case, he knows the people he kills. Remember Dijon: the librarian shook the hand of the man who would kill him a few minutes later. The observations made at Nancy, Rennes, and Marseille are in agreement. We’re faced with two possibilities: either the man in grey has a precise reason, or—and I don’t believe this to be the case—he kills for no reason, but he chooses people he knows. That’s a positive point, at least. Can you imagine the situation if your man acted like those celebrated “vampires”, but on a grander scale? Against fellows like that, the police are helpless. They can only be caught by good luck. Remember how long it lasted in Dusseldorf. And Jack the Ripper was never caught. He only operated in one city. Can you imagine what would happen in a whole country like France? The chances of catching someone like that would be so small that it wouldn’t be worth trying to catch him.’
‘Do you think we’re in a better position?’
‘Definitely. I repeat, there has to be a link between the four crimes. It’s up to us to discover it. Listen carefully! What’s needed is a very detailed investigation into each victim’s past, and when we find the common factor, we’ll be close to getting our man. But beware! It cannot be your standard police investigation, limiting itself to salient facts, with shady side issues. What’s needed is a summary of each victim’s activities, day by day, or even hour by hour, with a list of everyone he met. I know it’s impossible, but we need to get as close as we can to that ideal.’
‘And you will be in charge of supervising the investigations and directing the police?’
‘Me? Under what authority? And, besides, I’m very tired and I already have a lot on my plate. You’re forgetting my age.’
‘No danger of that: it’s the same as mine.’
‘But you’ve never done anything but talk endlessly. The proof is, you politicians don’t begin your careers until the age that others are being retired. It’s when you go out of your way to be noticed that you get the highest positions, and the more senile you are, the more power you have.’
‘Look, Fernand, you absolutely have to accept. You’re the only one who can get us out of this mess.’
The minister, abandoning the light tone of badinage he’d indulged in heretofore, emphasised those last words with an intonation both
