‘And the viscera? He took it upon himself to have them analysed.’
‘That was very well done. It nipped in the bud any hypotheses about poisoning. But wouldn’t a substitution of viscera have been easy? Those he sent for analysis wouldn’t have given a positive result. The professor has played an exceedingly dangerous game, counting uniquely on his personality to hide the truth. Once we stopped being influenced by him, and thought in terms of anonymous people, the solution became obvious. And we had the answer, not only to the question “How?”, but also to the question “Who?”. The crime could only have been committed in one way and by one person. That was the beauty, but also the danger. It was a marvellous bluff, and it almost succeeded. But I demanded to see, and I saw.’
‘But that only solves part of the problem. The professor cannot be the man in grey. He must have had an accomplice.’
‘That was another reason for my silence. If I had revealed what I was thinking, we would have lost all possibility to apprehend the murderer. So I preferred to keep quiet and watch Richard closely in the hope he would lead me to the bandit. But he’s too crafty for me. I learnt nothing, literally nothing.’
‘So why did you speak up today? You haven’t any more proof and if... if Richard had not lost his calm, you would not have been any further.’
‘Maybe so, but we’re at the end of the trail. Richard was in possession of much-sought-after knowledge, or was about to be. It was our last chance. So it was my turn to bluff, counting on his reaction, finding himself stopped so close to his goal. He’s impulsive and couldn’t know what I had up my sleeve. For me to finally decide to speak, I must have a weapon. At least, that’s what he thought, so he unmasked himself. And I won, without a single trump in my hand.’
‘How could a man of such worth, who has always been a great scientist and an honest man, become a super-criminal, or at least the mastermind behind him?’
‘Excuse me! We don’t know yet whether his is responsible for these crimes. We can also imagine that, knowing the culprit, and seeing him in danger from the revelations of Gregor, he intervened brutally to save him. Another hypothesis, equally plausible, is that, finding himself in the possession of a secret which could make him enormously rich and enormously powerful, his mind was overwhelmed and he became mad—at least with regard to the secret and how to use it.’
‘But who could his accomplice be?’
‘Of that, I have absolutely no idea. Look, Professor, you’ve lost. Why don’t you tell us who he is. That would be a nice gesture.’
‘My dear Bob,’ replied the other in the same tone, ‘I would hate to deprive you of even a scintilla of your credit. I know too well the subtlety of your mind to doubt that you will arrive, all by yourself, at the definitive solution. Far be it from me to deprive you of that satisfaction.’
‘Jannin,’ asked M. Delharbe, ‘can you find Jacques Vital?’
Jannin, who was no longer limping, was away for less than a minute.
‘Jacques left half-an-hour ago. He took his car.’
‘I’m sure he’s the man,’ exclaimed Bernès.
Richard smiled dryly and said to Jannin:
‘I say, Monsieur le Commissaire, your sciatica seems to be cured.’
‘I never had sciatica,’ replied the other with a laugh. ‘It was a trick, so I could remain standing and watch you. Bob suggested it. That’s how I was able to intervene in time.’
‘There’s a point I need to verify,’ continued Bernès. ‘Whether the man in Egypt who has taken the measures prescribed in the manuscript is the bandit or an accomplice, even an unknowing one, he must be found. Obviously, Richard won’t have given the necessary instructions. But maybe there’s still time.’
‘That’s where you’re wrong. I do things the right way. So, I’ve sent a telegramme to Cairo. But don’t worry, I’ve received all the elements of the calculation and you won’t find them. As for the man who provided them and who, I can assure you, knew nothing of their purpose, he’s dead.’
Slowman’s one-word announcement cut through the stunned silence that followed the cynical declaration like the blade of a guillotine:
‘No!’
‘What do you mean?’ asked the Président.
‘Don’t you think that I, too, have a brain capable of functioning and drawing the same conclusions as Richard? Besides, he didn’t need to reason, he already knew. Needless to say, I didn’t discover the Franco-Egyptian painter, or his last communication with the nurse. Reasoning alone couldn’t get me to that point, but a whole series of deductions he didn’t make, I did, step by step. I got as far as the magazine L’Image. I also have the snapshots and a daltonian amongst my friends.I’ve known the text of Argier’s will for a week, since January 10th. I was able to lay a trap in Egypt which the man and his instruments walked into. Better still, it’s true that he wasn’t aware of anything. He is a promising young astronomer whose name doesn’t matter. I had him watched. The day before yesterday he sent a coded telegramme giving the principal details, and yesterday he sent a voluminous report. I wasn’t able to intercept the telegramme, addressed to Paul Bernard, poste restante. There, I failed. The man I had assigned to watch the post office, seeing nothing arrive, investigated. A phone message had asked that the telegramme be routed to another branch. As for the astronomer, I suspected that his life would be in danger and had him closely guarded. Yesterday morning, an enormous basket of fresh fruit was delivered. An examination proved they were all poisoned.’
‘Ah!’ exclaimed Richard, gnashing his teeth. ‘I regret not
