Henri Castang 16 A Dwarf Kingdom by Nicolas Freeling

Author:Nicolas Freeling [Freeling, Nicolas]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

The Palace of Justice is not that of Paris—or not in terms of sheer size. There were still quite a few courtrooms for Castang to dodge in and out of, in search of his old gentleman, discovered in a nook with a few more of that ilk, smoking cigars in a conclave of perfect amity preparatory to being very cutting with one another in court. Maitre Bastien appeared dirtier than when last seen even though the light was no better; imperfectly shaved, dubious round the neckbands, robe pungent with the legal distillations of many many years in places like this: Madame Fauchon says it’s his teeth but—well, fearful smells are the policeman’s lot in most corners of the earth.

Richard found friends in unlikely places; just look at myself. It was one of his skills; terms of the closest intimacy with some frightful old clochard as with the most aftershaved young whipper-snapper from the National School of Administration.

“Wanted to phone you,” taking a hideously wet cigar out of his mouth, “couldn’t get through, didn’t matter, sure to be tapped anyhow. Bethought then, pleading here this morning, paths might cross. Might have a little light to shed.” Edairassement, word also used of a ‘sunny interval’ on cloudy days, which today was.

“Nobody’ll notice us here. Consultations with clients, common form, we won’t be overheard. I’ve been looking at these papers of our friend. He got on the track of some business deals. It’s nothing directly evidential, no leverage there, more in the nature of suggestive, that if—we’ll say the fiscal authority—had grounds for pushing an enquiry into whitewashed accounts, one might get a few surprises.

“Now our friend was of course in retirement, with no mandate for pursuit. There was an area of conflict about the title to some ground. It isn’t clear but the suggestion is that parcels of land were acquired in ways thought questionable.”

“Open to misinterpretation,” said Castang pleasurably.

“Nothing is illegal, until a judge has pronounced it so.”

“Is anybody specific named?”

‘Yes, but we’d do well not to name him, unless we wanted an action for criminal slander to lie against us. Our friend expresses the opinion that the police, if duly empowered by a magistrate with a mandate for search of business premises and seizure of documents, might well uncover conclusive evidence. A magistrate,” dryly, “is not likely to issue such a mandate, without sufficient grounds for complaint.”

Castang could hear Richard’s voice saying ‘Catch Twenty-two.’

“We’re not likely to convince anyone,” went on the lawyer. “Going to look would create a domino effect, involving local notables, all well entrenched in the power structure.”

“I have a complaint,” said Castang, “on a grave criminal charge.”

“No way can you make it stick. How are you to link the one affair to the other? You’ve no shred of evidence. I can do nothing but pass on the conclusion our friend reached, that this is no better than tendentiously circumstantial.”

Castang did not mention his conversation with the neighbour. He knew perfectly what Bastien would say. You think

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