The Gold Watch by Paul Halter

Author:Paul Halter [Halter, Paul]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-06-21T05:00:00+00:00

14

THE OLD QUARRY

July 16, 1991

‘I felt sure it was the right picture this time!’ announced Dr. Moreau with a satisfied smile, leaning back in his armchair with his hands over his ample stomach. ‘I was even certain of it. And I couldn’t resist taking a peek before I gave it to your wife. The gold watch on the pavement: as soon as I saw that, I knew we’d won!’

‘All credit to you, Doctor,’ said André. ‘You can’t imagine how grateful I am.’

The psychoanalyst modestly ignored the remark. He placed his fingertips under his chin, closed his eyes, and continued:

‘I must admit I was slightly mistaken about the clue of the gold watch. It had to be taken at face value as one of the key images of the film. But that doesn’t mean that any idea of a parallel link must be ruled out. We have to stay vigilant. I recommend to see the film again, calmly, and be very attentive to detail.’

‘I’ve already done so, several times. To the point that my wife threatens to make it disappear, if she surprises me watching it again.’

‘It could bring us new information. I say “could” because our investigation has now taken another direction. And not the one I’d assumed at the start, namely a personal and disquieting souvenir buried in the very depths of your memory, not to say a more mysterious phenomenon, resembling a form of reincarnation. There, also, I was wrong. Everything points, from now on, to a genuine criminal affair whose gravity you subconsciously realised. I tell you frankly that’s the only way to explain the reaction of that Rita, frightened by the mere view of a detective film. And claiming not to remember it when you asked her about it.’

‘I only spoke to her about the film, not her reaction to it,’ clarified André. ‘That would have been too delicate. She didn’t create a bad impression. On the contrary, she was charming.’

‘Surely you don’t believe she would have confessed straight away to a crime in which she was involved?’

‘Of course not. I merely said she didn’t strike me as someone capable of such an act. That said, I did notice that she became nervous when I started to probe what happened to Mme. Lamblin. She quickly changed the subject.’

‘There you are,’ said the psychoanalyst, nodding his head eloquently.

‘So, according to you, that accident wasn’t really....’

‘Probably not, and I might add that the motive is pretty obvious... André, don’t tell me you haven’t worked it out. The account of your meeting with this person makes it glaringly obvious.’

‘A crime of passion?’

‘Obviously! You yourself, when you were only ten years old, had a vivid memory of a woman as beautiful as Snow White, with red lips and long black locks. Someone like that couldn’t help but dazzle the men around her.’

‘In other words, Jean-Pierre Lamblin.’

‘Of course. Think about it. Think of the frequent visits Rita made to his home.’

‘She was always accompanied by her brother,’ objected André.

‘What difference does that make? He was simply her alibi.

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