The Paris Librarian by Mark Pryor

Author:Mark Pryor
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781633881785
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Published: 2016-07-13T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

They parked outside Alain Benoît’s apartment building, which sat on a quiet street in Vincennes, a clean and tree-lined pocket of eastern Paris. They stayed in the car for a moment, just to see who was coming and going. Hugo watched as a sanitation worker in green overalls and a yellow reflective jacket wielded a brush that had green, plastic bristles. The man swept at the gutter in a gentle but constant rhythm, pushing along the stream of water that flowed past his feet from a hydrant fifty yards away, ushering discarded cigarette butts toward a grill in the curb with the measured patience and precision of a painter.

“You don’t think we should have called before coming out?” Lieutenant Lerens asked. “At least had someone come by and see if he’s here?”

“You have other plans for today?” Hugo asked.

“You do. Your friends from England are in town.”

“I’ll see them tonight. You should come out with us.”

“I have plans.”

Hugo glanced at her face but he couldn’t tell whether she was making fun of him or was serious. “Look,” he said, “it’s not a surprise if we let the guy know we’re coming.”

“Surprises are overrated. In my experience, the badge and uniform are more persuasive.”

“Well, today we have all three.”

“Assuming he’s in.”

“Let’s go find out.” Hugo checked his watch, 10:00 a.m., then pointed to a woman who was pushing a stroller laden with shopping bags and was headed toward the main doors to the building. Hugo and Lerens climbed out of the car quickly and hurried in that direction, timing their arrival so that Hugo could hold the door for the harried woman once she’d punched in the code. The woman was surprised at first but seemed reassured by the police uniform, flashing them a smile as they followed her inside. She headed for the elevator as they angled off to the right, toward Alain Benoît’s ground-floor apartment.

Lerens raised her fist to knock, but they both turned when the building’s door buzzed and opened, and Benoît walked in. He didn’t see them at first, his head down as he scanned the headlines of the newspaper in his left hand, which also held a to-go cup of coffee. A set of keys jangled in his right hand.

He was ten feet from his front door when he looked up and stopped in his tracks. His eyes darted between Hugo and Lerens, and he shifted his body back, either an unconscious response to their presence or the first step of flight.

“Monsieur Benoît,” Lerens said. Her voice was low, forceful, letting him know they were there for a good reason and not about to let him run away.

“Oui,” he said. “Je suis Alain Benoît.”

We know who you are, Hugo thought, the only question right now is whether we have to chase you.

Benoît stared for a moment longer, then his shoulders relaxed, as if he recognized Hugo or realized that they knew who he was and where he lived, so running would be pointless. “What do you want?” he asked in French.

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