Moon in a Dead Eye by Pascal Garnier

Author:Pascal Garnier [Pascal Garnier]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781908313621
Publisher: Gallic Books
Published: 2013-03-03T16:00:00+00:00

Maxime had had to buck himself up before facing the music. He had made serious inroads in the bottle of Scotch sitting beside him. His voice thick, he set the scene of the drama once again.

‘You see, I’d been sitting here waiting for them since this morning and I must have nodded off for a minute. I heard footsteps coming and started opening my eyes, but you had the sun behind you, Martial – I couldn’t tell it was you! I shot into the air, just to scare them off – obviously at such close range, if I’d wanted to hit them … And then, crack! The most excruciating pain went through my shoulder and down my back, as though I was being snapped in half. You see, a gun like that has a hell of a kick to it! … Anyway, everyone’s fine now. That’s all that matters.’

Maxime downed the rest of his drink and clicked his tongue. The silence crackled, like champagne quietly fizzing in a flute. Marlène stood up and looked out of the window. It was dark outside.

‘Everyone except Léa. Her light’s not on.’

Martial could not tear his eyes away from the gun lying on the table, which now looked as banal as a piece of cutlery. Odette cracked her knuckles and got to her feet.

‘Now look, I think we should all try to keep our heads. It’s only nine o’clock, this isn’t a boarding school. Léa can come and go as she pleases, whatever time of the day or night. As for these gypsies … We went straight past them and nothing happened to us. I didn’t even notice them.’

‘That’s the point! You obviously don’t know much about gypsies. They’re masters of disguise. You don’t see them, you think everything’s peachy and then, bam! You end up with a knife in your back.’

‘That’s a bit over the top, Maxime.’

‘Not at all, Odette! I served in the war; I know a thing or two about ambush …’

‘You fought against the gypsies, did you?’

‘No, of course not! But they’re all the same …’

‘Who’s all the same?’

‘Other people! The ones who are out to get us and take our things! Oh for Christ’s sake, forget it. If you’d rather shut your eyes to it and let them cut your throat while you sleep, that’s your problem.’

Marlène grabbed the bottle and moved it out of reach.

‘That’s enough, Maxime, pull yourself together! I’m sorry, Odette, it’s his nerves.’

‘It’s fine, I understand. Look, we’re in the safest place imaginable: we’ve got CCTV cameras, an electric fence … and Monsieur Flesh! You saw what he does to cats, so I think we can all sleep soundly. As for Léa, I’ll say it again, she’s a free agent. If she’s still not back in … a while, then perhaps we should think about raising the alarm. Don’t you think, Martial?’

‘Absolutely.’

‘Marlène?’

‘I … I don’t know. Maybe. Either way, I really must do my shopping tomorrow.’

‘We can go together, don’t worry. Maxime, I think you should put that gun away.

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