The Night Watchman
“His thick silver hair was neatly combed. His blue eyes were weary.
‘Jean Morel?’ I asked.
‘Oui. Et qui êtes-vous?’ When I told him, he said in resentful, heavily accented English, ‘You come too late!’ After a brief search for how to reduce all I felt to a single sentence, I said, ‘I made the mistake of underestimating how bad things were. I’m sorry. How is Senhora Coutinho holding up?’ ‘Holding up? She’s not holding up at all!’ he told me, obviously regarding my phrasing as unfit for the circum...stances. He didn’t invite me in.
‘I need to talk to her,’ I said.
‘No, no, no,’ he replied, wagging his finger as if I were a schoolboy.
‘I’m on official police business,’ I said. The authoritative tone of my voice made me aware that his animosity had transformed me back into a police officer again.
He barred my way with his hands crossed over his chest – a gesture that earned my respect even as it narrowed my options. I could have pushed past him easily enough, but instead I looked up the street towards the Jesus Church, searching its deeply shadowed archways for the right words to prevent two strangers from quarrelling at a bad moment.MoreLess
‘Jean Morel?’ I asked.
‘Oui. Et qui êtes-vous?’ When I told him, he said in resentful, heavily accented English, ‘You come too late!’ After a brief search for how to reduce all I felt to a single sentence, I said, ‘I made the mistake of underestimating how bad things were. I’m sorry. How is Senhora Coutinho holding up?’ ‘Holding up? She’s not holding up at all!’ he told me, obviously regarding my phrasing as unfit for the circum...stances. He didn’t invite me in.
‘I need to talk to her,’ I said.
‘No, no, no,’ he replied, wagging his finger as if I were a schoolboy.
‘I’m on official police business,’ I said. The authoritative tone of my voice made me aware that his animosity had transformed me back into a police officer again.
He barred my way with his hands crossed over his chest – a gesture that earned my respect even as it narrowed my options. I could have pushed past him easily enough, but instead I looked up the street towards the Jesus Church, searching its deeply shadowed archways for the right words to prevent two strangers from quarrelling at a bad moment.MoreLess
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