The Last Judgement

‘Oh, yes. They knew where I was. If I hadn’t, they could have come and got me at any time.’

He looked around him to see if what he was saying was having any impact. Evidently he decided he didn’t care one way or the other. ‘Then the war began to turn. The Americans had come in and everybody knew the Germans were going to lose. I met Schmidt, and he offered a deal. Not that I had any chance of refusing. He’d keep my secret, and I’d keep his. He knew that when the Allies won he’d be a wanted man; we needed each other.

‘It was a mistake. It was the meeting, I think, that Hartung heard about. How he knew I never discovered. But he got hold of something: a photograph, a diary, whatever. He began treating me strangely, and so we came up with this idea, Schmidt and I. Solve all our problems in one go. We concocted a scheme in which Hartung would be told about an operation, it would go wrong and I could place the blame on him.

‘Just as everything was ready, he came to my office and accused me to my face of being a traitor. Of course, I denied it, but he must have guessed something.’

‘Was he ever alone there?’

Rouxel shrugged, co-operative, even helpful now. ‘Perhaps yes. Maybe that was when he concealed his evidence. Next day he fled, and the Germans missed him. I don’t know how he got away, but he did. They caught everyone else.

‘After the war he came back. That was easy. I was working for the commission, so it was simple to have him arrested and to prepare the case. My own testimony, that of his wife. Watertight. But when I visited him in jail to interrogate him, he said he was looking forward to the trial. Then he would produce his evidence.

‘Did he have some? I didn’t know, but he seemed confident. I had no choice again, you see. I couldn’t let him make a statement in court. So he was found hanged. It was the same with Schmidt; I couldn’t allow him to be tried either. So when I heard the Germans were looking for him, I tipped him off, and helped him get a new identity. He started blackmailing me properly about ten years ago. Said his son was expensive. Of course I paid.

‘And now it comes to this. I discover I had a son, and that my own granddaughter had him murdered. I can think of no more severe punishment you could mete out.’

Then he lapsed into total silence, and everybody looked around wondering what to do next.

‘I think we ought to have a little talk,’ Janet said. ‘I’m sure you realize this creates problems far beyond a mere murder, however serious that might be. Montaillou here can take Madame Armand away to the police station for further questioning. And you, Flavia, I would like to talk over a few matters with you.’

She thought quickly and looked at Rouxel. If there had ever been any doubt in her mind, the sight of him dispelled it. He was a broken man. All his defences and protests had crumbled into nothing when Jeanne Armand began to talk. He was a man whose life had come to an end. There was not much danger of his running away. And what would it matter, really, if he did? So she nodded.

‘Fine. Shall we go outside?’

And while a very deflated Montaillou led the woman away, Janet and Flavia, with Argyll in attendance, stood in the hallway and talked quietly.

‘Firstly,’ the Frenchman said, ‘I hope you’ll accept my apologies. I really had little choice.’

‘Don’t worry. Bottando’s feathers are a bit ruffled, but I’m sure that won’t last long.’

‘Good. Now, the question is, what do we do now? I don’t know about you, but I think that proper tests might well indicate that Madame Armand is mentally unbalanced.’

‘Which means you want to put her in a hospital?’

‘Yes. I think that would be best.’

‘No trial? No publicity?’

He nodded.

‘Part one of a cover-up? What’s part two?’

He shifted uneasily on his feet. ‘What else can we do?’

‘Bring charges against Rouxel?’

‘Too long ago. No matter what evidence is in that painting, it’s all far too long ago. Besides, can you really imagine the government sanctioning charges against a man they themselves nominated for this prize? When there’s a danger it will come out that they knew about him all along? How damning is this evidence?’

She shrugged. ‘We’ll have to see. I doubt if it would be so good now. Backed up by the testimony of others it might have been enough to acquit Hartung fifty years ago, but now...’

‘So there’s probably no solid evidence? No proof? Almost nothing for anyone even to build a rumour on?’

She shook her head. ‘I doubt it. But you know it’s the truth, though. So does he in there.’ She gestured towards the door leading into Rouxel’s study.

‘What we know and what we can prove are different.’

‘True.’

‘Shall we go back in again?’

She nodded, and opened the door. ‘I think it’s time,’ she said quietly.