Free The Disappearance of Adèle Bedeau by Graeme Macrae Burnet Page A

remark to hang in the air for a few moments.
    â€˜You’re right, of course,’ he continued. ‘From their vantage point, they could hardly have failed to notice that Adèle had changed. But you, I think I am correct in saying, were standing at the counter adjacent to the hatch from which Adèle emerged. Following your own logic it seems even more unlikely that you would not have noticed this transformation.’
    â€˜Well, I didn’t,’ said Manfred.
    Gorski clasped his hands in front of his face and tapped his forefingers together. Manfred had the impression that his ordeal was almost over.
    â€˜You left the restaurant very shortly after Adèle, the precise time is unimportant.’ He adopted a puzzled tone, as if he was merely thinking out loud. ‘Did you see in which direction she walked?’
    â€˜As I said before, I didn’t see her.’
    â€˜And as you walked home did you see any young men, who might be waiting for…’ he picked his word carefully, ‘for a tryst?’
    â€˜No.’ He was allowing his irritation to show.
    â€˜And if I were to ask you to accompany me to the station and sign a statement to that effect, that is what you would say?’
    â€˜Yes,’ said Manfred. His course had been set since the first time he had spoken to Gorski. He could hardly change tack now.
    â€˜Very well.’ Gorski slid his chair back noisily. ‘My apologies for interrupting your lunch.’
    Manfred’s wine glass was empty, but he dared not order another. He did not wish to appear as if his encounter with Gorski had disconcerted him. Pasteur continued to polish glasses behind the bar. He did not look in Manfred’s direction. Marie had her hand on the shoulder of the new waitress and was directing her to clear a recently vacated table.

Seven
    G ORSKI REGRETTED BRINGING HIS RAINCOAT . It was a warm, sunny day with no prospect of rain. He paused in the doorway of the Restaurant de la Cloche and lit a cigarette, his coat draped over the crook of his left arm. He walked along Rue de Hunigue until he reached the intersection. The police station was located a few minutes’ walk along Rue de Mulhouse, but Gorski had no desire to return there. Instead he crossed the street and continued along Avenue Charles de Gaulle. Most of the shops were closed for lunch and the streets were quiet. Gorski liked this part of the day. It was as if the town paused to draw breath for a moment, not that the pace of life in Saint-Louis demanded such a lull. Even so, Gorski strode along purposefully, as if to give the appearance that he was on his way to an important appointment.
    He turned into a narrow side street where, a little further on, there was an inconspicuous bar called Le Pot. The name of the bar was painted in brown Germanic lettering above the door. A dark red
Bar/Tabac
sign was fixed to the wall with a rusting metal bracket. At night the sign was lit up, but during the day it would be quite possible to pass along Rue des Vosges without noticing there was a bar there at all. There were no windows save for two narrow oblongs of glass above eye level, which were for the purposes of ventilation only. The door was glass, but it was so plastered with posters advertising lottery tickets and various brands of cigarettes that it was impossible to see inside. Theproprietor was aware that his bar was not particularly inviting, but the fact that, once inside, one could not be seen from the street, constituted a large part of its appeal.
    Inside, the bar consisted of one small square room. The walls were painted with a dark mustard wash and decorated with faded prints depicting scenes from Old Alsace. Around two walls was a maroon banquette, the vinyl of which was cracked and worn. In one or two places, foam stuffing spilled out. In front of the banquette, five metal tables were bolted to the floor. In addition, four wooden tables were arranged in the centre of the