He knocked again, and, after a moment, the woman started crying, and Raymond opened the door.
He had a cigarette dangling from his underlip and a rather sickly smile.
“Your name?”
Raymond gave his name.
“Take that cigarette out of your mouth when you’re talking to me,” the policeman said gruffly.
Raymond hesitated, glanced at me, and kept the cigarette in his mouth.
The policeman promptly swung his arm and gave him a good hard smack on the left cheek.
The cigarette shot from his lips and dropped a yard away.
Raymond made a wry face, but said nothing for a moment. Then in a humble tone he asked if he mightn’t pick up his cigarette.
The officer said,
“Yes,” and added: “But don’t you forget next time that we don’t stand for any nonsense, not from guys like you.”
Meanwhile the girl went on sobbing and repeating:
“He hit me, the coward.
He’s a pimp.”
“Excuse me, officer,” Raymond put in, “but is that in order, calling a man a pimp in the presence of witnesses?”
The policeman told him to shut his trap.
Raymond then turned to the girl.
“Don’t you worry, my pet. We’ll meet again.”
“That’s enough,” the policeman said, and told the girl to go away. Raymond was to stay in his room till summoned to the police station.
“You ought to be ashamed of yourself,” the policeman added, “getting so tight you can’t stand steady. Why, you’re shaking all over!”
“I’m not tight,” Raymond explained.
“Only when I see you standing there and looking at me, I can’t help trembling.
That’s only natural.”
Then he closed his door, and we all went away.
Marie and I finished getting our lunch ready.
But she hadn’t any appetite, and I ate nearly all.
She left at one, and then I had a nap.
Toward three there was a knock at my door and Raymond came in.
He sat down on the edge of my bed and for a minute or two said nothing.
I asked him how it had gone off.
He said it had all gone quite smoothly at first, as per program; only then she’d slapped his face and he’d seen red, and started thrashing her.
As for what happened after that, he needn’t tell me, as I was there.
“Well,” I said, “you taught her a lesson, all right, and that’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”
He agreed, and pointed out that whatever the police did, that wouldn’t change the fact she’d had her punishment.
As for the police, he knew exactly how to handle them.
But he’d like to know if I’d expected him to return the blow when the policeman hit him.
I told him I hadn’t expected anything whatsoever and, anyhow, I had no use for the police.
Raymond seemed pleased and asked if I’d like to come out for a stroll with him.
I got up from the bed and started brushing my hair.
Then Raymond said that what he really wanted was for me to act as his witness.
I told him I had no objection; only I didn’t know what he expected me to say.
“It’s quite simple,” he replied. “You’ve only got to tell them that the girl had let me down.”
So I agreed to be his witness.
We went out together, and Raymond stood me a brandy in a cafe.
Then we had a game of billiards; it was a close game and I lost by only a few points.
After that he proposed going to a brothel, but I refused; I didn’t feel like it.
As we were walking slowly back he told me how pleased he was at having paid out his mistress so satisfactorily.
He made himself extremely amiable to me, and I quite enjoyed our walk.
When we were nearly home I saw old Salamano on the doorstep; he seemed very excited.
I noticed that his dog wasn’t with him.