OU_214051 UNIVERSA - Osmania University

198 MAINLY MAIGRET
His face lengthened. He looked important. Once more he rang
the bell.
When the policeman hurried in, he gave orders sticcinctly, at
the same time tapping on the table with his paper-knife.
" Arrest this man. ... Loci him up. .. . I'll see him again later."
The orders were given in Dutch, but there was no need for
translation now.
With that he got up, saying:
" It won't be long before we have the whole thing cleared up.
I will certainly mention the assistance you've given us. . . . Your
countryman is free to go, and I greatly regret h#tour should have
been interrupted."
He spoke with the utmost self-assurance. It would have given
him a shock to know what Maigret was thinking:
" You're going to regret this, my lad! You're going to regret it
bitterly, when you've had time to cool down!"
Pijpekamp opened the door, but Maigret was in no hurry to
take his leave.
" I'd like to ask you just one thing more," he began, in the
sweetest of tones.
" Certainly, my dear fellow. What is it? "
" It's not yet four. ... Perhaps this evening we might reconstruct
the crime, with all the people present who were directly or indirectly
mixed up in it. .. . You might jot down the names, will
you? ... Madame Popinga, Any, Monsieur Duclos, Barens, the
Wienands, Beetje, Oosting, and lastly Monsieur Liewens, Beetje's
father."
" What do you want to do? "
"I want to go through the evening step by step, from the
moment the professor finished his lecture at the Hotel Van
Hasselt"
A pause. Pijpekamp was thinking it over.
" I must telephone to Groningen," he said finally, " and ask
them whether it's all right. ... But I'm afraid there'll be one person
missing—Conrad Popinga. ..."
Then, fearing the joke was in bad taste, he shot a furtive glance
at the two Frenchmen. But Maigret took it quite seriously.
" Don't bother about that," he said. " I'll take Popinga's part
myself."
Then, as he turned to go, he added:
" And many thanks for the excellent lunch."