The Methods of Maigret ( PDFDrive )

Maigret nodded, and Mr. Pyke pushed his plate away, rose and picked up the
straw hat he had bought the day before at the mayor’s shop, for he was already a
little sunburned and his face was almost as red as the major’s.
“Are you coming with me?”
“You may need a translator.”
“Shall I come too?” asked Lechat.
“I’d like you to, yes. Can you row?”
“I was born at the seaside.”
They walked as far as the harbor once again. It was the local Inspector who
asked a fisherman permission to use a boat without a motor, and the three men
took their places in it. They could see De Greef and Anna breakfasting on the
deck of their little boat.
The sea, too, as though in honor of the Sabbath, had put on a mottled satin
appearance, and at every stroke of the oar pearls sparkled in the sun. The
Cormorant was on the other side of the water, at Giens Point, waiting for the
passengers to alight from the bus.
One could see the bottom of the sea, the violet urchins in the hollow of the
rocks and an occasional brightly colored perch which would flee like an arrow.
The bells tolled to announce the High Mass, and all the houses must have
smelled of the scent the women put on their best dresses, in addition to the
morning coffee.
The North Star seemed much bigger, much higher from alongside, and as
nobody was stirring Lechat called out, raising his head:
“Hello there, on board!”
After a fairly long pause a sailor leaned over the rail, one cheek covered with
frothy soap, an open razor in his hand.
“Can we see your mistress?”
“Couldn’t you come back in an hour or so?”
Mr. Pyke was visibly uncomfortable. Maigret hesitated a moment, thinking of
the “grandmother.”
“We’ll wait on deck if necessary,” he said to the seaman. “Up you go,
Lechat.”
They climbed the ladder, one behind the other. There were round copper
portholes in the sides, and Maigret saw a woman’s face pressed against one for
an instant, and then disappear into the semidarkness.
A moment later the hatch opened, and Philippe’s head appeared, his hair