Thirty-two

The first thing Rocco did on exiting Massin’s office was to call Dreycourt. It was late but he needed to check with the art consultant that nothing else had cropped up.

‘Lucas. I was just thinking about you. How’s it going?’

He told Dreycourt about the calls for the investigation to be called off. Dreycourt wasn’t surprised.

‘Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Lucas. There’s a bad smell about this business and they want rid of it. The way they see it, if you haven’t pinned anyone down by now, you’re unlikely to do so. It’s the way their minds work, as if villains walk around in black masks and striped jumpers. But the excuse about the replacement is rubbish. The incomer won’t give a damn about rumours about their predecessor. He or she will be too busy picking up the reins and getting on with the job. I can think of several ministers who’ve taken over office during a scandal, and it never stopped them from doing what they had to do and making a success of it. It’s a requirement of the job.’

‘Could there be another reason for wanting it shut down?’

A brief hesitation. ‘Political expediency, you mean? Entirely possible. One man’s mistakes can easily rebound upwards, enough to make the opposition sharpen their teeth and start talking about poor judgement and a weak administration. Let it go far enough and it becomes a feeding frenzy. If that’s the case, nobody’s sharing it with me.’

Rocco let it slide. Political ripples following a scandal were inevitable, but if there was an underlying reason it would be buried layers deep and he had no chance of finding it in time. He mentioned the clearance of papers from Bourdelet’s office just before his visit, and the fact that he was being watched.

Dreycourt didn’t seem concerned. ‘They’re watching you because that’s what they do. Just because they’ve given you an assignment doesn’t mean they trust you entirely. It’s called paranoia. Ignore them. As for the paperwork, they’re using the opportunity to clean up in case Bourdelet left anything behind that they don’t want anyone else to see. Have you made any progress with Cezard?’

‘Not much.’ Rocco didn’t want to mention Vauquelin’s presence. He had nothing concrete to say about the lawyer, and throwing the man’s name out there could rebound on him with unfortunate results. ‘He denies any involvement but I’m going to have another chat with him.’

A sigh came down the line. ‘Pity. We’re running out of time.’

Rocco hesitated. Dreycourt was clearly under pressure, too, and was looking to see something solid to feed up his chain of command. He decided to give him something to use to keep the dogs off their backs. ‘We’ve come across the possible involvement of a criminal group in Paris who may have delivered the letters. I’m looking into that right now.’

‘Really?’

‘Don’t get too excited,’ Rocco cautioned him. ‘It could be nothing. They might have been acting for someone else and they’ll be unlikely to share that information with us.’

‘Can you bring them in and question them?’

‘What, and use a rubber hose? Tempting, but no. We’ll try proving connections first.’

He ended the call and thought about where to go next. He still had to check the Petissier house, but first he had to get Caspar on board. He dialled a Paris number.