Page 68

“Oui, patron.”

CHAPTER 26

Gamache turned his back on the young man and started to walk away.

“Wait! Stop. You can’t just leave me here with him. Wait. There’s a body in Lost Nation!” Comeau shouted.

Gamache stopped dead. Then slowly turned, and stared. “You? You’re the one who called me.” That was why the voice sounded familiar. As did the tone. Fear.

“Yes.” His eyes were darting from Gamache to Beauvoir, and back. “I can help you.”

“Like you helped before?” snarled Beauvoir.

Gamache walked up to Beauvoir and whispered, “Take him away, and keep him safe. You know where to go.”

“You don’t mean—”

But it was clear what he meant.

“Wait, patron!” Comeau called.

Gamache swung around and growled, “Don’t call me that!”

Then he left, his footsteps echoing on the concrete as Armand walked, almost ran, away.

“Get in.”

“Where’re you taking me?”

“Shut up.”

Beauvoir put the vehicle into gear and hit the gas so hard he almost ran into a passing bus.

Calm down, calm down.

“I haven’t done anything wrong,” said Comeau. “This’s kidnapping.”

“Be quiet.”

By the time they’d crossed the Champlain Bridge and were off the Island of Montréal, Beauvoir had regained control of himself. Or at least enough not to kill them both.

“What were you doing at Réunion?”

Comeau stared straight ahead. Mouth set. Not making direct eye contact. He didn’t dare.

“I work there.”

“Since when?”

“You know since when. Since Gamache fired me.”

“Of course he fired you. You’re lucky that’s all he did.” Beauvoir lapsed into silence, but not before muttering, “I can’t believe anyone hired you.”

“I found her body, didn’t I? No one else knew it was there. Don’t you want to know how?”

Her? thought Beauvoir. Her?

While they hadn’t yet identified the victim, there was every indication it was a man. And not any man but Brian Fillmore.