12Florian was an old hand, and he set about this latest case by going through his usual careful procedures, step by painstaking step, taking notes as he went along. He was pleased to be the first on the scene and hoped the gendarmes took their time and did not arrive too quickly.
Ben had been a colleague for many years, back when he was a gendarme. He knew Florian well, and they had always had a mutually agreeable relationship, occasionally cutting the odd bureaucratic corner when it was sensible to do so. Now that he was a civilian, Ben had enough decorum to stay out of the library, though he watched the coroner work from the dining room. Molly was leaning so far into the library she was about to fall onto the rug.
“Can’t you ask him anything?” she whispered to Ben.
He shook his head.
