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"Monsieur Juve of the detective force: Colonel Hofferman, head of the Second Bureau." The policeman and the soldier bowed gravely. They awaited the beginning of the conference in a somewhat chilly silence. Monsieur Maranjévol explained that after a short talk with Juve regarding Captain Brocq's death, he had considered it necessary to put him in touch with Colonel Hofferman.
"Nothing unusual this morning, Loubersac?" questioned Hofferman, gazing complacently at the soldier, superb in his magnificent uniform, an elegant and splendid specimen of a cavalry officer. "Nothing, Colonel. The arrival of the King of Greece has been perfectly carried out." "The crowd?" "Oh, indifferent on the whole; come to have a look at him out of curiosity." "Ah, no King of Spain affair?"
Hofferman paused. He continued, in a low tone and with a grave air: "In the newspapers oh, in ambiguous terms, but clear enough to the initiated the public has been given to understand that not only has an important document been stolen from Captain Brocq before, or at the time of his assassination, or after it, but that this document was none other than the distribution chart of the concealed works in and about the girdle of forts on the east of Paris.... This is inaccurate.
It would end a bothersome affair, and would open the eyes of Colonel Hofferman who must be a hundred leagues from imagining that Vagualame is the murderer of Captain Brocq and Nichoune." On this Fandor and Monsieur Havard parted.
Hofferman remained in thought for a minute or so, rose abruptly, half opened the door of the adjoining room, and addressed Commandant Dumoulin: "The Under-Secretary of State wishes to see me. I am going down now." The colonel passed rapidly along the interminable corridors separating him from the building in which the Under-Secretary's offices were situated. "What can he want to see me about?"
He jumped into a taxi, giving his orders: "Rue Saint Dominique Ministry of War!... and quick!" Shortly after the unexpected departure of Colonel Hofferman, Juve, judging it useless to prolong the conversation, had quitted the Under-Secretary of State's office. Instead of mounting to the Second Bureau, he sent in his name to Commandant Dumoulin.
But the usher, fulfilling his orders, replied: "The captain anticipated this answer, Colonel, and told me to add that the communication cannot wait." The usher withdrew. Hofferman glanced questioningly at the Under-Secretary. "Go to him, Colonel, and return as soon as possible."
They are keeping quiet at present. Plague take the lot of them!... It makes me furious when I think what happened the other day creating a scandal about things the public ought to be kept in ignorance of ought never to hear of never!... Those confounded meddlers complicate our task abominably." Colonel Hofferman paused: de Loubersac kept a discreet silence.
He comes just at the moment when we have some very nasty business in hand difficult very worrying.... That's so, Dumoulin?" "True, Colonel! That's a fact." Hofferman pressed a bell. An orderly appeared. "Ask Captain Muller to kindly step in here." Almost at once Captain Muller entered, saluted, and remained standing at some distance from his chief. "Take this arm-chair, Captain."
"No, there were none, but what matters that?" cried the colonel. "Very queer," said Juve, in a meditative tone. Then raising his voice: "I suppose, Colonel, that your ... collaborator, before taking possession of these letters, had a talk with the person who had received them. Did he manage to extract any information?" Hofferman interrupted Juve with a gesture.
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