Stone's Fall

'But there was also a man called Wichma

I shook my head. 'I think I deserve better than that from you,' I replied reproachfully.

She shook her head. 'You are an unusual man,' she said.

'Perhaps.'

'I couldn't stand it, eventually. So I brought it all to an end. Not deliberately, not thought out; I didn't really know what I was doing; but we were caught, and it was my doing. Dr Stauffer became bolder, and I encouraged him into taking more and more risks. One day his wife was due to go out for a lunch, but I heard it had been cancelled, so she decided to go for a short walk instead, and come back to eat at the house. Dr Stauffer did not know this, and I goaded him into wanting me. I could do that easily by then.

'So we were surprised, in the grossest way imaginable. His wife came in, stared, and walked out again. She was a kind, but fairly stupid woman, given to generosity to orphans, but incapable of understanding adults, or herself. I do not think it ever crossed her mind that her preoccupation with charities and lunches might have left a hole in her husband's life which he would seek to fill elsewhere. A more sophisticated woman would have had a blazing row and let the matter drop. She would not. She wished to separate, and then I learned that this, for Dr Stauffer, would be cataclysmic. He had no money of his own; the family fortune was hers, and she intended to make him realise it. I do not know the details; I was, naturally, packing my things. Dr Stauffer dismissed me within seconds of his wife leaving the room; before I had even managed to pull my dress down. He was going to throw all the blame on me. Wiles of a temptress. Well, of course he was; I couldn't blame him.

'But it didn't work; I only gathered approximately what had happened, but I think she was not prepared to take his excuses. She was stupid, but not that stupid. That was all I knew; what happened then was not my concern any more. I had to leave, and leave quickly. It was obvious that I would never get another position in Lausa

'You did not murder Madame Stauffer?'

'How do you know about that?'

She had not mentioned it; Jules had discovered it. She was suspicious now and on the brink of closing up on me.

'How do you know about that?'

'It was not hard,' I said. 'And it does not matter. You must tell me everything. Good, bad and shameful. It is not as if I am in a position to judge.'

She looked coolly at me for a few more seconds, then relaxed. 'I suppose you're not,' she said quietly. 'Very well. To answer your question, no. I would never have done that. She had been good to me. I meant her no harm at all. Do you believe me?'

I shrugged.

'Listen to the rest of my story and decide. It seems I am to lay myself bare to you, so you might as well know everything.'

'Very well.'

'I was pe

'I was discovered. It was simple enough. Wichma

'So you killed him.'

She nodded. 'I did. Cold-bloodedly, and deliberately. I stabbed him in the heart, and sat and watched him die. Are you horrified?'

I thought, then, of Simon. 'I don't know,' I said quietly.

'I changed my clothes, packed my bag and left, locking the door behind me. By the time he was discovered I was well away from Lyon, I had cut my hair, changed the way I dressed. I changed my name, but kept Virginie. I liked it; it was my secret name, the one I had given myself.'

'And Madame Stauffer?'

'I do not know. I imagine it was her husband; Wichma

'Would a man murder his wife over such a thing?'

'If the wife threatens separation and is the one who has brought the fortune to the marriage? Dr Stauffer lived well and worked little. Many people have killed for less. Not that it matters, I think. As I freely confess to one murder, there would be no reason not to confess to another, had I committed it. I did not.'

'The police did not look for you?'

'Yes, but not very hard. A foreigner found dead in a brothel is not going to be a matter of the greatest importance for them. And it is easy to escape the attention of the police, if you know how.'

'Tell me.'

'Firstly, do not draw attention to yourself. Change the way you dress and look and behave. It is easy to become a different person entirely, if you wish. I was very upset when you recognised me in Biarritz, you know. You are the only person to have done so. I even met General Mercier at a ball, a few months back. Even though he knew every part of my body intimately, he did not for a moment make any co

I thought back to the moment. 'I don't know, exactly. Certainly there is nothing physical that recalls what you were. All your ma

'That is because they were never interested in me, only in themselves. When they were with me, they thought how splendid they were to have such a beautiful woman as their companion. When they made love to me, they were aware only of what wonderful lovers they were. And, believe me, I made sure they felt that.'