Can you see me trying on hats at Caroline Rebouxâ or Rose Valoisâ?
âBut it wasnât a hat from the Galeries or the Printemps either.
âSomewhere between the two. A hat from a millinerâs definitely, and a milliner with good taste.
âThatâs why I did all the little shops, especially around the place dâAnvers, or not too far away at all events.
âI saw at least a hundred white hats, and yet it was a pearl gray one that finally stopped me, in the rue Caumartin, at Hélène et Rosine.
âIt was exactly the same hat in another shade, and Iâm sure Iâm not mistaken. I told you that the one belonging to the lady with the little boy had a tiny veil, three or four fingers wide, that came down just over the eyes.
âThe gray hat had the same veil.â
âDid you go in?â
Maigret had to make an effort not to smile, for it was the first time that the shy Madame Maigret had taken part in an investigation, no doubt also the first time she had entered a millinerâs in the neighborhood of the Opéra.
âAre you surprised? Do you think I look too much of a stay-at-home? Yes, I did go in. I was afraid it might be closed. I asked perfectly naturally if they hadnât got the same hat in white.
âThe lady said not, but they had it in pale blue, yellow, and jade green. She added that she had had it in white, but that she had sold it more than a month ago.â
âWhat did you do?â he asked, intrigued.
âI heaved a deep sigh and said to her:
ââThat must have been the one I saw a friend of mine wearing.â
âI could see myself in the glass, because there are mirrors all round the shop, and my face was scarlet.
ââDo you know Countess Panetti?â she asked, in a tone of surprise that wasnât very flattering.
ââIâve met her. Iâd very much like to see her again, because I have some information for her that she asked me to get and Iâve mislaid her address.â
ââI suppose sheâs still at . . .â
âShe was on the point of stopping. She wasnât completely sure of me. But she couldnât very well not finish her sentence.
ââI suppose sheâs still at Claridgeâs.ââ
Madame Maigret was looking at him triumphantly and teasingly at the same time, with an anxious trembling of her lips in spite of everything. He kept up the game to the end, muttered:
âI hope you didnât go interrogating the hall porter at Claridgeâs.â
âI came straight back. Are you cross?â
âNo.â
âIâve caused you enough trouble with this business so the least I can do is try to help you. Now come and eat, since I hope youâre going to take time for a bite before you go over there.â
This dinner reminded him of their first meals together, when she was discovering Paris and was delighted by all the little ready-to-eat dishes sold in the Italian shops. It was more like a picnic than a dinner.
âDo you think the informationâs reliable?â
âSo long as you didnât get the wrong hat.â
âIâm absolutely sure about that. As far as the shoes go, Iâm not so confident.â
âWhatâs this about shoes now?â
âWhen youâre sitting on a bench, in a square, your eyes naturally fall on the shoes of the person next to you. Once when I looked at them closely I could see that she was embarrassed and was trying to stick her feet under the bench.â
âWhy?â
âIâll explain, Maigret. Donât make that face! Itâs not your fault if you donât know anything about feminine matters. Suppose someone accustomed to first-class couturiers wants to look like a little housewife and be inconspicuous? She buys a ready-made suit, which is easy. She may also buy a hat that isnât in the luxury class, although Iâm not quite so sure
âBut it wasnât a hat from the Galeries or the Printemps either.
âSomewhere between the two. A hat from a millinerâs definitely, and a milliner with good taste.
âThatâs why I did all the little shops, especially around the place dâAnvers, or not too far away at all events.
âI saw at least a hundred white hats, and yet it was a pearl gray one that finally stopped me, in the rue Caumartin, at Hélène et Rosine.
âIt was exactly the same hat in another shade, and Iâm sure Iâm not mistaken. I told you that the one belonging to the lady with the little boy had a tiny veil, three or four fingers wide, that came down just over the eyes.
âThe gray hat had the same veil.â
âDid you go in?â
Maigret had to make an effort not to smile, for it was the first time that the shy Madame Maigret had taken part in an investigation, no doubt also the first time she had entered a millinerâs in the neighborhood of the Opéra.
âAre you surprised? Do you think I look too much of a stay-at-home? Yes, I did go in. I was afraid it might be closed. I asked perfectly naturally if they hadnât got the same hat in white.
âThe lady said not, but they had it in pale blue, yellow, and jade green. She added that she had had it in white, but that she had sold it more than a month ago.â
âWhat did you do?â he asked, intrigued.
âI heaved a deep sigh and said to her:
ââThat must have been the one I saw a friend of mine wearing.â
âI could see myself in the glass, because there are mirrors all round the shop, and my face was scarlet.
ââDo you know Countess Panetti?â she asked, in a tone of surprise that wasnât very flattering.
ââIâve met her. Iâd very much like to see her again, because I have some information for her that she asked me to get and Iâve mislaid her address.â
ââI suppose sheâs still at . . .â
âShe was on the point of stopping. She wasnât completely sure of me. But she couldnât very well not finish her sentence.
ââI suppose sheâs still at Claridgeâs.ââ
Madame Maigret was looking at him triumphantly and teasingly at the same time, with an anxious trembling of her lips in spite of everything. He kept up the game to the end, muttered:
âI hope you didnât go interrogating the hall porter at Claridgeâs.â
âI came straight back. Are you cross?â
âNo.â
âIâve caused you enough trouble with this business so the least I can do is try to help you. Now come and eat, since I hope youâre going to take time for a bite before you go over there.â
This dinner reminded him of their first meals together, when she was discovering Paris and was delighted by all the little ready-to-eat dishes sold in the Italian shops. It was more like a picnic than a dinner.
âDo you think the informationâs reliable?â
âSo long as you didnât get the wrong hat.â
âIâm absolutely sure about that. As far as the shoes go, Iâm not so confident.â
âWhatâs this about shoes now?â
âWhen youâre sitting on a bench, in a square, your eyes naturally fall on the shoes of the person next to you. Once when I looked at them closely I could see that she was embarrassed and was trying to stick her feet under the bench.â
âWhy?â
âIâll explain, Maigret. Donât make that face! Itâs not your fault if you donât know anything about feminine matters. Suppose someone accustomed to first-class couturiers wants to look like a little housewife and be inconspicuous? She buys a ready-made suit, which is easy. She may also buy a hat that isnât in the luxury class, although Iâm not quite so sure
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