Burke nodded.
“Well, I’ll be there in, say, an hour and a half.”
The sergeant hesitated. “I might as well tell you, sir, that I’ve already gone a good deal beyond my official limits in the matter, but I’m ready to go further, which means risking my job, if you can see any light. I’ll wait for you at the station.”
He moved off with no spring in his walk, swung a thick leg over his wheel, and disappeared.
Derrick went back to Jean and by the tenseness of her face knew at once that she had heard everything. They looked at each other for a moment without speaking.
“Well,” he said slowly, “isn’t it extraordinary?”
“No,” she answered under her breath, “not so extraordinary.”
“Why?”
“It’s all part of the rest of it. Do you remember what I said about some power operating behind?”
“Yes.”