'Why, no, monsieur, no one called.'
The doctor here intervened:
'The pain in the leg, Monsieur Dollon complained of, need not cause any anxiety. It is a very slight superficial wound. A slight swelling above the broken skin possibly indicates an intra-muscular puncture, which might have been made by someone unaccustomed to such operations, for it is a clumsy performance. It is a queer business!...'
Monsieur Agram, who had been steadily observing Jacques Dollon, persisted:
'Is there not a gap, monsieur, in your recollections of what occurred?... Were you quite alone yesterday evening? Were you not expecting anyone?... Are you certain that you did not have a visitor? Did not someone pay you a visit—someone you had asked to come and see you?'
Jacques Dollon opened his eyes—eyes of stupefaction—and stared at the superintendent:
'No, monsieur.'
'It is that——' went on Monsieur Agram. Then stopping short, and drawing the doctor aside, he asked:
'Do you consider him in a fit state to bear a severe moral shock?... A confrontation?'
The doctor glanced at his patient: