Bruno 02 - The Dark Vineyard by Martin Walker Page B

fuss about GMO crops. Unless there is an arrest pretty soon, you’re going to get a lot of unfavorable publicity, and nobody needs that. We are not going to take any risks with ten million euros. I hope that’s clear.”

11
    The request from the gendarmerie was courteous, but Bruno knew it was an order just the same. The presence of the chief of police of Saint-Denis was requested at his earliest convenience at the gendarmerie by a senior officer from the Ministry of the Interior. As Bruno crossed the square, where the usual game of
boules
was under way, he saw a large and official-looking black Renault parked opposite the gendarmerie, a driver waiting at the wheel. Inside the building, he was shown to Captain Duroc’s austere office with its view over the village cemetery and the standard framed photograph of the president of France beside the door. A middle-aged man in civilian clothes but with a distinctly military bearing occupied the chair behind Duroc’s desk.
    “Brigadier Lannes, may I present the municipal policeman Courrèges,” said Duroc coldly. “The brigadier has been sent down from Paris, from the Ministry of the Interior.”
    As Bruno saluted, he felt himself being studied by a penetrating pair of dark eyes. He recalled that J-J had warned him this might happen.
    “You’re the one with the local knowledge and the Croix de Guerre,” said the brigadier, standing to shake his hand. “Peoplehave been telling me about you. Well, you’d better tell me where we are. It’s been nearly a week since the fire.”
    “We don’t have many new leads, except that forensics was able to determine that the gasoline was Total regular,” said Duroc. “There was nothing from the fingerprints on that phone booth in Coux. The culprit must have been wearing gloves, or used a pencil or something like it to press the buttons.”
    “It’s a phone that takes cards,” Bruno intervened, thinking he’d keep the postman’s evidence to himself for the moment. “I know that Commissaire Jalipeau from the Police Nationale was checking with France Télécom to establish where the card was bought.”
    The brigadier glanced reproachfully at Duroc, as if this had been left out of his briefing. Then he reached into his briefcase, pulled out a printout from a Web site and said: “There’s been a development.”
    “Aquitaine Vert
is an
écolo
newsletter published in Bordeaux by some militants in the Green Party,” he went on. “Jalipeau is interviewing them now in Bordeaux, because their new issue, which was e-mailed to their members last night, is almost entirely devoted to your research station and the GMO tests. They have a lot of accurate details, and apparently they have copies of test results that seem to have been taken from the barn that was burned. They also have a number of comments from one Alphonse Vannes, a council member here in Saint-Denis for the Greens. He says that no permit for the crops in question was ever issued by the
mairie
or by the
conseil général.”
    “That’s true,” said Bruno. “The mayor is not happy about it.”
    “Well, that’s not my concern. I’ve been brought in because this was a discreet government-backed research project. It nowlooks likely to become a national scandal, and all the more embarrassing if we can’t find who was responsible for the fire.”
    “Excuse me,” said Bruno. “I just want to be sure I understand. You are a brigadier of gendarmes, assigned to help J-J—I mean Commissaire Jalipeau—of the Police Nationale?”
    “Brigadier is my rank, and I report to the minister of defense, but I’m attached to the staff of the
renseignements généraux
. I’ve been given the authority to take over this investigation by the minister of the interior. J-J will work under my orders, and I’m sure you two gentlemen will give me your full cooperation.”
    “Yes, sir. Completely,” said Duroc.
    “I’ll be happy to cooperate all I can, but you understand that I’ll