Georges Simenon- "Maigret Mystified"
The cast of this "family melodrama" unfolds gradually, following Maigret being called to 61 Place des Vosges in a middle class area of Paris [Chapter One]. Here, beyond an iron gate, where the Concierge has a room, are 28 appartments within a 19th century building. The elegant 1st floor appartments have very high windows, whereas the 2nd floor appartments are much smaller, both in size, and in window size. Behind them, part of the complex, is the laboratories of Dr Rivière's Serums, owned by Monsieur Couchet. The body of this Couchet is lying across his open safe, which is empty. He has been shot at close range, having died immediately.
The Main Characters Of The Family Melodrama.
Monsieur Couchet:
A man whose has become wealthy, through his business. In an unsigned & not legal will, he divides his wealth between his "three women", as Maigret thinks of them: Madame Martin, his first wife, now remarried; Madame Germaine Couchet née Dormay, his second & current wife; Nine Moinard, his young mistress for the past six months. Under French Law at the time, he could not disinherit his son; but he may well have simply forgotten him.
Nine Moinard:
Nine is the most interesting by far, a warm creation by Simenon. Her character demands quotes!
Nine's first appearance, at the Laboratories [page 13; last paragraph of Chapter One.]:
'A taxi stopped. Not the Parquet yet. A young woman hurried across the courtyard, leaving a trail of scent behind her, and pushed open the door of the office.'
Nine the next day, in her room at the Hotel Pigalle, just woken by Maigret [page 28 & 29; early in Chapter Two.]:
'She was screwing up her eyes against the harsh daylight. Under such conditions she was not pretty, and she looked more like a little country girl than a coquette. She passed her hand over her face two or three times, and ended by sitting in bed propped against the pillow' ... 'Her eyes were ringed, and her nightgown disclosed thin shoulders, and a small rather flaccid bosom like an undergrown schoolgirl's.'
Nine leaving the Hotel Pigalle, accompanied by Maigret [page 39; towrds the end of Chapter Two.]:
'On the pavement, Maigret asked his companion:
"Where are you going?"
A vague, apathetic gesture, then:
"I'm going to the Moulin Bleu to see if they'll have me back. ..."
He watched her with affectionate interest.
"Were you very fond of Couchet?"
"I told you yesterday; he was a real good sort - and there aren't so many of them about I can tell you! When you think that some swine has ..."
Two tears welled up, and that was all.'
Nine talking with Maigret [page 95; end of Chapter Seven.]:
'They sat down at a small table in a near-by bar.
"Couchet's will has been found ... He leaves all of his fortune to three women ..." She was looking at him in astonishment, without suspecting the truth.
"His first wife for one, although she's remarried. ... Then his second wife. ... Then you. ..."
She kept her eyes fixed on Maigret, who saw them widen and then mist over.
And at last she hid her face in her hands and wept.'
Continued after Nine tells Maigret that Couchet had heart disease and could have died at any moment [page 97; near start of Chapter Eight]:
' "When you're rich, you'll be able to. ..."
She gave a tearful smile.
"You know I shan't ever be rich! I'm not that type. ..."
The strange thing was that Maigret had exactly the same feeling! Nine didn't the type that would ever be rich! He could not have said why.'
Madame Germaine Couchet née Dormay:
Couchet's 2nd wife. She is much younger than her husband, and from a wealthy bourgeois family. Her Uncle is a Colonel. But she is a rather vacuous woman, of style but little substance, whose husband rather avoided her.
Roger Couchet:
Couchet's son from his first marriage; a weak type on drugs and with no motivation. Nine tells Maigret that he had no time for his son, giving him money so he will go away.
Madame Martin:
Couchet's first wife, who lives at 61 Place des Vosges, is married to Monsieur Martin, an unimaginative Public Servant. She abandoned Couchet, because she thought he would never make money, preferring Martin, with the secure pension. But Couchet made his fortune, while Martin was overlooked for promotion.
Always mentally suspect, her anxiety & bitterness twists her mind further, to the point where she murders Couchet. This act excludes her from any inheritance. If she had have waited, Couchet would have died soon and either she or her son, or both would have gained a substantial inheritance.
Maigret's unravelling of what happened is beautifully set out in Chapter Eleven.
Postscript
It is fascinating the way that Simenon makes Nine, the mistress and former dancer, easily the most ethical character involved in this sordid family melodrama. Monsieur Couchet, of humble origins, is also something of a hero. The others, the Bourgeois and Petit-Bourgeois are all weak, corrupt or both!
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