the boots were polished, the rifles were unstacked and companies lined up once more. An official in a black-edged jacket, stiff collar, striped trousers and bowler hat appeared on the platform. He scrutinised the two rows of chairs, looking for the one with his name on. He looked like a clown or a tiny Jonah, about to be swallowed by the curtains’ open mouth. Having found his seat, he settled himself, mopped his brow, and suddenly saw that more than a thousand spectators had him in their sights. Swiftly replacing his bowler, he disappeared as if swallowed by a trapdoor, followed by a wave of laughter.
Moments later, the prefect made his entrance. Instructions rang around the square and battalion commanders ordered their men to shoulder arms.
Jean and Palfy found themselves in the front row, among the ex-servicemen, who wore their berets tugged down over their ears and carried children on their shoulders. Jean could have named nearly every officer and NCO now standing to attention in the square, but the veterans of the regiment – the men who had still been fighting three weeks earlier – had been redistributed among the re-formed companies, which had then been joined by the last contingent to arrive. He and Palfy recognised Hoffberger, fat as ever, and the huge Ascary, little Vibert, still furious-looking, the seminarian Picallon, their friend the boxer Léonard, and Negger, the pacifist primary-school teacher – all of them easily distinguishable from the young recruits drummed up after the armistice by their visibly casual way of standing to attention.
‘I can hear Ascary swearing, “God oh God oh God in heaven”,’ Palfy said.
‘And Hoffberger going “hmmph”.’
‘Good to see they’re both still with us.’
‘To tell you the truth,’ Jean said, ‘I’d prefer to see that nice blonde, the one we saw just now with the sun behind her.’
‘Is that all you can think about?’
A general was inspecting the regiment. When the inspection was finished, it was time to award the decorations. Colonel Vavin added a bar to his Croix de Guerre, which already reached his belt. Three captains and four lieutenants received the official embrace. Next it was the NCOs’ turn. A dozen sergeants fell out.
‘You see, we won the war. No question about it,’ Palfy said.
Next to them, an ex-serviceman curiously sporting a faithful copy of a Hitler moustache hissed at them, ‘Shut up, you bloody layabouts!’
‘Forgive me, Monsieur,’ Palfy said contritely, ‘I was only joking.’
‘This is no time for jokes.’
Jean’s elbow connected with Palfy’s ribs. One of the sergeants, good-looking in a thuggish way, was taking his three paces forward to receive a Croix de Guerre.
‘It’s Tuberge! They’re giving Tuberge the Croix de Guerre! They’re out of their minds!’
‘Not that bastard who trousered my watch!’
There was movement and a murmuring around them. The ex-serviceman put up his fists.
‘Now you’re insulting our heroes!’
‘I make a hero like that every morning,’ Palfy said.
‘Shut up!’
‘Oh, belt up, you old fart.’
The ex-serviceman attempted to grab Palfy’s shirtfront. Shoving him back, Palfy broke free and, cupping his hands around his mouth, yelled, ‘Sergeant Tuberge! You’re a fairy! Coward! Bastard! Looter! Murderer! Shit! Thug!’
The general, about to pin on Tuberge’s medal, stopped dead, although he did not deign to turn towards the heckler. Nor did the colonel, who beckoned to an aide-de-camp. In the reverential silence that reigned across the square, Palfy’s shouts had been heard by everyone. Tuberge himself, fists clenched, appeared to be about to dive into the crowd towards his tormentor, who was now brandishing his fist, having just shoved the infuriated ex-serviceman to the ground.
The ex-serviceman was shouting, ‘Arrest them! Arrest them! They’re agitators.’
The aide-de-camp ran over to a police sergeant. In the ranks of his old battalion Jean could see Ascary doubled up with laughter, Hoffberger scarlet with amusement, and Negger, who had put his rifle on the ground to underline his pacifism. Despite the many hands trying to restrain him, Palfy was not finished.
‘Bloody coward! Bloody bugger! Bloody … navvy!’ he went on shouting.
‘Let’s get out of here,’ Jean begged him.
The police were running towards them. Ducking low, they shoved their way back through the crowd, which watched them dumbfounded. Breaking free, they found that they were face to face with a garde mobile,1 who tried to grab their arms. They tripped him and he fell.
‘This way!’ Palfy said.
They ran down one side of the square. No one tried to stop them, but several policemen in the square were still following them, running parallel to the crowd, which might have thinned out enough to let them through if it had not been distracted by a new development. Overcome by heat, weakened by dysentery, three soldiers who had been standing presenting arms for ten minutes crashed to the ground. They were followed by a fourth. A bugle call and a series of drum rolls covered the yells of the police and the growing noise of the crowd. Reaching the corner, Jean and Palfy found a narrow cobbled street that led up to a church. They had left the garde mobile a hundred metres behind them. Palfy swerved right. Jean was following suit when he suddenly saw, directly in front of him, the young woman with ash-blond hair. Their eyes met. The woman’s were amused. Jean was lost for words, feeling the same inexpressible emotion he had felt when she had innocently stood in front of the café terrace with the sun shining through the light lawn of her dress.
‘What’s your name? Tell me!’ he blurted out.
She stopped, and smiled.
‘Quick!’ he said.
‘Claude.’
Not hearing his friend behind him, Palfy spun round and shouted, ‘Jean!’
‘I’m here!’
The garde mobile was gaining on them. The young woman was still smiling. Jean, wrenching himself away, caught up with Palfy and together they ran up to the church then turned left into a small square where an area had been roped off for some roadworks. Palfy stepped over them, put his shoulder to the door of a small wooden hut till it gave, and pulled out two pickaxes and a pair of straw hats.
‘Take off your shirt!’ he said.
Seconds later they were breaking up the earth with their picks as the garde mobile and a dozen policemen arrived.
‘Oy! You lads! Did you see a couple of men scarpering like rabbits?’ the sergeant asked breathlessly.
‘That way!’ Jean pointed to a side street.
The sergeant mopped his brow and turned to his men.
‘They’ll be the death of us! Right, let’s go!’
