Cécile is Dead by Georges Simenon

Gérard?
     He’s always been like this; just take no notice. Do you need money, Gérard? Give
     Hélène my love, and tell her I’ll come and see her tomorrow or the day after
     tomorrow. The store said I could have three days off.’
    â€˜So this is what we’ve come
     to,’ concluded Gérard. ‘Her friend is a married man! If my poor mother knew
     …’
    â€˜Tell me, why did Cécile give you that
     key?’
    â€˜If you really want to know,
     I’ll tell you. Too bad for you! She gave it to me because the police don’t
     do their job properly! Because when poor people turn to the police they don’t even
     get a hearing! Cécile went to see you several times – I’m sure you won’t
     dare to deny it. She told you she was frightened, she told you there were things that
     she didn’t understand going on in the apartment. And what did you do? You laughed
     at her. You twice sent a useless junior officer who did nothing but walk past the
     building. And when Cécile went back to your office because she was sure there had been
     someone in this sitting room during the night, she felt that everyone in the Police
     Judiciaire was laughing at her … to the point where a succession of inspectors walked
     past the waiting room just to get a closer look at her.’
    Maigret had lowered his head.
    â€˜That’s when she ordered the
     spare key. She asked me …’
    â€˜Excuse me, wait a minute. Where were
     you in the habit of meeting your sister?’
    â€˜In the street! When I needed to see
     her …’
    â€˜To ask her for money?’
    â€˜Yes, exactly,
     to ask her for money! Anyone would think you were pleased to have worked that out! She
     really did manage to give me a few francs, never very much, that she’d scraped
     together out of the housekeeping money. I used to wait for her on the corner of the road
     at the time when she went shopping. Is that what you wanted to know? There you are,
     then! It’s about ten days ago that she gave me the key. She asked me to come to
     the apartment now and then by night and try to find out what was going on.’
    â€˜And did you?’
    â€˜I hadn’t done it yet, because
     of my wife. The doctor is afraid the baby may be premature. I promised Cécile to come
     after …’
    â€˜How would you have got through the
     front door of the building?’
    â€˜Cécile had thought of everything. The
     concierge comes upstairs with the post at seven every evening. She never fails to spend
     a few minutes with the Deséglise family – they rent the apartment on the second floor on
     the left. So I had only to come in at that moment.’
    â€˜And what about your aunt?’
    â€˜If she saw me, that would be just too
     bad! I know that whatever I say, you’ll turn it against me! It’s only too
     easy. Well, my aunt’s legs gave her trouble, and at about that time every evening
     she got Cécile to give them a hot air massage, using the kind of electric dryer you find
     in hairdressers’ salons. They make quite a lot of noise. All I’d have had to
     do was let myself into the apartment with my key and hide under Cécile’s bed. Are
     you happy? Now I must admit that I’m quite hungry and my wife will be
expecting me back. You frightened her with
     that visit of yours, and if I don’t get back soon she’ll be thinking … So
     either you arrest me, or I’ll ask for your permission to go home. As for the
     inheritance, which is ours by right, we’ll see whether …’
    Here he turned his head aside, but not
     quickly enough to keep Maigret from seeing the tears of fury coming to his eyes.
    â€˜You can go,’ said the
     inspector.
    â€˜Really?’ inquired the young man
     sarcastically. ‘You’re not arresting me yet? That’s too kind of you. I
     don’t know how to thank