‘Well, put it like this. Your lady-wife knows both of the ladies violated in your neighbourhood, right? Well, do you think they might have mentioned anything to her about the assailant’s er, personal details, which they might not have cared to tell their husbands?’

‘I quite fail to follow you,’ I lied.

‘Oh yes you bloody do,’ he snarled. ‘I mean size of male member, whether circumcized, any little peculiarities; things like that.’

‘Oh, I see. Oh dear. Use your phone? Hullo, Johanna? Look …’

‘All right,’ she said after a while, ‘but “yech”.’

‘We don’t say “yech” in the United Kingdom,’ I said, ‘we say “faugh”.’

‘We only say that on the golf-course, but O.K. And I’ll try to do the other thing. It may take some time; I’ll have to have a Cosy Chat with the cow Sonia.’

‘Girl talk,’ I said whimsically.

‘Faugh!’ she said, pronouncing it perfectly.

‘This may take a few minutes,’ I said to the Commander, looking at him meaningfully. He knew what I meant, he hoisted a great 40-oz bottle of some nameless Scotch on to his desk and raised his eyebrows. I inclined a gracious head. He found two tooth-glasses; they looked a little unsanitary but Scotch whisky kills all known germs, as every housewife knows.

Johanna rang back about eight fluid ounces later and rattled off her news in a distant and faintly amused voice.

‘That all?’ I asked.

‘What do you want – blue movies?’

‘Good-bye,’ I said.

‘Good-bye,’ she said, ‘and Charlie, remember to brush your teeth tonight, huh?’

I hung up and collected my thoughts.

‘My wife has recollected things that Mrs Davenant said to her shortly after the assault,’ I told the Commander. ‘She has also spoken to Mrs Breakspear and to the doctor’s wife. The evidence appears, on the face of it, to be conflicting. Violet Davenant mid “he was huge, like a horse, he hurt me terribly”. Sonia Breakspear describes her assailant as “nothing to write to mother about” and the doctor’s wife says, “I don’t know – do you mean they come in different sizes?” She’s lying, of course; she was a nurse, you see, and all nurses who marry doctors instantly become virgins ex officio, it’s an understood thing.’

‘I have heard that,’ he said.

‘But Johanna thinks that if he had been something out of the ordinary in any way she would have said something.’

‘Yes.’

‘As to circumcision, Violet wouldn’t have known what one was talking about, Sonia says it wasn’t relevant, whatever that means, and the doctor’s wife says she thinks “yes”. Doesn’t help us much, does it?’

‘No, not really. Tells us more about the ladies than the rapist, if you follow me, sir.’

We gazed at each other.