"What?" " I've got the Fool." " Jesus!" "The Fool and the One." "That's two trumps." " The Fool is a wild card." "Not a trump." " You can't trump with the Fool." " What does that mean?" " That you've lost again." "Give them here." "The new girl's really mellowed." "Hasn't she?" "If I were her." "I'd be as sweet as anything." "Why." "Do you fancy the mistress's brother?" " Don't you?" " Er." "No." "You as well?" "Just wait and see what state the kid's in when she comes out." "I don't know who you are." "Where you're from or why you're here." "But I know my sister." "I know this house." "And I know Blondin." "Last night you challenged them all." "And they can't help but rise to a challenge like that." "Let them win." "Rose." "Listen." "You're going to lose your virginity tonight." "And believe me." "You'll feel the effects of the sweaty body of a rutting stranger." "Yes." "You'll suffer." "In your flesh." "Right down to your entrails." " No." "I'm fine." " We'll sub you." " I'm too skint." " All the more reason to play for cash." "Does your man sponge off you?" "No." "But it's my night off." "I thought we could go to a brasserie." "Nothing turns the boss on more than increasing our debts." "I could always sell this." "But..." "Its value is sentimental." "She sold the virgin's cunt for a fortune." "Keep your rock." "Sweetheart." "I'm meeting her this afternoon to ask for an advance." "Where are you going?" "I'll be right back." "I need to keep the room." "Of course." "Are you sure you don't need anything else?" "Go and join the girls." "Can I sleep with you?" "Don't you like your princess's room any more?" "The mistress is in it." "So much for being the star." "How many did you wring out tonight?" "Lots." " What are you doing?" " Even the writing paper here is tarty." "Véra." "Are you cross with me about the room?" "I don't care if I sleep here or next-door." "Where I want to be is in my mansion in Plaine-de-Monceaux." "Still think it was the boss who killed your Baron?" "Rose." "You have no choice but to experience this ordeal." "But you do have a choice about how you experience it." "You are not just hair." "Eyes." "A mouth." "Skin." "Thighs and a cunt." "You're are also a mind." "And no one can violate that." "No one." "Rose." "You must give up your body without ever letting go of what's in here." "Give up your body to these men who are prepared to pay for it." "But don't let them take anything else." "That way you will own them." "Remain free." "Pierre!" "Come on." "Time to get up." "Girls." "Come on." "Get up." "Wakey-wakey!" "Rise and shine!" "Come on." "You can stay in bed." "You've been grafting." " But the rest of you." "Get up." " Leave us alone." " Come on." "Girls." "Get up." "Please." " Go away." "The mistress is bringing us a colleague of Dr Perrier." "An Italian." "So polish your fannies and get downstairs on the double." " I'm on strike." " The boss can go to hell." "The boss's brother is waiting for us in the drawing room." "He's got presents for everyone." "What?" "Yes." "But not for the strikers." "This should ensure the strike ends with a flourish." "Don't you think you've gone overboard?" "I know what I owe and to whom I owe it." "Without you and the girls." "These girls." "I'd be nothing." "Will you come with me to my office?" "What's the commotion?" "And who's that guy?" "Hello." "Edgar." "The matron wants me to give the place a lick of paint to hide the dilapidation." "Let's hear it for the artist!" "You could be the next Rubens." "Why did you leave like that the other night?" "It was an emergency." " I didn't think you'd stay." " Well." "I did." "I'm still paying for the champagne." "You know." "But it's a pleasure." "At least I've got a job." "Right?" ""Slr, I am writing to you In confidence" ""to Inform you of an important detail that has just come back to me." ""The night he died, Baron du Plessis had a Mauboussin necklace on him" ""which he had decided to give me." ""I enclose a drawing of the necklace In question." ""Despite the anguish of mourning, I sincerely hope" ""this Information will be of use to you."" "2.500 hectares." "70.000 heads of cattle. 600 employees." "A fertiliser processing plant." "A lake." "A river." "A piece of desert." "I sold everything to come back." "You only ever liked building roads and houses." "I never saw you as a farmer." "On the Cape." "The land has retained its nobility." "Why did you come back." "Then?" "For you." "I want my sons to grow up here." "One of them might be a politician." "Perhaps even a minister." "I like your suit." "I am sure your Faubourg Saint-Honoré apartment is sumptuous." "Your wife elegant and that your future sons will be distinguished." "But it will take more than a generation to get rid of the lingering stench of spunk and blood." "You are mistaken." "Everything can be bought in France." "Like elsewhere." "Even innocence." "A word of advice:" "Double-check the merchandise." "Hortense." "I want to share my good fortune with you." "Really?" "Really." "When do we sign the bill of sale?" "For this establishment?" "France has been through a revolution." "The Paradis suffered under the siege." "You'd only end up in more debt." " What you need is investment." " That's kind of you." "But the answer's no." "Do you remember what you said to me before I left last time?" ""I will never forgive you."" ""Never"." "I know what that word means to you." "And that word scares me." "There is something you said that I will never forget." ""Friends can be bought and enemies destroyed."" "I'd have liked to have made you my friend." "Pierre." "I'm not your friend." "I'm your brother." "Where can I go?" "Matron left that for you." "It will cost you 15 francs." "Surely you didn't think supplies were free?" "Are you going to run away again like a cry-baby?" "How much does it cost to get you to shut your gob?" "A 15th-century vase." "Ming dynasty." "Yongle period." "Come on." "I'll show you." "Come and see." "It was a gift from the Empress to the Duke of Provence." "Look." "It depicts the four seasons through different seasonal flowers." "Oh." "Yes." "It must have cost an arm and a leg." "Yes." "A fortune." "Ah." "Constance." "Darling!" "Hello." "I'll be right back." "Thank you." "Mademoiselle." "That will be all for today." "I won't hear another word on the matter." "Go upstairs!" "As for you." "Do you know how long we were waiting at the door?" "What's got into you?" "Oh." "Dr Perrier." "Madame Fourchon." "Allow me to introduce Professor Lombardi." "The great expert." " Hello." "Madame." " Go on." "Delighted to meet you." "I hope your girls will be kind enough to submit to certain observations." "They are expecting you." "Professor." "Come in." " What's this?" " For the home visit with Angèle." " Dutilleux claims he didn't touch her." " So?" "They normally pay upfront." "What was I supposed to do?" "Leave?" "What do you think?" "What about his wife?" "Angèle says they had a bit of a roll-around." "The stingy bastard." "Find me two men to go and claim my dues." " Brise-Caboche?" " No." "He's otherwise engaged." "Anyone new will want to be paid immediately." "Montserrat won't deliver the champagne unless he's paid on the spot." " Last winter's sparkling wine was fine." " And then there's the boiler." "What will we do if it packs in?" "We can't expect these poor gentlemen to climax when it's minus ten degrees." "Assuming they come back." "That is." " After what happened with Blondin." " I said I'd take care of Blondin!" "The Chabanais has bought a Chinese girl." "And twins from the Moselle are due at the Colbert." "I came up with the twin fantasy ten years ago." "Men dream of a double fuck." "Let's see if they actually turn up." "Scrounge off your brother until we get our heads above water." "No way." "Why not?" "He's loaded and he loves you." "Very well." " Very well what?" " Half the house is yours." "What?" "Give me time to discuss the price and terms with Monsieur Bertillac." "One last thing." "I want to see Camélia here tonight." "But Hortense..." " This house has a reputation..." " For being avant-garde." "Is being tortured by perverts avant-garde?" "I can no longer afford." "We can no longer afford." "Not to satisfy our most valued clients." "Why do you have to spoil everything?" "Ladies." "It is a great honour to be able to present one's findings to the very objects." "Or rather subjects." "Of one's research." "In my career I have examined about 2.000 prostitutes across Europe." "Tirelessly seeking to shed light." "Through scientific evidence." "On the misfortunes and vices of humanity." "For example." "It is now incontestable that the cranial dimensions of Broca's area are diametrically reduced in prostitutes by several millimetres compared to normal women." "Whereas the dimensions of the face are greater." "Especially the distance between the cheekbones." "Than those of respectable women." "I could have told you we were different." "You are indeed all different." "And that difference is anatomical." "It is not linked to your upbringing." "Living conditions." "Diet or..." "The difference was present at birth." "Like the colour of your eyes." "Me and my sister have roughly the same frame." "And she's a nun." "Really?" "I see." "And how does your hair compare with hers?" "She is less dark." "But that's all." "Science is in the detail." "Madame." "I am quite sure that if I had the chance to examine your sister..." "Does he want a crucifix shoved in his face or what?" "One day." "We hope." "Society will be able to organise itself scientifically according to a clear distinction in race." "In class and in behaviour." "It's just as my mother always said." " I'm a born prostitute." " What?" "Your mother said that?" "I was a laundress when I was young and I was useless at it." "We can now proceed with our regular consultations." "Fine." "Come on." " This is your surname." " She's my sister-in-law." "Is Faubourg Saint-Honoré all you've got?" "They've just moved so they're bound to be a talking point." " Can I see Angèle now?" " No." "She's with the girls." "Being examined by Dr Perrier." "What about the Baron?" "What are the coppers saying?" "I'm sorry?" "I'll come back once I've been to Saint-Honoré." " Where's my man?" " He's got work to do." " Is he coming back to the area?" " If he has time." "You wanted to talk to me." "Yes." "I need some toiletries and fruit jellies." " On credit?" " Yes." " I've seen the figures." "No way." " But..." "You girls stick together." "Don't you?" "You help one another." "You proved as much with your pathetic little strike." "Why don't you ask them?" " Is it painful?" " No." "Not at all." "This ulcerated area with a hard centre... it's characteristic..." "It doesn't even itch." "You know." "That's normal." "It's tiny." "I'm sure it will have disappeared in a couple of days." "We'll know more in a few hours." "Will I be able to work?" "Meet me in my office." "I need to talk to you." "Professor." "It's really good of you to show an interest in us." "How do you cope with all those figures and complicated words?" " It's a question of habit." "You know." " That's just it." "I don't." "I don't know if I've quite understood." "You say you tell what sort of girl I am by looking at me?" "It's not enough just to look." "It is a science." "After all." "Yes." "But..." "As for whether a girl is skilled at her job or clumsy." "Can you tell that?" "No." "I can't." "No." "There's still only way to find that out." "You have to try the girl out." "I want to feel your pussy against mine." "Get off!" "Get out." "Leave!" "Véra." "We need to eat." "I can't survive the night on bubbly." "Come on." "It's a scientific experiment." " Untie me." "Please." " Make up your mind." "Professor." "You couldn't get enough of it earlier." "That's enough." "That's enough!" "According to the academy of scientific knowledge." "The inferior diameter together with the modest length are characteristic of pretentious." "Frustrated individuals." "Who like to hide their desires behind strange words that only they understand." "Later maybe." "Untie me." "Untie me!" "You need to vacate the room by eight o'clock." " Quick." "Quick." "Quick!" " Help!" "Hello." "How are you feeling?" "Better than this morning." "And yet you seemed so cheerful." "But tonight I know you a little better and I'm glad about that." "I have just received a charming letter from your sister." "Hortense?" "Don't tell me you're hiding another one from me." "Why have you never mentioned her?" "That's quite a job she's got." "Makes a change from the dreary wives you seem to love introducing me to." "I obviously couldn't invite her round in the evenings." "But she could come one morning." "Not too early." "Or for afternoon tea." "What are you playing at?" " Pierre..." " I was only trying to protect you." "If you knew how my father became an ambassador." "You'd be less ashamed of having a sister who ran a Paris theatre company." "Forgive me." "I..." "I lost my head." "So it would seem." "So my sister wrote you a letter?" "Do you think she might be free to come and have tea with me?" " It would be best if I asked her myself." " No." "It is I she wrote to." "So I should ask her." "Might I at least be with you on the day?" "Do you know what I'd really like?" "I'd like you to take me to see one of her plays." "I took the guy In my hands." "He was boiling hot." "He took me and turned me over." "I took him and turned him over." "Then he suddenly collapsed." "Eyes to the ceiling." "Stiff as a board." "It was my first day at the Paradis!" "Hortense was on my back." "Ready to make mincemeat of me." "I poured a jug of water over him." "Nothing." "Gave him two slaps." "Nothing." "The worst thing was." "He still had a hard-on like a donkey." "And?" " I massaged him back from the dead." " How?" "I couldn't understand why he was still hard like that." "So I grabbed hold of him and..." "No!" "Oh." "Yes." "The pervert!" "Ladies." "These last few days have been long and difficult." "But security has been restored in the establishment and Louise is feeling better." "What I expect from you is charm." "Endurance and." "Dare I say it." "Intelligence." "A client too easily satisfied is a client with a foot out of the door." " Rose?" " Yes." "Madam?" "Tomorrow Marguerite will sell you to a knocking shop at Saint-Marcel." "Unless you show yourself to be worthy of your position tonight." "Camélia." "Good evening." "Madam." "I hope you realise how lucky you are to have been taken back on." "Yes." "Madame." "You understand it's for a trial period?" "I don't take drugs any more." "Madame." "Glad to hear it." " What's got into you?" " What?" "Their friend still smells of burning and you start bullying them." " They've just been on strike." " Precisely." "Did you refuse to give Angèle an advance because of the strike?" "I've seen the figures." "She's been pushing her luck." "I disagree." "We're going to need to reach an agreement." "Hortense." "If we're to enter into a partnership." "Have you changed your mind?" "It's not up to me." "Le Paradis isn't mine." "You idiot." "It belongs to my brother." " Why did you say yes." "Then?" " Oh." "I don't know." "You were getting on my nerves." "You refused to understand." "I don't believe this." "It's happening again." "What's happening again?" "Your brother..." "After his departure." "You went completely..." "Completely mad?" "Yes." "I don't want to live through that again." "Know what you should do?" "Shut your eyes and block your ears." "All you have to do is shout at the girls when I ask you to!" "Any less than ten francs and you take it back." "It's magnificent." "That's why you need to find a good home for it." "Roger has worked as a fence at Batignolles for 20 years." " Don't give it to him for less than 50." " I promise." "This is Batignolles." "Angèle." "Your man will never hang about there." "You've got nothing to worry about." "Monsieur Blondin." "Will you permit me to be frank with you?" "You're a businessman." "Aren't you?" "What drives a business if not its reputation?" "I am sure you understand how much that crazy girl has damaged mine." "And I'm sure you understand that I want my money back." "That's just it." "I don't." "You." "Too." "Have a reputation." "That of an elegant." "Refined man." "Of course." "But." "Above all." "That of a man who is strong and determined." "You can't let this debacle get the better of you." " Are you saying I'm responsible?" " No." "Of course not." "On the contrary." "I am the one who is in the wrong." "I made a regrettable error of judgment concerning the young lady." " I'm glad to hear you say so." " But reputations aren't built on truth." "What?" "Are people talking?" "Is that it?" "Who?" "Your gentleman's honour is at stake." "And so are your shops." "You'd be prepared to kill to keep my money." "Wouldn't you?" "I've told you." "The reputation of my establishment is at stake here." "As is yours." "How far would you go to keep this money?" " I have run this brothel for 11 years." " I know that." "In the 1860s." "What a decade that was." "Eh?" "In those days." "I used to go to the Chabanais." "Pity..." "I could have got to know you properly." "I gather you were quite passionate." "Oh." "I've aged so much." "Some flames never extinguish." "And we are talking about 6.500 francs." "What do you want." "Monsieur Blondin?" "As you can see." "There is only one person in this room who can boast of having honour and a reputation." "Isn't there?" "I could make you massage my cock until a fountain of spunk spurts out." "But I'm going to save my strength for your filthy little virgin." "Son of a bitch." "Here." "Dry your tears." "This will make you feel better." "Carry on." "I can't feel anything." "Virtually nothing." "You're made of strong stuff." "More." "More!" ""My love, my sweet." ""Too many days, hours and seconds have passed" ""since I was last with you." ""I have not forgotten you." "I remember everything about you." ""Your warmth and your scent." ""Everything." ""I am now working as a seamstress." ""The work Is hard but the atmosphere Is pleasant." ""My colleagues are spirited women," ""devoted to their husbands and children." ""The boss Is a very humane woman" ""who watches over me with great affection." ""I have found a small dwelling that doesn't cost much." ""But I'd rather you replied by poste restante" ""to the post office at Châtelet." ""Hearing from you would make me Insanely happy." ""Auguste, my love, my sweet." ""I won't say, "Don't forget me, "" ""for I cannot conceive of disappearing from your heart." ""I love you." ""And I am yours for all eternity.""