Bérenger resolves to pursue the Killer

Bérenger resolves to pursue the Killer after Dany’s death is reported as another suspected murder. The moment breaks through the room’s practiced resignation: while the Architect recommends routine procedure, Bérenger insists that the killings must stop and rushes out to act.

The Report and Its Routine Handling

The decision follows a call made by the Architect, who describes Dany as a young woman who had worked with them. He reports that no one was caught in the act and that there are only the same suspicions as before. The case is thus presented as another in a recurring series, but its familiarity does not make it bearable to Bérenger.

The Architect lays the telephone on the table and tells the Owner to make the usual report. His response places the killing within an established administrative routine: the investigation is to take its course, even when the available information offers no immediate resolution. Bérenger hears the report not as a reason to wait but as evidence that the killings are continuing unchecked.

Bérenger’s Break with Passivity

Bérenger suddenly rises and declares, “We can't, we mustn't let things go on like this ! It's got to stop ! It's got to stop !” The repeated demand marks a change from receiving news to attempting intervention. His words do not describe a completed investigation or a confrontation with the Killer; they register a decision to act where the others remain seated.

The Architect counters with an appeal to mortality and procedure: “Control yourself. We've all got to die. Let the investigation take its usual course!” His reply collapses Dany’s particular murder into the general fact of death, while Bérenger insists on the specific preventable violence and on the need to stop it. Their disagreement is therefore not simply about composure: it is a conflict between accepting the investigation’s routine pace and treating the continuing murders as an urgent demand for action.

Exit and Immediate Aftermath

Bérenger runs out, slamming the imaginary shop-door with a bang that is nevertheless heard. As he exits to the right, he cries, “It can't go on! We must do something! We must, we must, we must!” The theatrical detail makes his departure forceful even though the door is imaginary: the sound gives material impact to a resolve that has not yet become a narrated pursuit or encounter.

The others do not follow. The Owner remarks that Bérenger might have said goodbye; the Architect watches him leave, finishes his wine, and tells the Owner to drink Bérenger’s full glass and eat the sandwich as well. This small, practical disposal of what he leaves behind sharply contrasts with Bérenger’s insistence that the situation cannot continue. The scene ends on his departure, establishing his determination without showing what action he takes next.