The Golden Triangle · Chapter
I: Coralie explained
On the evening of April 3, 1915, crippled soldiers gather in a square near the Musée Galliéra.
What happens
On the evening of April 3, 1915, crippled soldiers gather in a square near the Musée Galliéra. Captain Patrice Belval, disguised as an officer with a wooden leg, observes a nurse, Coralie, leaving a hospital. She is followed by a motor car and two men who attempt to kidnap her. Belval and his fellow soldiers intervene, rescuing Coralie. The Senegalese soldier Ya-Bon captures one of the assailants, but the man is later found strangled by his accomplices. Coralie, shaken, begs not to be involved with the police, and Belval agrees to handle the situation discreetly.
Themes in this chapter
War and Its Aftermath
The chapter opens with crippled soldiers gathering in a square, highlighting the physical and psychological scars of war.
Deception and Hidden Identities
Captain Belval disguises himself as a wounded officer, and the kidnapping attempt shrouds Coralie's past in mystery.
Characters to notice
- Patrice Belval
Captain Belval orchestrates the rescue of Coralie, leading the crippled soldiers and directing Ya-Bon.
- Coralie
The nurse, called 'Little Mother Coralie' by the soldiers, is the target of a kidnapping attempt and is deeply distressed afterward.
- Ya-Bon
A Senegalese soldier with one arm, he captures one of the assailants but accidentally strangles him with his grip.
- Mustapha Rovalaïof
The captured assailant, later found strangled by his accomplices with a red-silk string.
Key passages
“It was close upon half-past six and the evening shadows were growing denser when two soldiers reached the little space, planted with trees, opposite the Musée Galliéra, where the Rue de Chaillot and the Rue Pierre-Charron meet.”
Just after 6:30 PM, as darkness fell, two soldiers arrived at a small tree-lined square near the Musée Galliéra at the intersection of Rue de Chaillot and Rue Pierre-Charron.
Sets the scene and time for the gathering of crippled soldiers.
“Little Mother Coralie was weeping over her children. Then we clenched our teeth still firmer.”
Coralie's tears for her patients made the soldiers endure their pain more stoically.
Highlights the emotional bond between Coralie and the wounded soldiers.
“Ya-Bon loosened his fingers. The man fell on the flags in the hall. 'That's what I feared,' muttered the officer. 'Ya-Bon has only his right hand; but, when that hand holds anyone by the throat, it's a miracle if it doesn't strangle him.'”
When Ya-Bon released his grip, the captive collapsed. The captain noted that Ya-Bon's powerful right hand often accidentally kills when used to restrain someone.
Explains the accidental death of the captured assailant due to Ya-Bon's strength.