第17章

"Imean，becauseIunderstandbetterhowonecantortureone’sselfoverunrealities。"

AsDarrowlistened，thetensionofhisnervesbegantorelax。Hergaze，sograveandyetsosweet，waslikeadeeppoolintowhichhecouldplungeandhidehimselffromthehardglareofhismisery。Asthisecstaticsenseenvelopedhimhefounditmoreandmoredifficulttofollowherwordsandtoframeananswer；butwhatdidanythingmatter，exceptthathervoiceshouldgoon，andthesyllablesfalllikesofttouchesonhistorturedbrain？

"Don’tyouknow，"shecontinued，"theblissofwakingfromabaddreaminone’sownquietroom，andgoingslowlyoverallthehorrorwithoutbeingafraidofitanymore？That’swhatI’mdoingnow。Andthat’swhyIunderstandOwen……"Shebrokeoff，andhefelthertouchonhisarm。"BECAUSE

I’DDREAMEDTHEHORRORTOO！"

Heunderstoodherthen，andstammered："You？"

"Forgiveme！Andletmetellyou！……ItwillhelpyoutounderstandOwen……ThereWERElittlethings……littlesigns……onceIhadbeguntowatchforthem：yourreluctancetospeakabouther……herreservewithyou……asortofconstraintwe’dneverseeninherbefore……"

Shelaughedupathim，andwithherhandsinhishecontrivedtosay："NOWyouunderstandwhy？"

"Oh，Iunderstand；ofcourseIunderstand；andIwantyoutolaughatme——withme！Becausetherewereotherthingstoo……crazierthingsstill……Therewaseven——lastnightontheterrace——herpinkcloak……"

"Herpinkcloak？"Nowhehonestlywondered，andasshesawitsheblushed。

"You’veforgottenaboutthecloak？ThepinkcloakthatOwensawyouwithattheplayinParis？Yes……yes……Iwasmadenoughforthat！……Itdoesmegoodtolaughaboutitnow！

ButyououghttoknowthatI’mgoingtobeajealouswoman……aridiculouslyjealouswoman……yououghttobewarnedofitintime……"

Hehaddroppedherhands，andsheleanedcloseandliftedherarmstohisneckwithoneofherraregesturesofsurrender。

"Idon’tknowwhyitis；butitmakesmehappiernowtohavebeensofoolish！"

Herlipswerepartedinanoiselesslaughandthetremorofherlashesmadetheirshadowmoveonhercheek。Helookedatherthroughamistofpainandsawallherofferedbeautyhelduplikeacuptohislips；butashestoopedtoitadarknessseemedtofallbetweenthem，herarmsslippedfromhisshouldersandshedrewawayfromhimabruptly。

"ButsheWASwithyou，then？"sheexclaimed；andthen，ashestaredather："Oh，don’tsayno！Onlygoandlookatyoureyes！"

Hestoodspeechless，andshepressedon："Don’tdenyit——oh，don’tdenyit！Whatwillbeleftformetoimagineifyoudo？Don’tyouseehoweverysinglethingcriesitout？Owenseesit——hesawitagainjustnow！WhenItoldhimshe’drelented，andwouldseehim，hesaid：’IsthatDarrow’sdoingtoo？’"

Darrowtooktheonslaughtinsilence。Hemighthavespoken，havesummoneduptheusualphrasesofbanteranddenial；hewasnotevencertainthattheymightnot，forthemoment，haveservedtheirpurposeifhecouldhaveutteredthemwithoutbeingseen。ButhewasasconsciousofwhathadhappenedtohisfaceasifhehadobeyedAnna’sbiddingandlookedathimselfintheglass。Heknewhecouldnomorehidefromherwhatwaswrittentherethanhecouldeffacefromhissoulthefieryrecordofwhathehadjustlivedthrough。Therebeforehim，staringhimintheeyes，andreflectingitselfinallhislineaments，wastheoverwhelmingfactofSophyViner’spassionandoftheactbywhichshehadattestedit。

Annawastalkingagain，hurriedly，feverishly，andhissoulwaswrungbytheanguishinhervoice。"Dospeakatlast——

youmustspeak！Idon’twanttoaskyoutoharmthegirl；

butyoumustseethatyoursilenceisdoinghermoreharmthanyouransweringmyquestionscould。You’releavingmeonlytheworstthingstothinkofher……she’dseethatherselfifshewerehere。Whatworseinjurycanyoudoherthantomakemehateher——tomakemefeelshe’splottedwithyoutodeceiveus？"

"Oh，notthat！"Darrowheardhisownvoicebeforehewasawarethathemeanttospeak。"Yes；IdidseeherinParis，"hewentonafterapause；"butIwasboundtorespectherreasonfornotwantingitknown。"

Annapaled。"Itwassheatthetheatrethatnight？"

"Iwaswithheratthetheatreonenight。"

"Whyshouldshehaveaskedyounottosayso？"

"Shedidn’twishitknownthatI’dmether。"

"Whyshouldn’tshehavewisheditknown？"

"ShehadquarrelledwithMrs。MurrettandcomeoversuddenlytoParis，andshedidn’twanttheFarlowstohearofit。I

cameacrossherbyaccident，andsheaskedmenottospeakofhavingseenher。"

"Becauseofherquarrel？Becauseshewasashamedofherpartinit？"

"Oh，no。Therewasnothingforhertobeashamedof。ButtheFarlowshadfoundtheplaceforher，andshedidn’twantthemtoknowhowsuddenlyshe’dhadtoleave，andhowbadlyMrs。Murretthadbehaved。Shewasinaterribleplight——thewomanhadevenkeptbackhermonth’ssalary。SheknewtheFarlowswouldbeawfullyupset，andshewantedmoretimetopreparethem。"

Darrowheardhimselfspeakasthoughthewordshadproceededfromotherlips。Hisexplanationsoundedplausibleenough，andhehalf—fanciedAnna’slookgrewlighter。Shewaitedamoment，asthoughtobesurehehadnomoretoadd；thenshesaid："ButtheFarlowsDIDknow；theytoldmeallaboutitwhentheysenthertome。"

Heflushedasifshehadlaidadeliberatetrapforhim。

"TheymayknowNOW；theydidn’tthen————"

"That’snoreasonforhercontinuingnowtomakeamysteryofhavingmetyou。"

"It’stheonlyreasonIcangiveyou。"

"ThenI’llgoandaskherforonemyself。"Sheturnedandtookafewstepstowardthedoor。

"Anna！"Hestartedtofollowher，andthencheckedhimself。

"Don’tdothat！"

"Whynot？"

"It’snotlikeyou……notgenerous……"

Shestoodbeforehimstraightandpale，butunderherrigidfacehesawthetumultofherdoubtandmisery。

"Idon’twanttobeungenerous；Idon’twanttopryintohersecrets。Butthingscan’tbeleftlikethis。Wouldn’titbebetterformetogotoher？Surelyshe’llunderstand——she’llexplain……Itmaybesomemeretrifleshe’sconcealing：

somethingthatwouldhorrifytheFarlows，butthatI

shouldn’tseeanyharmin……"Shepaused，hereyessearchinghisface。"Aloveaffair，Isuppose……that’sit？

Youmetherwithsomemanatthetheatre——andshewasfrightenedandbeggedyoutofibaboutit？Thosepooryoungthingsthathavetogoaboutamonguslikemachines——oh，ifyouknewhowIpitythem！"

"Ifyoupityher，whynotlethergo？"

Shestared。"Lethergo——goforgood，youmean？Isthatthebestyoucansayforher？"

"Letthingstaketheircourse。Afterall，it’sbetweenherselfandOwen。"

"Andyouandme——andEffie，ifOwenmarriesher，andIleavemychildwiththem！Don’tyouseetheimpossibilityofwhatyou’reasking？We’reallboundtogetherinthiscoil。"

Darrowturnedawaywithagroan。"Oh，lethergo——lethergo。"

"ThenthereISsomething——somethingreallybad？SheWASwithsomeonewhenyoumether？Someonewithwhomshewas————"Shebrokeoff，andhesawherstrugglingwithnewthoughts。"Ifit’sTHAT，ofcourse……Oh，don’tyousee，"shedesperatelyappealedtohim，"thatImustfindout，andthatit’stoolatenowforyounottospeak？Don’tbeafraidthatI’llbetrayyou……I’llnever，neverletasoulsuspect。ButImustknowthetruth，andsurelyit’sbestforherthatIshouldfinditoutfromyou。"

Darrowwaitedamoment；thenhesaidslowly："Whatyouimagine’smeremadness。Shewasatthetheatrewithme。"

"Withyou？"Hesawatremorpassthroughher，butshecontrolleditinstantlyandfacedhimstraightandmotionlessasawoundedcreatureinthemomentbeforeitfeelsitswound。"Whyshouldyoubothhavemadeamysteryofthat？"

"I’vetoldyoutheideawasnotmine。"Hecastabout。"ShemayhavebeenafraidthatOwen————"

"Butthatwasnotareasonforheraskingyoutotellmethatyouhardlyknewher——thatyouhadn’tevenseenherforyears。"Shebrokeoffandthebloodrosetoherfaceandforehead。"EvenifSHEhadotherreasons，therecouldbeonlyonereasonforyourobeyingher————"

Silencefellbetweenthem，asilenceinwhichtheroomseemedtobecomesuddenlyresonantwithvoices。Darrow’sgazewanderedtothewindowandhenoticedthatthegaleoftwodaysbeforehadnearlystrippedthetopsofthelime—

treesinthecourt。Annahadmovedawayandwasrestingherelbowsagainstthemantel—piece，herheadinherhands。Asshestoodtherehetookinwithanewintensityofvisionlittledetailsofherappearancethathiseyeshadoftencherished：thebranchingblueveinsinthebacksofherhands，thewarmshadowthatherhaircastonherear，andthecolourofthehairitself，dullblackwithatawnyunder—surface，likethewingsofcertainbirds。Hefeltittobeuselesstospeak。

Afterawhilesheliftedherheadandsaid："Ishallnotseeheragainbeforeshegoes。"

Hemadenoanswer，andturningtohimsheadded："Thatiswhyshe’sgoing，Isuppose？Becauseshelovesyouandwon’tgiveyouup？"

Darrowwaited。Thepaltrinessofconventionaldenialwassoapparenttohimthatevenifitcouldhavedelayeddiscoveryhecouldnolongerhaveresortedtoit。Underallhisotherfearswasthedreadofdishonouringthehour。

"SheHASgivenmeup，"hesaidatlast。

XXVIII

WhenhehadgoneoutoftheroomAnnastoodwherehehadlefther。"Imustbelievehim！Imustbelievehim！"shesaid。

Amomentbefore，atthemomentwhenshehadliftedherarmstohisneck，shehadbeenwrappedinasenseofcompletesecurity。Allthespiritsofdoubthadbeenexorcised，andherlovewasoncemoretheclearhabitationinwhicheverythoughtandfeelingcouldmoveinblissfulfreedom。Andthen，assheraisedherfacetoDarrow’sandmethiseyes，shehadseemedtolookintotheveryruinsofhissoul。

Thatwastheonlywayshecouldexpressit。Itwasasthoughheandshehadbeenlookingattwosidesofthesamething，andthesideshehadseenhadbeenalllightandlife，andhisaplaceofgraves……

Shedidn’tnowrecallwhohadspokenfirst，oreven，veryclearly，whathadbeensaid。Itseemedtoheronlyamomentlaterthatshehadfoundherselfstandingattheotherendoftheroom——theroomwhichhadsuddenlygrownsosmallthat，evenwithitslengthbetweenthem，shefeltasifhetouchedher——cryingouttohim"ItISbecauseofyoushe’sgoing！"andreadingtheavowalinhisface。

Thatwashissecret，then，THEIRsecret：hehadmetthegirlinParisandhelpedherinherstraits——lenthermoney，Annavaguelyconjectured——andshehadfalleninlovewithhim，andonmeetinghimagainhadbeensuddenlyovermasteredbyherpassion。Anna，droppingbackintohersofa—corner，satstaringthesefactsintheface。

Thegirlhadbeeninadesperateplight——frightened，penniless，outragedbywhathadhappened，andnotknowing（withawomanlikeMrs。Murrett）whatfreshinjurymightimpend；andDarrow，meetingherinthisdistractedhour，hadpitied，counselled，beenkindtoher，withthefatal，theinevitableresult。TherewerethefactsasAnnamadethemout：that，atleast，wastheirexternalaspect，wasasmuchofthemasshehadbeensufferedtosee；andintothesecretintricaciestheymightcovershedarednotyetprojectherthoughts。

"Imustbelievehim……Imustbelievehim……"Shekeptonrepeatingthewordslikeatalisman。Itwasnatural，afterall，thatheshouldhavebehavedashehad：defendedthegirl’spiteoussecrettothelast。Shetoobegantofeelthecontagionofhispity——thestir，inherbreast，offeelingsdeeperandmorenativetoherthanthepainsofjealousy。

Fromthesecurityofherblessednessshelongedtoleanoverwithcompassionatehands……ButOwen？WhatwasOwen’sparttobe？Sheowedherselffirsttohim——shewasboundtoprotecthimnotonlyfromallknowledgeofthesecretshehadsurprised，butalso——andchiefly！——fromitsconsequences。

Yes：thegirlmustgo——therecouldbenodoubtofit——Darrowhimselfhadseenitfromthefirst；andatthethoughtshehadawildrevulsionofrelief，asthoughshehadbeentryingtocreateinherheartthedelusionofagenerosityshecouldnotfeel……

TheonefactonwhichshecouldstayhermindwasthatSophywasleavingimmediately；wouldbeoutofthehousewithinanhour。Onceshewasgone，itwouldbeeasiertobringOwentothepointofunderstandingthatthebreakwasfinal；ifnecessary，toworkuponthegirltomakehimseeit。Butthat，Annawassure，wouldnotbenecessary。ItwasclearthatSophyVinerwasleavingGivrewithnothoughtofeverseeingitagain……

Suddenly，asshetriedtoputsomeorderinherthoughts，sheheardOwen’scallatthedoor："Mother！————"anameheseldomgaveher。Therewasanewnoteinhisvoice：thenoteofajoyousimpatience。Itmadeherturnhastilytotheglasstoseewhatfaceshewasabouttoshowhim；butbeforeshehadhadtimetocomposeithewasintheroomandshewascaughtinaschool—boyhug。

"It’sallright！It’sallright！Andit’sallyourdoing！I

wanttodotheworstkindofpenance——bellandcandleandtherest。I’vebeenthroughitwithHER，andnowshehandsmeontoyou，andyou’retocallmeanynamesyouplease。"Hefreedherwithhishappylaugh。"I’mtobestoodinthecornertillnextweek，andthenI’mtogouptoseeher。AndshesaysIoweitalltoyou！"

"Tome？"Itwasthefirstphraseshefoundtoclutchatasshetriedtosteadyherselfintheeddiesofhisjoy。

"Yes：youweresopatient，andsodeartoher；andyousawatoncewhatadamnedassI’dbeen！"Shetriedasmile，anditseemedtopassmusterwithhim，forhesentitbackinabroadbeam。"That’snotsodifficulttosee？No，Iadmititdoesn’ttakeamicroscope。Butyouweresowiseandwonderful——youalwaysare。I’vebeenmadtheselastdays，simplymad——youandshemightwellhavewashedyourhandsofme！Andinstead，it’sallright——allright！"

Shedrewbackalittle，tryingtokeepthesmileonherlipsandnotlethimgettheleastglimpseofwhatithid。Nowifever，indeed，itbehovedhertobewiseandwonderful！

"I’msoglad，dear；soglad。Ifonlyyou’llalwaysfeellikethataboutme……"Shestopped，hardlyknowingwhatshesaid，andaghastattheideathatherownhandsshouldhaveretiedtheknotsheimaginedtobebroken。Butshesawhehadsomethingmoretosay；somethinghardtogetout，butabsolutelynecessarytoexpress。Hecaughtherhands，pulledherclose，and，withhisforeheaddrawnintoitswhimsicalsmilingwrinkles，"Lookhere，"hecried，"ifDarrowwantstocallmeadamnedasstooyou’renottostophim！"

Itbroughtherbacktoasharpersenseofhercentralperil：

ofthesecrettobekeptfromhimatwhatevercosttoherrackednerves。

"Oh，youknow，hedoesn’talwayswaitfororders！"Onthewholeitsoundedbetterthanshe’dfeared。

"Youmeanhe’scalledmeonealready？"Heacceptedthefactwithhisgayestlaugh。"Well，thatsavesalotoftrouble；

nowwecanpasstotheorderoftheday————"hebrokeoffandglancedattheclock——"whichis，youknow，dear，thatshe’sstartinginaboutanhour；sheandAdelaidemustalreadybesnatchingahastysandwich。You’llcomedowntobidthemgood—bye？"

"Yes——ofcourse。"

Therehad，infact，grownuponherwhilehespoketheurgencyofseeingSophyVineragainbeforesheleft。Thethoughtwasdeeplydistasteful：Annashrankfromencounteringthegirltillshehadclearedawaythroughherownperplexities。Butitwasobviousthatsincetheyhadseparated，barelyanhourearlier，thesituationhadtakenanewshape。SophyVinerhadapparentlyreconsideredherdecisiontobreakamicablybutdefinitelywithOwen，andstoodagainintheirpath，amenaceandamystery；andconfusedimpulsesofresistancestirredinAnna’smind。

ShefeltOwen’stouchonherarm。"Areyoucoming？"

"Yes……yes……presently。"

"What’sthematter？Youlooksostrange。"

"Whatdoyoumeanbystrange？"

"Idon’tknow：startled——surprised"Shereadwhatherlookmustbebyitssuddenreflectioninhisface。

"DoI？Nowonder！You’vegivenusallanexcitingmorning。"

Heheldtohispoint。"You’remoreexcitednowthatthere’snocauseforit。WhatonearthhashappenedsinceIsawyou？"

Helookedabouttheroom，asifseekingthecluetoheragitation，andinherdreadofwhathemightguesssheanswered："WhathashappenedissimplythatI’mrathertired。WillyouaskSophytocomeupandseemehere？"

Whileshewaitedshetriedtothinkwhatsheshouldsaywhenthegirlappeared；butshehadneverbeenmoreconsciousofherinabilitytodealwiththeobliqueandthetortuous。

Shehadlackedthehardteachingsofexperience，andaninstinctivedisdainforwhateverwaslessclearandopenthanherownconsciencehadkeptherfromlearninganythingoftheintricaciesandcontradictionsofotherhearts。Shesaidtoherself："Imustfindout————"yeteverythinginherrecoiledfromthemeansbywhichshefeltitmustbedone……

SophyVinerappearedalmostimmediately，dressedfordeparture，herlittlebagonherarm。Shewasstillpaletothepointofhaggardness，butwithalightuponherthatstruckAnnawithsurprise。Orwasit，perhaps，thatshewaslookingatthegirlwithneweyes：seeingher，forthefirsttime，notasEffie’sgoverness，notasOwen’sbride，butastheembodimentofthatunknownperillurkinginthebackgroundofeverywoman’sthoughtsaboutherlover？Anna，atanyrate，withasuddensenseofestrangement，notedinhergracesandsnaresneverbeforeperceived。Itwasonlytheflashofaprimitiveinstinct，butitlastedlongenoughtomakeherashamedofthedarknessesitlitupinherheart……

ShesignedtoSophytositdownonthesofabesideher。"I

askedyoutocomeuptomebecauseIwantedtosaygood—byequietly，"sheexplained，feelingherlipstremble，buttryingtospeakinatoneoffriendlynaturalness。

Thegirl’sonlyanswerwasafaintsmileofacquiescence，andAnna，disconcertedbyhersilence，wenton："You’vedecided，then，nottobreakyourengagement？"

SophyVinerraisedherheadwithalookofsurprise。

Evidentlythequestion，thusabruptlyput，musthavesoundedstrangelyonthelipsofsoardentapartisanasMrs。Leath！

"Ithoughtthatwaswhatyouwished，"shesaid。

"WhatIwished？"Anna’sheartshookagainstherside。"I

wish，ofcourse，whateverseemsbestforOwen……It’snatural，youmustunderstand，thatthatconsiderationshouldcomefirstwithme……"

Sophywaslookingathersteadily。"Isupposeditwastheonlyonethatcountedwithyou。"

ThecurtnessofretortrousedAnna’slatentantagonism。"Itis，"shesaid，inahardvoicethatstartledherassheheardit。Hadsheeverspokensotoanyonebefore？Shefeltfrightened，asthoughherverynaturehadchangedwithoutherknowingit……Feelingthegirl’sastonishedgazestillonher，shecontinued："Thesuddennessofthechangehasnaturallysurprisedme。WhenIleftyouitwasunderstoodthatyouweretoreserveyourdecision————"

"Yes。"

"Andnow————？"Annawaitedforareplythatdidnotcome。

Shedidnotunderstandthegirl’sattitude，theedgeofironyinhershortsyllables，theplainlypremeditateddeterminationtolaytheburdenofproofonherinterlocutor。Annafeltthesuddenneedtolifttheirintercourseabovethismeanlevelofdefianceanddistrust。

ShelookedappealinglyatSophy。

"Isn’titbestthatweshouldspeakquitefrankly？It’sthischangeonyourpartthatperplexesme。Youcanhardlybesurprisedatthat。It’strue，IaskedyounottobreakwithOwentooabruptly——andIaskedit，believeme，asmuchforyoursakeasforhis：Iwantedyoutotaketimetothinkoverthedifficultythatseemstohavearisenbetweenyou。

Thefactthatyoufeltitrequiredthinkingoverseemedtoshowyouwouldn’ttakethefinalsteplightly——wouldn’t，I

mean，acceptofOwenmorethanyoucouldgivehim。ButyourchangeofmindobligesmetoaskthequestionIthoughtyouwouldhaveaskedyourself。Isthereanyreasonwhyyoushouldn’tmarryOwen？"

Shestoppedalittlebreathlessly，hereyesonSophyViner’sburningface。"Anyreason————？Whatdoyoumeanbyareason？"

Annacontinuedtolookathergravely。"Doyoulovesomeoneelse？"sheasked。

Sophy’sfirstlookwasoneofwonderandafaintrelief；

thenshegavebacktheother’sscrutinyinaglanceofindescribablereproach。"Ah，youmighthavewaited！"sheexclaimed。

"Waited？"

"TillI’dgone：tillIwasoutofthehouse。Youmighthaveknown……youmighthaveguessed……"SheturnedhereyesagainonAnna。"Ionlymeanttolethimhopealittlelonger，sothatheshouldn’tsuspectanything；ofcourseI

can’tmarryhim，"shesaid。

Annastoodmotionless，silencedbytheshockoftheavowal。

Shetoowastrembling，lesswithangerthanwithaconfusedcompassion。Butthefeelingwassoblentwithothers，lessgenerousandmoreobscure，thatshefoundnowordstoexpressit，andthetwowomenfacedeachotherwithoutspeaking。

"I’dbettergo，"Sophymurmuredatlengthwithloweredhead。

ThewordsrousedinAnnaalatentimpulseofcompunction。

Thegirllookedsoyoung，soexposedanddesolate！Andwhatthoughtsmustshebehidinginherheart！Itwasimpossiblethattheyshouldpartinsuchaspirit。

"Iwantyoutoknowthatnoonesaidanything……ItwasI

who……"

Sophylookedather。"YoumeanthatMr。Darrowdidn’ttellyou？Ofcoursenot：doyousupposeIthoughthedid？Youfounditout，that’sall——Iknewyouwould。InyourplaceI

shouldhaveguesseditsooner。"

Thewordswerespokensimply，withoutironyoremphasis；buttheywentthroughAnnalikeasword。Yes，thegirlwouldhavehaddivinations，promptingsthatshehadnothad！Shefelthalfenviousofsuchasadprecocityofwisdom。

"I’msosorry……sosorry……"shemurmured。

"Thingshappenthatway。NowI’dbettergo。I’dliketosaygood—byetoEffie。"

"Oh————"itbrokeinacryfromEffie’smother。"Notlikethis——youmustn’t！Ifeel——youmakemefeeltoohorribly：asifIweredrivingyouaway……"Thewordshadrushedupfromthedepthsofherbewilderedpity。

"Nooneisdrivingmeaway：Ihadtogo，"sheheardthegirlreply。

Therewasanothersilence，duringwhichpassionateimpulsesofmagnanimitywarredinAnnawithherdoubtsanddreads。

Atlength，hereyesonSophy’sface："Yes，youmustgonow，"

shebegan；"butlateron……afterawhile，whenallthisisover……ifthere’snoreasonwhyyoushouldn’tmarryOwen————

"shepausedamomentonthewords——"Ishouldn’twantyoutothinkIstoodbetweenyou……"

"You？"Sophyflushedagain，andthengrewpale。Sheseemedtotrytospeak，butnowordscame。

"Yes！ItwasnottruewhenIsaidjustnowthatIwasthinkingonlyofOwen。I’msorry——oh，sosorry！——foryoutoo。Yourlife——Iknowhowhardit’sbeen；andmine……mine’ssofull……Happywomenunderstandbest！"Annadrewnearandtouchedthegirl’shand；thenshebeganagain，pouringallhersoulintothebrokenphrases："It’sterriblenow……youseenofuture；butif，byandbye……youknowbest……butyou’resoyoung……andatyouragethingsDO

pass。Ifthere’snoreason，norealreason，whyyoushouldn’tmarryOwen，IWANThimtohope，I’llhelphimtohope……ifyousayso……"

WiththeurgencyofherpleadingherclasptightenedonSophy’shand，butitwarmedtonoresponsivetremor：thegirlseemednumb，andAnnawasfrightenedbythestonysilenceofherlook。"IsupposeI’mnotmorethanhalfawoman，"shemused，"forIdon’twantmyhappinesstohurther；"andaloudsherepeated："Ifonlyyou’lltellmethere’snoreason————"

Thegirldidnotspeak；butsuddenly，likeasnappedbranch，shebent，stoopeddowntothehandthatclaspedher，andlaidherlipsuponitinastreamofweeping。Shecriedsilently，continuously，abundantly，asthoughAnna’stouchhadreleasedthewatersofsomedeepspringofpain；then，asAnna，movedandhalfafraid，leanedoverherwithasoundofpity，shestoodupandturnedaway。

"You’regoing，then——forgood——likethis？"Annamovedtowardherandstopped。Sophystoppedtoo，witheyesthatshrankfromher。