Wefollowed。Bending，andtreadingheavily，hewentupstairs。HestruckablowonPasiance’sdoor。\"Letmein！\"hesaid。IdrewDanintomybedroom。Thekeywasslowlyturned，herdoorwasflungopen，andthereshestoodinherdressing—gown，acandleinherhand，herfacecrimson，andoh！soyoung，withitsshort，crisphairandroundcheeks。Theoldman——likeagiantinfrontofher——raisedhishands，andlaidthemonhershoulders。
\"What’sthis？You——you’vehadamaninyourroom？\"
Hereyesdidnotdrop。
\"Yes，\"shesaid。Dangaveagroan。
\"Who？\"
\"ZacharyPearse，\"sheansweredinavoicelikeabell。
Hegaveheroneawfulshake，droppedhishands，thenraisedthemasthoughtostrikeher。Shelookedhimintheeyes;hishandsdropped，andhetoogroaned。AsfarasIcouldsee，herfacenevermoved。
\"I’mmarriedtohim，\"shesaid，\"d’youhear？Marriedtohim。Gooutofmyroom！\"Shedroppedthecandleonthefloorathisfeet，andslammedthedoorinhisface。Theoldmanstoodforaminuteasthoughstunned，thengropedhiswaydownstairs。
\"Dan，\"Isaid，\"isittrue？\"
\"Ah！\"heanswered，\"it’strue;didn’tyouhearher？\"
IwasgladIcouldn’tseehisface。
\"Thatendsit，\"hesaidatlast;\"there’stheoldmantothinkof。\"
\"Whatwillhedo？\"
\"Gotothefellowthisverynight。\"Heseemedtohavenodoubt。
Trustonemanofactiontoknowanother。
Imutteredsomethingaboutbeinganoutsider——wonderediftherewasanythingIcoulddotohelp。
\"Well，\"hesaidslowly，\"Idon’tknowthatI’manythingbutanoutsidernow;butI’llgoalongwithhim，ifhe’llhaveme。\"
Hewentdownstairs。Afewminuteslatertheyrodeoutfromthestraw—yard。Iwatchedthempastthelineofhayricks，intotheblackershadowsofthepines，thenthetrampofhoofsbegantofailinthedarkness，andatlastdiedaway。
I’vebeensittinghereinmybedroomwritingtoyoueversince，tillmycandle’salmostgone。Ikeepthinkingwhattheendofitistobe;andreproachingmyselffordoingnothing。Andyet，whatcouldI
havedone？I’msorryforher——sorrierthanIcansay。Thenightissoquiet——Ihaven’theardasound;issheasleep，awake，crying，triumphant？
It’sfouro’clock;I’vebeenasleep。
They’reback。Danislyingonmybed。I’lltryandtellyouhisstoryasnearasIcan，inhisownwords。
\"Werode，\"hesaid，\"roundtheupperway，keepingoutofthelanes，andgottoKingswearbyhalf—pasteleven。Thehorse—ferryhadstoppedrunning，andwehadajobtofindanyonetoputusover。Wehiredthefellowtowaitforus，andtookacarriageatthe’Castle。’
BeforewegottoBlackMillitwasnearlyone，pitch—dark。Withthebreezefromthesoutheast，Imadeoutheshouldhavebeeninanhourormore。Theoldmanhadneverspokentomeonce:andbeforewegotthereIhadbeguntohopeweshouldn’tfindthefellowafterall。Wemadethedriverpullupintheroad，andwalkedroundandround，tryingtofindthedoor。Thensomeonecried，’Whoareyou？’
\"’JohnFord。’
\"’Whatdoyouwant？’ItwasoldPearse。
\"’ToseeZacharyPearse。’
\"Thelongwindowoutoftheporchwherewesattheotherdaywasopen，andinwewent。Therewasadoorattheendoftheroom，andalightcomingthrough。JohnFordwenttowardsit;Istayedoutinthedark。
\"’Who’sthatwithyou？’
\"’Mr。Treffry。’
\"’Lethimcomein！’Iwentin。Theoldfellowwasinbed，quitestillonhispillows，acandlebyhisside;tolookathimyou’dthinknothingofhimbuthiseyeswerealive。Itwasqueerbeingtherewiththosetwooldmen！\"
Danpaused，seemedtolisten，thenwentondoggedly。
\"’Sitdown，gentleman，’saidoldPearse。’Whatmayyouwanttoseemysonfor？’JohnFordbeggedhispardon，hehadsomethingtosay，hesaid，thatwouldn’twait。
\"Theywereverypolitetooneanother，\"mutteredDan……
\"’Willyouleaveyourmessagewithme？’saidPearse。
\"’WhatIhavetosaytoyoursonisprivate。’
\"’I’mhisfather。’
\"’I’mmygirl’sgrandfather;andheronlystand—by。’
\"’Ah！’mutteredoldPearse，’RickVoisey’sdaughter？’
\"’Imeantoseeyourson。’
\"OldPearsesmiled。Queersmilehe’sgot，sortofsneeringsweet。
\"’YoucannevertellwhereZackmaybe，’hesaid。’YouthinkIwanttoshieldhim。You’rewrong;Zackcantakecareofhimself。’
\"’Yourson’shere！’saidJohnFord。’Iknow。’OldPearsegaveusaveryqueerlook。
\"’Youcomeintomyhouselikethievesinthenight，’hesaid，’andgivemethelie，doyou？’
\"’Yoursoncametomychild’sroomlikeathiefinthenight;it’sforthatIwanttoseehim，’andthen，\"saidDan，\"therewasalongsilence。AtlastPearsesaid:
\"’Idon’tunderstand;hasheplayedtheblackguard？’
\"JohnFordanswered，’He’smarriedher，or，beforeGod，I’dkillhim。’
\"OldPearseseemedtothinkthisover，nevermovingonhispillows。
’Youdon’tknowZack，’hesaid;’I’msorryforyou，andI’msorryforRickVoisey’sdaughter;butyoudon’tknowZack。’
’Sorry！’groanedoutJohnFord;’he’sstolenmychild，andI’llpunishhim。’
\"’Punish！’criedoldPearse，’wedon’ttakepunishment，notinmyfamily。’
\"’CaptainJanPearse，assureasIstandhere，youandyourbreedwillgetyourpunishmentofGod。’OldPearsesmiled。
\"’Mr。JohnFord，that’sasmaybe;butsureasIlieherewewon’ttakeitofyou。Youcan’tpunishunlessyoumaketofeel，andthatyoucan’tdu。’\"
Andthatistruth！
Danwentonagain:
\"’Youwon’ttellmewhereyoursonis！’butoldPearseneverblinked。
\"’Iwon’t，’hesaid，’andnowyoumaygetout。Iliehereanoldmanalone，withnousetomylegs，nightonnight，an’thehouseopen;
anyrapscallioncouldgetin;d’yethinkI’mafraidofyou？’
\"Wewerebeat;andwalkedoutwithoutaword。Butthatoldman;I’vethoughtofhimalot——ninety—two，andlyingthere。Whateverhe’sbeen，andtheytellyourumthingsofhim，whateverhissonmaybe，he’saman。It’snotwhathesaid，northattherewasanythingtobeafraidofjustthen，butsomehowit’stheideaoftheoldchaplyingthere。Idon’teverwishtoseeabetterpluckedone……\"
Wesatsilentafterthat;outofdoorsthelightbegantostiramongtheleaves。Therewereallkindsofrustlingsounds，asiftheworldwereturningoverinbed。
SuddenlyDansaid:
\"He’scheatedme。Ipaidhimtoclearoutandleaveheralone。
D’youthinkshe’sasleep？\"He’smadenoappealforsympathy，he’dtakepityforaninsult;buthefeelsitbadly。
\"I’mtiredasacat，\"hesaidatlast，andwenttosleeponmybed。
It’sbroaddaylightnow;Itooamtiredasacat……
V
\"Saturday，6tbAugust……ItakeupmytalewhereIleftoffyesterday……DanandI
startedassoonaswecouldgetMrs。Hopgoodtogiveuscoffee。Theoldladywasmoretentative，moreundecided，morepouncing，thanI
hadeverseenher。Shewasmanifestlyuneasy:Ha—apgood——who\"don’tslape\"don’the，ifsnoresareanycriterion——hadcalledoutinthenight，\"Harktoth’’arses’’oofs！\"Hadweheardthem？Andwheremightwebegoingthen？’Twasveryearrlytostart，an’nobreakfast。Haapgoodhadsaiditwasgoin’toshaowerr。MissPasiancewasnotto’erviolinyet，an’MisterFord’ekept’isroom。
Wasit？——wouldtherebe——？\"Well，an’therr’san’arvestbug;’tissomeearrlyforthey！\"Wonderfulhowshepouncesonallsuchcreatures，whenIcan’tevenseethem。Shepresseditabsentlybetweenfingerandthumb，andbeganmanoeuvringroundanotherway。
Longbeforeshehadreachedherpoint，wehadgulpeddownourcoffee，anddeparted。Butaswerodeoutshecameatarun，holdingherskirtshighwitheitherhand，raisedheroldeyesbrightandanxiousintheirsettingoffinewrinkles，andsaid:
\"’Tiddensorrowforher？\"
Ashrugoftheshoulderswasalltheanswershegot。Werodebythelanes;throughslopingfarmyards，allmudandpigs，anddirtystraw，andfarmerswithclean—shavenupperlipsandwhiskersunderthechin;
pastfieldsofcorn，wherelarksweresinging。Upordown，wedidn’tdrawreintillwecametoDan’shotel。
Therewastherivergleamingbeforeusunderarainbowmistthathallowedeveryshape。Thereseemedaffinitybetweentheearthandthesky。I’veneverseenthatparticularsoftunityoutofDevon。
Andeveryship，howeverblackormodern，onthosepalewaters，hadthelookofadreamship。Thetallgreenwoods，theredearth，thewhitehouses，wereallmeltedintooneopalhaze。Itwasraining，butthesunwasshiningbehind。Gullsswoopedbyus——ghostsoftheoldgreedywanderersofthesea。
WehadtoldourtwoboatmentopullusouttothePiedWitcb！Theystartedwithgreatresolution，thenrestedontheiroars。
\"ThePiedWitch，zurr？\"askedonepolitely;\"an’whichmayherbe？\"
That’stheWestcountrymanallover！Neversayyou\"nay，\"neverloseanopportunity，neverownhedoesn’tknow，orcan’tdoanything——
independence，amiability，andaneyetothemainchance。WementionedPearse’sname。
\"Capt’nZach’ryPearse！\"Theyexchangedalookhalf—amused，half—
admiring。
\"TheZunflaower，yumane。That’sher。Zunflaower，ahoy！\"Aswemountedthesteamer’sblacksideIheardonesay:
\"PiedWitch！Apra—apernamethat——adandynameforher！\"Theylaughedastheymadefast。
ThemateoftheSunflower，orPiedWitcb，orwhatevershewascalled，metus——atallyoungfellowinhisshirtsleeves，tannedtotherootsofhishair，withsinewy，tattooedarms，andgreyeyes，charredroundtherimsfromstaringatweather。
\"Theskipperisonboard，\"hesaid。\"We’reratherbusy，asyousee。
Getonwiththat，yousea—cooks，\"hebawledattwofellowswhoweredoingnothing。Allovertheship，menwerehauling，splicing，andstowingcargo。
\"To—day’sFriday:we’reoffonWednesdaywithanyluck。Willyoucomethisway？\"Heledusdownthecompaniontoadarkholewhichhecalledthesaloon。\"Names？What！areyouMr。Treffry？Thenwe’repartners！\"Aschoolboy’sgleecameonhisface。
\"Lookhere！\"hesaid;\"Icanshowyousomething，\"andheunlockedthedoorofacabin。Thereappearedtobenothinginitbutahugepieceoftarpaulin，whichdepended，bulging，fromthetopmostbunk。Hepulleditup。Thelowerbunkhadbeenremoved，andinitsplacewastheuglybodyofadismountedGatlinggun。
\"Gotsixofthem，\"hewhispered，withunholymystery，throughwhichhisnativefranknessgapedout。\"Worththeirweightingoldouttherejustnow，theskippersays。Gotaheapofrifles，too，andlotsofammunition。He’sgivenmeashare。ThisisbetterthantheP。andO。，andplayingdeckcricketwiththepassengers。I’dmadeupmymindalreadytochuckthat，andgoinforplantin’sugar，whenI
ranacrosstheskipper。Wonderfulchap，theskipper！I’llgoandtellhim。He’sbeenoutallnight;onlycameaboardatfourbells;
havinganapnow，buthewon’tmindthatforyou。\"
Offhewent。IwonderedwhattherewasinZacharyPearsetoattractayoungsterofthissort;oneofthecustomarytwelvechildrenofsomecountryparson，nodoubt—burningtoshootafewniggers，andforeverfrankandyouthful。
Hecamebackwithhishandsfullofbottles。
\"What’llyoudrink？Theskipper’llbehereinajiffy。Excusemygoin’ondeck。We’resobusy。\"
AndinfiveminutesZacharyPearsedidcome。Hemadenoattempttoshakehands，forwhichIrespectedhim。Hisfacelookedworn，andmoredefiantthanusual。
\"Well，gentlemen？\"hesaid。
\"We’vecometoaskwhatyou’regoingtodo？\"saidDan。
\"Idon’tknow，\"answeredPearse，\"thatthat’sanyofyourbusiness。\"
Dan’slittleeyeswereliketheeyesofanangrypig。
\"You’vegotfivehundredpoundsofmine，\"hesaid;\"whydoyouthinkIgaveityou？\"
Zacharybithisfingers。
\"That’snoconcernofmine，\"hesaid。\"IsailonWednesday。Yourmoney’ssafe。\"
\"DoyouknowwhatIthinkofyou？\"saidDan。
\"No，andyou’dbetternottellme！\"Then，withoneofhispeculiarchanges，hesmiled:\"Asyoulike，though。\"
Dan’sfacegrewverydark。\"Givemeaplainanswer，\"hesaid:\"Whatareyougoingtodoabouther？\"
Zacharylookedupathimfromunderhisbrows。
\"Nothing。\"
\"Areyoucurenoughtodenythatyou’vemarriedher？\"
Zacharylookedathimcoolly。\"Notatall，\"hesaid。
\"WhatinGod’snamedidyoudoitfor？\"
\"You’venomonopolyinthepostofhusband，Mr。Treffry。\"
\"ToputachildinthatpositionD！Haven’tyoutheheartofaman？
Whatd’yecomesneakinginatnightfor？ByGad！Don’tyouknowyou’vedoneabeastlything？\"
Zachary’sfacedarkened，heclenchedhisfists。Thenheseemedtoshuthisangerintohimself。
\"Youwantedmetoleavehertoyou，\"hesneered。\"IgavehermypromisethatI’dtakeheroutthere，andwe’dhavegoneoffonWednesdayquietlyenough，ifyouhadn’tcomeandnosedthewholethingoutwithyourinfernaldog。Thefat’sinthefire！There’snoreasonwhyIshouldtakehernow。I’llcomebacktoherarichman，ornotatall。\"
\"Andinthemeantime？\"Islippedin。
Heturnedtome，inaningratiatingway。
\"Iwouldhavetakenhertosavethefuss——Ireallywould——it’snotmyfaultthething’scomeout。I’monariskyjob。Tohaveherwithmemightruinthewholething;itwouldaffectmynerve。Itisn’tsafeforher。\"
\"Andwhat’sherpositiontobe，\"Isaid，\"whileyou’reaway？Doyouthinkshe’dhavemarriedyouifshe’dknownyouweregoingtoleaveherlikethis？Yououghttogiveupthisbusiness。
Youstoleher。Herlife’sinyourhands;she’sonlyachild！\"
Aquiverpassedoverhisface;itshowedthathewassuffering。
\"Giveitup！\"Iurged。
\"Mylastfarthing’sinit，\"hesighed;\"thechanceofalifetime。\"
Helookedatmedoubtfully，appealingly，asifforthefirsttimeinhislifehehadbeengivenaglimpseofthatdilemmaofconsequenceswhichhisnatureneverrecognises。Ithoughthewasgoingtogivein。Suddenly，tomyhorror，Dangrowled，\"Playtheman！\"
Pearseturnedhishead。\"Idon’twantyouradviceanyway，\"hesaid;
\"I’llnotbedictatedto。\"
\"Toyourlastday，\"saidDan，\"youshallanswertomeforthewayyoutreather。\"
Zacharysmiled。
\"Doyouseethatfly？\"hesaid。\"Wel——Icareforyouaslittleasthis，\"andheflickedtheflyoffhiswhitetrousers。\"Good—
morning……！\"
Thenoblemarinerswhomannedourboatpulledlustilyfortheshore，butwehadhardlyshovedoff’whenastormofrainburstovertheship，andsheseemedtovanish，leavingapictureonmyeyesofthematewavinghiscapabovetherail，withhistannedyoungfacebentdownatus，smiling，keen，andfriendly……Wereachedtheshoredrenched，angrywithourselves，andwitheachother;Istartedsulkilyforhome。
AsIrodepastanorchard，anapple，loosenedbytherainstorm，camedownwithathud。
\"Theappleswereripeandreadytofall，Oh！heigh—ho！andreadytofall。\"
Imadeupmymindtopack，andgoaway。Butthere’sastrangeness，asortofhauntingfascinationinitall。Toyou，whodon’tknowthepeople，itmayonlyseemapieceofrathersordidfolly。Butitisn’tthegood，theobvious，theusefulthatputsaspellonusinlife。It’sthebizarre，thedimlyseen，themysteriousforgoodorevil。
ThesunwasoutagainwhenIrodeuptothefarm;itsyellowthatchshonethroughthetreesasifshelteringastoreofgladnessandgoodnews。JohnFordhimselfopenedthedoortome。
Hebeganwithanapology，whichmademefeelmorethaneveranintruder;thenhesaid:
\"Ihavenotspokentomygranddaughter——IwaitedtoseeDanTreffry。\"
Hewassternandsad—eyed，likeamanwithagreatweightofgriefonhisshoulders。Helookedasifhehadnotslept;hisdresswasoutoforder，hehadnottakenhisclothesoff，Ithink。Heisn’tamanwhomyoucanpity。IfeltIhadtakenalibertyinknowingofthematteratall。WhenItoldhimwherewehadbeen，hesaid:
\"Itwasgoodofyoutotakethistrouble。Thatyoushouldhavehadto！Butsincesuchthingshavecometopass——\"Hemadeagesturefullofhorror。Hegaveonetheimpressionofamanwhosepridewasstrugglingagainstamortalhurt。Presentlyheasked:
\"Yousawhim，yousay？Headmittedthismarriage？Didhegiveanexplanation？\"
ItriedtomakePearse’spointofviewclear。Beforethisoldman，withhisinflexiblewillandsenseofduty，IfeltasifIheldabriefforZachary，andmusttrytodohimjustice。
\"Letmeunderstand，\"hesaidatlast。\"Hestoleher，yousay，tomakesure;anddesertsherwithinafortnight。\"
\"Hesayshemeanttotakeher——\"
\"Doyoubelievethat？\"
BeforeIcouldanswer，IsawPasiancestandingatthewindow。HowlongshehadbeenthereIdon’tknow。
\"Isittruethatheisgoingtoleavemebehind？\"shecriedout。
Icouldonlynod。
\"Didyouhearhimyourownself？\"
\"Yes。\"
Shestampedherfoot。
\"Buthepromised！Hepromised！\"
JohnFordwenttowardsher。
\"Don’ttouchme，grandfather！Ihateeveryone！Lethimdowhathelikes，Idon’tcare。\"
JohnFord’sfaceturnedquitegrey。
\"Pasiance，\"hesaid，\"didyouwanttoleavemesomuch？\"
Shelookedstraightatus，andsaidsharply:
\"What’sthegoodoftellingstories。Ican’thelpitshurtingyou。\"
\"Whatdidyouthinkyouwouldfindawayfromhere？\"
Shelaughed。
\"Find？Idon’tknow——nothing;Iwouldn’tbestifledanyway。NowI
supposeyou’llshutmeupbecauseI’maweakgirl，notstronglikemen！\"
\"Silence！\"saidJohnFord;\"Iwillmakehimtakeyou。\"
\"Youshan’t！\"shecried;\"Iwon’tletyou。He’sfreetodoashelikes。He’sfree——Itellyouall，everybody——free！\"
Sheranthroughthewindow，andvanished。
JohnFordmadeamovementasifthebottomhaddroppedoutofhisworld。Ilefthimthere。
Iwenttothekitchen，whereHopgoodwassittingatthetable，eatingbreadandcheese。Hegotuponseeingme，andverykindlybroughtmesomecoldbaconandapintofale。
\"IthartIshudebeseeingyu，zurr，\"hesaidbetweenhisbites;
\"Therr’snothartto’atin’’boutthe’ouseto—day。Theoldwumman’spuzzivantin’overMissPasiance。Younggirlsareskeerycritters\"——
hebrushedhissleeveoverhisbroad，hardjaws，andfilledapipe\"speciallywhenit’sinthebloodof’em。SquireRickVoiseywerradandy;an’MistressVoisey——well，shewerraniceladytu，but\"——
rollingthestemofhispipefromcornertocornerofhismouth——\"shewerrapra—apervixen。\"
Hopgood’sagoodfellow，andIbelieveassoftashelookshard，buthe’snotquitethesortwithwhomonechoosestotalkoveramatterlikethis。Iwentupstairs，andbegantopack，butafterabitdroppeditforabook，andsomehoworotherfellasleep。
Iwoke，andlookedatmywatch;itwasfiveo’clock。Ihadbeenasleepfourhours。Asinglesunbeamwasslantingacrossfromoneofmywindowstotheother，andtherewasthecoolsoundofmilkdroppingintopails;then，allatonce，astirasofalarm，andheavyfootsteps。
Iopenedmydoor。Hopgoodandacoast—guardsmanwerecarryingPasianceslowlyupthestairs。Shelayintheirarmswithoutmoving，herfacewhiterthanherdress，ascratchacrosstheforehead，andtwoorthreedropsthereofdriedblood。Herhandswereclasped，andsheslowlycrookedandstiffenedoutherfingers。Whentheyturnedwithheratthestairtop，sheopenedherlips，andgasped，\"Allright，don’tputmedown。Icanbearit。\"Theypassed，and，withahalf—smileinhereyes，shesaidsomethingtomethatIcouldn’tcatch;thedoorwasshut，andtheexcitedwhisperingbeganagainbelow。Iwaitedforthementocomeout，andcaughtholdofHopgood。
Hewipedthesweatoffhisforehead。
\"Pooryoungthing！\"hesaid。\"Shefell——downthecliffs——’tisherback——coastguardsawher’twerrtheyfetchedherin。TheLord’elphermebbeshe’snotbrokenupmuch！An’MisterForddon’tknow！I’mgwineforthedoctor。\"
Therewasanhourormoretowaitbeforehecame;ayoungfellow;
almostaboy。Helookedverygrave，whenhecameoutofherroom。
\"Theoldwomantherefondofher？nurseherwell……？Fondasadog！——good！Don’tknow——can’ttellforcertain！Afraidit’sthespine，musthaveanotheropinion！Whatapluckygirl！TellMr。FordtohavethebestmanhecangetinTorquay——there’sC———。I’llberoundthefirstthinginthemorning。Keepherdeadquiet。I’veleftasleepingdraught;she’llhavefevertonight。\"
JohnFordcameinatlast。Pooroldman！Whatitmusthavecosthimnottogotoherforfearoftheexcitement！Howmanytimesinthenextfewhoursdidn’tIhearhimcometothebottomofthestairs;
hisheavywheezing，andsighing;andtheforlorntreadofhisfeetgoingback！Abouteleven，justasIwasgoingtobed，Mrs。Hopgoodcametomydoor。
\"Willyucome，sir，\"shesaid;\"she’saskingforyu。NaowtIcanzaybutwhatshewillseeyu;zeemscrazy，don’tit？\"Ateartrickleddowntheoldlady’scheek。\"Du’eecome;’twilldu’err’armmebbe，butIdunno——she’llfretelse。\"
Islippedintotheroom。Lyingbackonherpillows，shewasbreathingquicklywithhalf—closedeyes。Therewasnothingtoshowthatshehadwantedme，orevenknewthatIwasthere。Thewickofthecandle，setbythebedside，hadbeensnuffedtooshort，andgavebutafaintlight;bothwindowanddoorstoodopen，stilltherewasnodraught，andthefeeblelittleflameburnedquitestill，castingafaintyellowstainontheceilingliketherefectionfromabuttercupheldbeneathachin。Theseceilingsarefartoolow！Acrossthewide，squatwindowtheapplebranchesfellinblackstripeswhichneverstirred。Itwastoodarktoseethingsclearly。Atthefootofthebedwasachest，andthereMrs。Hopgoodhadsatdown，movingherlipsasifinspeech。Mingledwiththehalf—mustysmellofage;
therewereotherscents，ofmignonette，apples，andsomesweet—
smellingsoap。Thefloorhadnocarpet，andtherewasnotonesingledarkobjectexcepttheviolin，hangingfromanailoverthebed。A
little，roundclocktickedsolemnly。
\"Whywon’tyougivemethatstuff，Mums？\"Pasiancesaidinafaint，sharpvoice。\"Iwanttosleep。\"
\"Haveyoumuchpain？\"Iasked。
\"OfcourseIhave;it’severywhere。\"
Sheturnedherfacetowardsme。
\"YouthoughtIdiditonpurpose，butyou’rewrong。IfIhad，I’dhavedoneitbetterthanthis。Iwouldn’thavethisbrutalpain。\"
