Page:Anna Karenina.djvu/851

 "Oh, how glad I am! I am very glad. 'Little to say, that he 's an excellent man,'" she. repeated.

Dolly smiled.

"But now tell me about yourself," said Dolly. "I want a long talk with you. I have talked with ...."

She did not know what to call Vronsky—it was awkward to call him either count or Alekseï Kirillovitch.

"With Alekseï," said Anna. "Yes; I know that you talked with him. But I wanted to ask you frankly what you think of me.... of my life."

"How can I tell you at such short notice? I don't know what to say."

"No; you must tell me. ... You see my life. But you must not forget that you see us in summer with people, and we are not alone ....but we came in the early spring, we lived entirely alone, and we shall live alone again. I ask for nothing better than living alone with him. But when I imagine that I may live alone without him, absolutely alone, and this would be .... I don't see why this may not be frequently repeated, that he may spend half of his time away from home," she said, and, getting up, she sat down close by Dolly. "Oh, of course," she said quickly, interrupting Dolly, who was about to speak, "of course, I cannot keep him by force.... I don't keep him. To-day there's a race; his horses race; he goes. I am very glad! But you think of me; imagine my situation .... what is to be said about it?" She smiled. "But what did he talk with you about?"

"He spoke about a matter which I myself wanted to talk over with you; and it is easy for me to be an advocate of it,—about this: whether it is not possible or essential to"—Darya Aleksandrovna hesitated—"to improve, make your position legal .... you know how I look at .... but anyhow, if possible, a marriage must take place."

"You mean divorce?" said Anna. "Do you know, the only woman who came to see me in Petersburg was Betsy Tverskaya! Perhaps you know her. Au fond c'est la femme la plus depravée qui existe. She had a