Page:Halek's Stories and Evensongs.pdf/48

 Krista stood before her in amazement; and the peasant woman continued, “Perhaps you expect me to pick it up from the ground for you.”

To this Krista replied, “Kind mistress, I cannot do it any better, and if you will not show me how to do it, I shall not be able to work for you.”

“Then be so good as to be off to-day better than to-morrow. Come, come, none of thy threats to me. Tie up your rags at once, and don’t let me see you here by nightfall.”

After this Krista began to implore forgiveness, for she felt that perhaps she had been hasty. But the peasant woman would not hear a word. “Don’t let me see you in the house a moment longer”, she roared, and Krista did not venture to address her again.

She collected her clothes, tied them in a bundle, and with the bundle tramped off to Venik on the hill-side.

“Now I am going, now it is all over”, she said when she came there. “Now I dare not venture into the cottage.” She said it with a smile, for her grief assumed the guise of smiles, which were indeed a kind of determination. And then she said what had happened.

“Where shall you go?” said Venik, as if beside himself, for indeed he had never before had to face so horrible a calamity.

“I know not,” said Krista, “I only know that I must say good-bye to you in earnest.” And again she laughed a short constrained laugh, so that Venik began to be embarrassed to know whether it was all jest or earnest.

But it was all so perfectly true, that Venik for a long time lost the power of speech. When he found words to speak the first he uttered were, “You shall not go alone; I will go with you.”

“Where would you go,” said Krista with surprise and terror.

“Do you think I shall stop here without you? We will go and be in service together”, spoke out Venik. Then Krista could have fallen on Venik’s neck and have kissed him all over. To have only him and he not to cast her off—he to wish to entwine his fate with her’s—was not that enough to make her feel at that instant twice a woman? was not that enough to bring all at once into her heart springtime, fair weather, flowers, and all sweet songs?

“We will find a place where we shall be allowed to play and sing together”, said Venik warmly, and as if in proof thereof, he forthwith loosed his violin from its nail and began to play as if