Page:Twilight of the Souls (1917).djvu/366

358 "I don't see him."

"He walks very fast."

"Was Mamma so uneasy?"

"Yes. . . . She was very restless and anxious."

"Have the others gone away as well?"

"Yes, Mamma was tired. . . . All the same, she relies upon us . . . to come back presently for a moment."

"Mamma is becoming a little exacting. . . ."

"She's growing so old. . . . We may as well give her that pleasure . . . of just going."

How much gentler her tone had become! . . . Once, ah, once she would have flared out at him violently for less than this little difference! . . . Now, ah, now, how much gentler everything about her had become! . ..

She stumbled through the snow.

"Take care, Constance. . . . The pavements are slippery. . . . Take my arm."

"No, I can manage."

"Take my arm."

She took his arm. She slipped again; he held her up. He felt that she was trembling.

"Are you cold?"

"No."

"You've got a thick cloak on."

"I'm not cold."

"What are you so nervous about?"

"I don't know. . . ."