第23章

类别:其他 作者:Stewart Edward White字数:9275更新时间:19/01/07 14:47:37
\"DoI?\"saidhe。 \"Ofcourse,\"wentonTaylorafteramoment,\"wehaveastrongpresumptionofconspiracytogetholdofyourBoomCompanystock,whichIbelieveyouputupassecurity。ButIdon’tseehowwehaveanyincontestableproofofit。\" \"Proof?Whatmoredowewant?\" \"We’dhavenowitnesstoanyofthesetransactions;norhavewedocumentaryproofs。It’smerelymoralcertainty;andmoralcertaintyisn’tmuchinacourtoflaw。I’llseehim,ifyousayso,though,andscarehimintosomesortofanarrangement。\" Ordeshookhishead。 \"No,\"saidhedecidedly。\"Rathernot。I’llrunthis。Pleasesaynothing。\" \"Ofcoursenot!\"interjectedTaylor,atrifleindignantly。 \"AndI’llfigureoutwhatIwanttodo。\" OrdepressedTaylortostaytosupper;butthelatterdeclined。 Afterafewmoments’conversationongeneraltopicsthelawyertookhisdeparture,secretlymarvellingoverthephlegmaticwayinwhichOrdehadtakenwhathadbeentoTaylor,whenhefirststumbledagainstit,ashockingpieceofnews。 XLVII Ordedidnotwishtoreturntotheofficeuntilhehadworkedhisproblemout;so,tolendhisabsencethecolourofnaturalness,hedrovebacknextmorningtothebooms。Therehefoundenoughtokeephimoccupiedallthatdayandthenext。Asinthosetimesthelongdistancetelephonehadnotyetbeenattempted,hewascutofffromcasualcommunicationwiththevillage。Lateintheafternoonhereturnedhome。 AtelephonetoCarrollapprisedhimthatallwaswellwithher。A fewmomentslaterthecallsounded,andOrdetookamessagethatcausedhimtolookgraveandtowhistlegentlywithsurprise。HeatesupperwithBobby。Aboutstar—timehetookhishatandwalkedslowlydownthestreetbeneaththevelvetdarknessofthemaples。 AtNewmark’sheturnedinbetweentheoleanders。 Mallockansweredhisring。 \"No,sir,Mr。Newmarkisout,sir,\"saidMallock。\"I’lltellhimyoucalled,sir,\"andstartedrespectfullybutfirmlytoclosethedoor。 ButOrdethrusthisfootandkneeintheopening。 \"I’llcomeinandwait,\"saidhequietly。 \"Yes,sir,thisway,sir,\"saidMallock,tryingtoindicatethedining—room,wherehewishedOrdetosituntilhecouldcomeathismaster’swishesinthematter。 Ordecaughtthearomaoftobaccoandtheglimmeroflighttotheleft。Withoutreplyheturnedtheknobofthedoorandenteredthelibrary。 TherehefoundNewmarkineveningdress,seatedinaloweasychairbeneathalamp,smoking,andreadingamagazine。AtOrde’sappearanceinthedoorway,helookedupcalmly,hispaperknifepoised,keepingtheplace。 \"Oh,it’syou,Orde,\"saidhe。 \"Yourmantoldmeyouwerenotin,\"saidOrde。 \"Hewasmistaken。Won’tyousitdown?\" OrdeenteredtheroomandmechanicallyobeyedNewmark’ssuggestion,hismannerpreoccupied。Forsometimehestaredwithwrinkledbrowatapointabovetheilluminationofthelamp。Newmark,overtheendofhiscigar,poisedafootfromhislips,watchedtherivermanwithacoolcalculation。 \"Newmark,\"Ordebeganabruptlyatlast,\"Iknowallaboutthisdeal。\" \"Whatdeal?\"askedNewmark,afterabarelyperceptiblepause。 \"ThisarrangementyoumadewithHeinzman。\" \"IborrowedsomemoneyfromHeinzmanforthefirm。\" \"Yes;andyousuppliedthatmoneyyourself。\" Newmark’seyesnarrowed,buthesaidnothing。Ordeglancedtowardhim,thenawayagain,asthoughashamed。 \"Well,\"saidNewmarkatlast,\"whatofit?\" \"Ifyouhadthemoneytolendwhydidn’tyoulenditdirect?\" \"Becauseitlooksbettertomortgagetoanoutsideholder。\" AnexpressionofprofounddisgustflittedacrossOrde’scountenance。 Newmarksmiledcovertly,andpuffedonceortwicestronglyonhisnearlyextinctcigar。 \"Thatwasnotthereason,\"wentonOrde。\"YouagreedwithHeinzmantodividewhenyousucceededinforeclosingmeoutofthetimberlandsgivenassecurity。FurthermoreyouinstructedFloydtogooutontheeveofthatblowinspiteofhiswarnings;andyoucontractedwithMcLeodforthenewvessels;andyou’vetiedusuprightandleftforthesolepurposeofpinchingusdownwherewecouldn’tmeetthosenotes。That’stheonlyreasonyouborrowedtheseventy—fivethousandonyourownaccount;sowecouldn’tborrowittosaveourselves。\" \"Itstrikesmeyouareinterestingbutinconclusive,\"saidNewmark,asOrdepausedagain。 \"Thatsortofthingissomewhatofafacer,\"wentonOrdewithouttheslightestattentiontotheinterjection。\"Ittookmesomedaystoworkitoutinallitsdetails;butIbelieveIunderstanditallnow。Idon’tquiteunderstandhowyoudiscoveredaboutmyCaliforniatimber。That’investigation’wasaveryprettymove。\" \"Howthedevildidyougetontothat?\"criedNewmark,startledforamomentoutofhiscoolattitudeofcynicalaloofness。 \"Thenyouacknowledgeit?\"shotinOrdequickasaflash。 Newmarklaughedinamusement。 \"Whyshouldn’tI?OfcourseHeinzmanblabbed。Youcouldn’thavegotitallanywhereelse。\" Ordearosetohisfeet,andhalfsatagainonthearmofhischair。 \"NowI’lltellyouwhatwewilldointhismatter,\"saidhecrisply。 ButNewmarkunexpectedlytooktheaggressive。 \"We’llfollow,\"saidhe,\"theoriginalprogramme,aslaiddownbymyself。I’mtiredofdealingwithblunderingfools。Heinzman’smortgagewillbeforeclosed;andyouwillhandoveraspertheagreementyourBoomCompanystock。\" Ordestaredathiminamazement。 \"Imustsayyouhavegoodnerve,\"hesaid;\"youdon’tseemtorealisethatyouareprettywelltangledup。Idon’tknowwhattheycallit:criminalconspiracy,orsomethingofthatsort,Isuppose。 Sofarfromhandingovertoyouthebulkofmyproperty,Icansendyoutothepenitentiary。\" \"Nonsense,\"rejoinedNewmark,leaningforwardinhisturn。\"Iknowyoutoowell,JackOrde。You’reafoolofmorekindsthanIcaretocount,andthisisoneofthekinds。Doyouseriouslymeantosaythatyoudaretrytoprosecuteme?Justassureasyoudo,I’llputHeinzmaninthepentoo。I’vegotitonhim,COLD。He’sabribegiver——andsomewhatofacriminalconspiratorhimself。\" \"Well,\"saidOrde。 Newmarkleanedbackwithanamusedlittlechuckle。\"Ifthemanhadn’tcometoyouandgiventhewholeshowaway,you’dhavelosteverycentyouowned。Hedidyouthebiggestfavourinhispower。 AndforyourbenefitI’lltellyouwhatyoucaneasilysubstantiate; Iforcedhimintothisdealwithme。Ihadthisbriberycaseonhim;andinadditionhisownaffairswerealltiedup。\" \"Iknewthat,\"repliedOrde。 \"Whathadthemantogainbytellingyou?\"pursuedNewmark。 \"Nothingatall。Whathadhetolose?Everything:hisproperty,hissocialposition,hisdaughter’sesteem,whichtheoldfoolholdshigherthananyofthem。Youcouldputmeinthepen,perhaps——withHeinzman’stestimony。ButtheminuteHeinzmanappearsonthestand,I’lllandhimhighanddryandgasping,withoutachancetoflop。\" Hepausedamomenttopuffathiscigar。Findingithadgoneout,helaidthebuttcarefullyontheashtrayathiselbow。 \"I’mnotmuchusedtogivingadvice,\"hewenton,\"leastofallwhenitisatalllikelytobetaken。ButI’llofferyousome。ThrowHeinzmanover。Lethimgotothepen。He’sbeencrooked,andafool。\" \"That’swhatyou’ddo,Isuppose,\"saidOrde。 \"Exactlythat。YouowenothingtoHeinzman;butsomethingtowhatyouwouldprobablycallrepentance,butwhichisinrealityamawkishsentimentalityofweakness。However,Iknowyou,JackOrde,fromtoptobottom;andIknowyou’refoolenoughnottodoit。I’msosureofitthatIdareputittoyoustraight;youcouldneverbringyourselftothepointofdestroyingamanwhohadsacrificedhimselfforyou。\" \"Youseemtohavethisgameallfiguredout,\"saidOrdewithcontempt。 Newmarkleanedbackinhischair。Twobrightredspotsburnedinhisordinarilysallowcheeks。Hehalfclosedhiseyes。 \"You’reright,\"saidhewithanill—concealedsatisfaction。\"Ifyouplayagame,playitthrough。Eachmanisdifferent;foreachadifferenttreatmentisrequired。Thegameisinfinite,wonderful,fascinatingtotheskilful。\"HeopenedhiseyesandlookedoveratOrdewithamildcuriosity。\"Isupposemenareaboutallofonekindtoyou。\" \"Two,\"saidOrdegrimly;\"thehonestmenandthescoundrels。\" \"Well,\"saidtheother,\"let’ssettlethisthing。ThefactremainsthatthefirmowesanotetoHeinzman,whichitcannotpay。Youoweanotetothefirmwhichyoucannotpay。Allthismaybeslightlyirregular;butforprivatereasonsyoudonotcaretomakepublictheirregularity。AmIrightsofar?\" Orde,whohadbeenwatchinghimwithaslightlysardonicsmile,nodded。 \"Well,whatIwantoutofthis——\" \"Youmightheartheotherside,\"interruptedOrde。\"Inthefirstplace,\"saidhe,producingabundleofpapers,\"Ihavethenoteandthemortgageinmypossession。\" \"WhenceHeinzmanwillshortlyrescuethem,assoonasIgettoseehim,\"counteredNewmark。\"YouacknowledgethatIcanforceHeinzman;andyoucanhardlyrefusehim。\" \"IfyouforceHeinzman,he’lllandyou,\"Ordepointedout。 \"ThereisCanadaforme,withnoextradition。Hetravelswithheavierbaggage。Ihavethebettertrumps。\" \"You’dloseeverything。\" \"Notquite,\"smiledNewmark。\"And,asusual,youareforgettingthepersonalequation。Heinzmanis——Heinzman。AndIamI。\" \"ThenIsupposethisaffidavitfromHeinzmanastothedetailsofallthisisuselessforthesamereason?\" Newmark’sthinlipspartedinanothersmile。 \"Correct,\"saidhe。 \"Butyou’rereadytocompromisebelowthefaceofthenote?\" \"Iam。\" \"Why?\" Newmarkhesitated。 \"I’lltellyou,\"saidhe;\"becauseIknowyouwellenoughtorealisethatthereisapointwhereyourloyaltytoHeinzmanwouldstepasideinfavourofyourloyaltytoyourfamily。\" \"Andyouthinkyouknowwherethatpointis?\" \"It’sthebasisofmycompromise。\" Ordebegansoftlytolaugh。\"Newmark,you’reascleverasthedevil,\"saidhe。\"Butaren’tyouafraidtolayoutyourcardsthisway?\" \"Notwithyou,\"repliedNewmark,boldly;\"withanybodyelseonearth,yes。Withyou,no。\" Ordecontinuedtolaugh,stillinthelowundertone。 \"Theworstofitis,Ibelieveyou’reright,\"saidheatlast。\"Youhavethethingsizedup;andthereisn’taflawinyourreasoning。 Ialwayssaidthatyouwerethebrainsofthisconcern。Ifitwerenotforonething,I’dcompromisesure;andthatonethingwasbeyondyourpowertoforesee。\" Hepaused。Newisark’seyeshalf—closedagain,inaquickd’artingeffortofhisbraintorunbackoveralltheelementsofthegamehewasplaying。Ordewaitedinpatienceforhimtospeak。 \"Whatisit?\"askedNewmarkatlast。\"Heinzmandiedofsmallpoxatfouro’clockthisafternoon,\"saidOrde。 XLVIII Newmarkdidnotalterhisattitudenorhisexpression,buthisfaceslowlywentgray。Forafullminutehesatabsolutelymotionless,hisbreathcomingandgoingnoisilythroughhiscontractednostrils。 Thenhearosegropinglytohisfeet,andstartedtowardoneofthetwodoorsleadingfromtheroom。 \"Whereareyougoing?\"askedOrdequietly。 Newmarksteadiedhimselfwithaneffort。 \"I’mgoingtogetmyselfadrinkinmybedroom,\"hesnapped。\"Anyobjections?\" \"No,\"repliedOrde。\"None。Afteryougetyourdrink,comeback。I wanttotalktoyou。\" Newmarksnarledathim:\"Youneedn’tbeafraidI’llrunaway。How’dIgetoutoftown?\" \"Iknowitwouldn’tpayyoutorunaway,\"saidOrde。 Newmarkpassedoutthroughthedoor。OrdelookedthoughtfullyatHeinzman’saffidavit,which,dulydisinfected,hadbeenhandedhimbyDr。McMullenasimportant;andthrustitandtheotherpapersintohisinsidepocket。ThenhearosetohisfeetandglidedsoftlyacrosstheroomtotakeapositionclosetothedoorthroughwhichNewmarkhaddepartedinquestofhisdrink。Forahalfminutehewaited。Finallythedoorswungbrisklyinward。Likeapanther,asquicklyandasnoiselessly,Ordesprangforward。Ashortbutdecisivestruggleensued。InlessthantensecondsOrdehadpinionedNewmark’sarmstohissidewhereheheldthemimmovablewithoneofhisown。TheotherhandherandownNewmark’srightarmtothepocket。Therefollowedaninstantofsilentresistance。 ThenwithasharpcryofmingledangerandpainNewmarksnatchedhishandoutandgazedatrifleamazedlyatthehalfcrushedfingers。 OrdedrewforththerevolverNewmarkhadgraspedconcealedinthecoatpocket。 Withouthesitationheclosedandlockedthebedroomdoor;turnedthekeyinthelockoftheother;triedandfastenedthewindow。Therevolverheopened;spilledoutthecartridgesintohishand;andthentossedtheemptyweapontoNewmark,whohadsunkintothechairbythelamp。 \"There’syourplaything,\"saidhe。\"Soyouwantedthataffidavit,didyou?Nowwehavetheplacetoourselves;andwe’llthreshthismatterout。\" Hepaused,collectinghisthoughts。 \"Idon’tneedtotellyouthatI’vegotyouaboutwhereyoulive,\" saidhefinally。\"NorwhatIthinkofyou。Thecaseisopenandshut;andIcansendyouovertheroadforthebestpartofyournaturaldays。AlsoI’vegotthesenotesandthemortgage。\" \"Quitit,\"growledNewmark,\"you’vegotme。Sendmeup;andbedamned。\" \"That’sthequestion,\"wentonOrdeslowly。\"I’vebeenatitthreedays,withoutmuchtimeoffforsleep。Youhurtmeprettybad,Joe。 Itrustedyou;andIthoughtofyouasafriend。\" Newmarkstirredslightlywithimpatience。 \"Ihadahardtimegettingoverthatpartofit;andaboutthree— quartersofwhatwasleftintheworldlookedmightylikeashesforawhile。ThenIbegantoseethisthingalittleclearer。We’vebeentogetheragoodmanyyearsnow;andasnearasIcanmakeoutyou’vebeenstraightasastringwithmeforeightofthem。ThenI supposethechancecameandbeforeyouknewityouwereinoveryourneck。\" Helooked,half—pleadingtowardNewmark。Newmarkmadenosign。 \"Iknowthat’sthewayitmightbe。Amanthinkshe’smightybrave; andsoheis,aslongashecanseewhat’scoming,andgetreadyforit。Butsomedayanemergencyjustcomesupandtoucheshimontheshoulder,andheturnsaroundandseesitallofasudden。Thenhefindshe’sacoward。It’sprettyhardformetounderstanddishonesty,orhowamancanbedishonest。I’vetried,butIcan’tdoit。Crookednessisn’tmyparticularkindoffault。ButIdoknowthis:thatweeveryoneofushavesomethingtobeforgivenforbysomeone。IguessI’vegotatemperthatmakesmeprettysorrysometimes。Probablyyoudon’tseehowit’spossibleforamantogetcrazymadaboutlittlethings。Thatisn’tyourparticularkindoffault。\" \"Oh,forGod’ssake,dropthatpreaching。Itmakesmesick!\"brokeoutNewmark。 Ordesmiledwhimsically。 \"I’mnotpreaching,\"hesaid;\"andevenifIwere,I’vepaidagoodmanythousandsofdollars,itseems,tobuytherighttosaywhatI damnplease。AndifyouthinkI’mworkinguptoaChristianforgivenessracket,you’reverymuchmistaken。I’mnot。Idon’tforgiveyou;andIsurelydespiseyoursort。ButI’mexplainingtoyou——no,tomyself——justwhatI’vebeenatforthreedays。\" \"Well,turnmeovertoyoursheriff,andlet’sgetthroughwiththis,\"saidNewmarksullenly。\"Isupposeyou’vegotthatpartofitallfixed。\" Orderose。 \"Lookhere,Newmark,that’sjustwhatI’vebeencomingto,justwhatI’vehadsuchahardtimetogetholdof。Ifeltit,butIcouldn’tputmyfingeronit。NowIknow。I’mnotgoingtohandyouovertoanysheriff;I’mgoingtoletyouoff。No,\"hecontinued,inresponsetoNewmark’slookofincredulousamazement,\"itisn’tfromanyfoolnotionofforgiveness。ItoldyouIdidn’tforgiveyou。 ButI’mnotgoingtoburdenmyfuturelifewithyou。That’sjustplain,ordinaryselfishness。IsupposeIreallyoughttojugyou; butifIdo,I’llalwayscarrywithmethethoughtthatI’vetakenitonmyselftojudgeaman。AndIdon’tbelieveanymaniscompetenttojudgeanother。Itoldyouwhy——ortriedto——aminuteorsoago。I’velivedclean,andI’veenjoyedtheworldasacleanopen—airsortofproposition——likeawindyday——andIalwayshopeto。I’dratherdropthiswholematter。InashorttimeI’dforgetyou;you’dpassoutofmylifeentirely。Butifwecarrythisthingthroughtoafinish,I’dalwayshavethethoughtwithmethatI’dputyouinthepen;thatyouaretherenow。Idon’tlikethenotion。I’dratherfinishthisuprighthereandnowandgetitoveranddonewithandtakeafreshstart。\"Hepausedandwipedhisbrow,wetwiththeunusualexertionofthisself—analysis。\"Ithinkafellowoughttoactalwaysasifhewasmakingtheworld。Heoughttotrynottoputthingsinitthataregoingtomakeitanunpleasantoranevilworld。Wedon’talwaysdoit;butweoughttotry。NowifIweremakingaworld,Iwouldn’tputamaninapenitentiaryinit。Ofcoursethere’sdangerouscriminals。\"HeglancedatNewmarkalittleanxiously。\"Idon’tbelieyeyou’rethat。You’resharpanddishonest,andneedpunishment;butyoudon’tneedextinction。Anyway,I’mnotgoingtobothermyfuturewithyou。\" Newmark,whohadlistenedtothislongandramblingexpositionwithincreasingcuriosityandinterest,brokeintoashortlaugh。 \"You’veconvictedme,\"hesaid。\"I’mamostawfulfailure。I thoughtIknewyou;butthispassesallbelief。\" Ordebrushedthisspeechasideasirrelevant。 \"Ourassociation,ofcourse,comestoanend。Thereremainthetermsofsettlement。Icouldfireyououtofthiswithoutacent,andyou’dhavetogit。Butthatwouldn’tbefair。Idon’tgiveadamnforyou;butitwouldn’tbefairtome。NowasfortheNorthernPeninsulatimber,youhavehadseventy—fivethousandoutofthatandhavelentmethesameamount。Callthatquits。Iwilltakeupyournotewhenitcomesdue;anddestroytheonegiventoHeinzman。ForallyourholdingsinourcommonbusinessIwillgiveyoumynotewithoutinterestandwithouttimeforonehundredthousanddollars。Thatisnotitsfacevalue,noranythinglikeit,butyouhavecausedmedirectlyandindirectlyconsiderableloss。I don’tknowhowsoonIcanpaythisnote;butitwillbepaid。\" \"Allright,\"agreedNewmark。 \"Doesthatsatisfyyou?\" \"Isupposeit’sgotto。\" \"Verywell。Ihavethepapershereallmadeout。Theyneedsimplytobesignedandwitnessed。Timbullisthenearestnotary。\" Heunlockedtheoutsidedoor。 \"Come,\"saidhe。 Insilencethetwowalkedtheblockandahalftothenotary’shouse。HeretheywereforcedtowaitsometimewhileTimbulldressedhimselfandcalledthenecessarywitnesses。Finallythepaperswereexecuted。InthestreetNewmarkpausedsignificantly。 ButOrdedidnottakethehint。 \"Areyoucomingwithme?\"askedNewmark。 \"Iam,\"repliedOrde。\"Thereisonethingmore。\" Insilenceoncemoretheyreturnedtotheshadowylowlibraryfilledwithitsevidencesofgoodtaste。Newmarkthrewhimselfintothearmchair。Hewasquiterecovered,onceagaintheimperturbable,coldlycalculating,cynicalobserver。Orderelockedthedoor,andturnedtofacehim。 \"Youhavefivedaystoleavetown,\"hesaidcrisply。\"Don’tevershowuphereagain。Letmehaveyouraddressforthepaymentofthisnote。\" Hetooktwostepsforward。 \"I’veletyouofffromthepenbecauseIdidn’twantmylifebotheredwiththethoughtofyou。Butyou’vetreatedmelikeahound。I’vebeenloyaltothefirm’sinterestsfromthestart;andI’vedonemybestbyit。Youknifedmeintheback。You’readirty,low—livedskunk。Ifyouthinkyou’regoingtogetoffscot— free,you’remightilymistaken。\" Headvancedtwostepsmore。Newmarkhalfarose。 \"Whatdoyoumean?\"heaskedinsomealarm。 \"ImeanthatI’mgoingtogiveyouabouttheworstlickingyoueverheardTELLof,\"repliedOrde,buttoninghiscoat。 XLIX FiveminuteslaterOrdeemergedfromNewmark’shouse,softlyrubbingthepalmofonehandovertheknucklesoftheother。Atthefrontgatehepausedtolookupatthestars。Thenheshutitdecisivelybehindhim。 Upthroughthemapleshadedstreetshewalkedatabriskpace,breathingdeep,unconsciouslysquaringbackhisshoulders。Theincidentwasbehindhim。Inhischaracteristicdecisivemannerhehadwipedthewholedisagreeableaffairofftheslate。Thecopartnershipwithitsgainsandlosses,itsstrugglesandeasysailingwasathingofthepast。Onlythereremained,asafterafloodthesediment,afinalresultofitall,thebalancebetweensuccessesandfailures,agroundbeneaththefeetofnewaspirations。OrdehadtheNorthernPeninsulatimber;theBoomCompany;andthecarryingtrade。Theywereallburdenedwithdebt,itistrue,buttherivermanfeltsurgingwithinhimthereawakenedandpowerfulenergyforwhichoptimismisanothername。Hesawstretchingbeforehimalonglifeofendeavour,thesortofendeavourheenjoyed,exultedin;andinithewouldbeuntrammelledandalone。Theideaappealedtohim。Suddenlyhewasimpatientforthemorrowthathemightbegin。 Heturnedoutofthesidestreet。Hisownhouselaybeforehim,darksaveforthegasjetinthehallwayandthesinglelampinthelibrary。Aharmonyofsoftlytouchedchordsbreathedoutthroughtheopenwindow。Hestopped;thenstoleforwardsoftlyuntilhestoodlookinginthroughthedoorway。 Carrollsatleaningagainstthegoldenharp,hershiningheadwiththesoftshadowsbentuntilitalmosttouchedthestrings。Herhandswerestrayingidlyoveraccustomedchordsandrichmodulations,theplaintivehalf—musicofreverie。Asoftlightfellonherslenderfigure;halfrevealedtheovalofhercheekandthesweepofherlashes。 Ordecrepttoherunheard。Gentlyheclaspedherfrombehind。 Unsurprisedsherelinquishedtheharpstringsandsankbackagainsthisbreastwithahappylittlesigh。 \"Kindoffunbeingmarried,isn’tit,sweetheart?\"herepeatedtheirquaintformula。 \"Kindof,\"shereplied;andraisedherfacetohis。 THEEND