erra, who looked poorly dressed, and by no means in such good case
as formerly, answered that he should be very glad if Malfi would
recommend him.

'You had better turn about, then, and come on with us,' said Malfi,
as he rode forward. During this conversation Mendez had sat by
saying nothing; and if he was grave and silent before, he was still
more so now, insomuch that his behaviour drew the attention of his
brother-in-law, who asked him if there was anything wrong with him.

'Surely it's not Faustina's dream you are thinking of?' he said;
adding, 'that the meeting with Guerra had put it out of his head, or
he would have examined the place more narrowly.'

Mendez entered into no explanation; and as the servant, who was
acquainted with Guerra, took him up behind him, they all arrived at
their journey's end nearly together: Mendez, instead of proceeding
homewards, turning off with the others to Malfi's house, where the
first thing he did after his arrival was to visit his sister, whom
he found better; whilst she, on the contrary, was struck with the
pallor of his features and the agitation of his manner--a disorder
which, like her husband, she attributed to the shock of her dream,
acting upon a mind prepared by the affair of the preceding year to
take alarm. In order to remove the impression, she laughed at the
fright she had been in; but it was evident he could not share her
merriment, and he quickly left her, saying he had a message to send
to Rocca, which was the village where Bianca and her father resided,
and that he must go below and write a note, which he did, giving it
to Malfi's servant to take.

It appeared afterwards that this man, having other work in hand,
gave the note to Guerra, who willingly undertook the commission, and
who, to satisfy his own curiosity, broke the seal on the way, and
possessed himself of its contents before he delivered it. These
were, however, only a request that Bianca and her father would come
over to Malfi's house that evening and bring the notary of the
village with them, he (Mendez) being too tired to go to Rocca to
sign the contract, as had been arranged.

It being between six and seven o'clock when this dispatch arrived,
Bianca, who was very little inclined to sign the contract at all,
objected to going; but her father insisting on her compliance, they
set off in company with Guerra and the notary, who, according to
appointment, was already in waiting. They had nearly thr