es.

But nothing had ever come of it. He was hotheaded and overbearing, but
she did not believe him to be vindictive. Of course, in forming this
lenient estimate of a character not to be very easily fathomed, she
was grievously mistaken.

To-day he was in one of his blind rages, and he had, moreover, been
drinking. At such times he was not always responsible for either his
words or actions. In a few hours he would be his normal self, and his
senseless anger would have died down.

Still, she wished that she could take counsel with somebody. She could
not go to her mother. The Princess's cold had been the precursor of an
acute attack of diphtheria of such an infectious nature that her
chamber was barred to everybody except the nurse and doctor.

Relatives, of course, Nada had in abundance, but she shrank from
exposing her brother to these. He was unpopular enough with his family
as it was.

She could, of course, send round a note to Beilski, informing him of
her brother's threat and claiming his protection; but, from the few
hints the General had dropped, she could see that he was already
sufficiently inflamed against Zouroff. She did not wish to increase
that resentment, unless it were absolutely necessary.

But still she felt imperatively the desire to confide, in somebody to
have disinterested counsel as to the course she should pursue.

And suddenly the idea of Corsini occurred to her mind. She knew, with
the intuitive instinct of a woman, that the young musician had fallen
deeply in love with her, that if for certain reasons he would never go
so far as to confess his love, she would ever find in him a true and
devoted friend.

When she had sent that letter to his hotel to make sure that he had
been safely brought back from Pavlovsk, he had forwarded her the piece
of music she had asked for, as an excuse for writing to him.

After the first few formal lines of his answering note, he had written
some strange words--words which evidently conveyed a deeper meaning
than appeared on the surface. She remembered them perfectly.

"I cannot express to you in grateful enough language my thanks for all
you have done for me. Later on, perhaps, I may have the opportunity of
rendering them personally."

Grateful thanks for all she had done for him! There was only
one service she had rendered him which could call for such warm
expressions. But had he been able to connect her with that? Had he
been able to reason it out