d."

Five or six minutes passed before the table began to move. In answer to
Luisa's question: "Shall I go?" there came first thirteen, then fourteen
knocks. The answer was "no."

The professor turned pale, and Luisa questioned him with her eyes. He
was silent for some time, and then said with a sigh:

"Perhaps it was not Maria. Perhaps it was a lying spirit."

"And how can we find out?" Luisa inquired anxiously.

"We cannot find out. It is impossible."

"Then how about the other communications? Is there never any certainty?"

"Never."

She lapsed into terrified silence. Then presently she murmured: "It was
bound to end thus. This also was to be taken from me."

She rested her forehead upon the table. The candle light fell upon her
hair, upon her arms and hands. She was motionless, nothing moved in the
room save the little flickering flame of the candle. Another little
flame, the last light of hope and of comfort, was dying out in this poor
head which had gone down before the onslaught of a bitter and invincible
doubt. What could Gilardoni do or say? He saw that Ester's wish would
soon be gratified, but not by his means. Three or four minutes later
they heard Ester's voice, and steps on the floor below. Luisa rose
slowly.

"Let us go," said she.

"Perhaps we should pray," Gilardoni observed without rising. "Perhaps we
should ask the spirits if they confess Christ."

"No, no, no!" Luisa exclaimed in an undertone, at the same time
protesting with a hostile gesture. The professor silently took up the
candle.

* * * * *

On her way back to Oria Luisa went up to the gate of the cemetery.
Resting her forehead against it she sent a stifled good-bye towards
Maria's grave, then she went down the hill again. On reaching the
church-place she crossed over to the parapet and gazed down upon the
lake sleeping in the shadow. She stood there some time, letting her
thoughts roam at will. Placing her elbows on the parapet, she leaned
forward and rested her face upon her hands, still gazing at the water,
the water that had taken Maria. Her thoughts were beginning to take a
definite shape, not within her, but down there in the water. She
contemplated this shape. To die, to end it all! She was familiar with
the thought, she had seen it once before when gazing into the water
thus, long ago, before the experiments with the professor began. After
that it had disappeared. But now it had returned