.

"Are you off?" said Gania, suddenly, remarking that she had risen and
was about to leave the room. "Wait a moment--look at this."

He approached the table and laid a small sheet of paper before her. It
looked like a little note.

"Good heavens!" cried Varia, raising her hands.

This was the note:

"GAVRILA ARDOLIONOVITCH,--persuaded of your kindness of heart, I have
determined to ask your advice on a matter of great importance to myself.
I should like to meet you tomorrow morning at seven o'clock by the green
bench in the park. It is not far from our house. Varvara Ardalionovna,
who must accompany you, knows the place well.

"A. E."

"What on earth is one to make of a girl like that?" said Varia.

Gania, little as he felt inclined for swagger at this moment, could
not avoid showing his triumph, especially just after such humiliating
remarks as those of Hippolyte. A smile of self-satisfaction beamed on
his face, and Varia too was brimming over with delight.

"And this is the very day that they were to announce the engagement!
What will she do next?"

"What do you suppose she wants to talk about tomorrow?" asked Gania.

"Oh, THAT'S all the same! The chief thing is that she wants to see you
after six months' absence. Look here, Gania, this is a SERIOUS business.
Don't swagger again and lose the game--play carefully, but don't funk,
do you understand? As if she could possibly avoid seeing what I have
been working for all this last six months! And just imagine, I was there
this morning and not a word of this! I was there, you know, on the sly.
The old lady did not know, or she would have kicked me out. I ran some
risk for you, you see. I did so want to find out, at all hazards."

Here there was a frantic noise upstairs once more; several people seemed
to be rushing downstairs at once.

"Now, Gania," cried Varia, frightened, "we can't let him go out! We
can't afford to have a breath of scandal about the town at this moment.
Run after him and beg his pardon--quick."

But the father of the family was out in the road already. Colia was
carrying his bag for him; Nina Alexandrovna stood and cried on the
doorstep; she wanted to run after the general, but Ptitsin kept her
back.

"You will only excite him more," he said. "He has nowhere else to go
to--he'll be back here in half an hour. I've talked it all over with
Colia; let him play the fool a bit, it will do him good."

"What are you up to? Where are you off