He had insisted on their behaving
with decent civility toward me. They said that he was afraid of
me, and laughed at the notion of his trying to make them afraid
too. That was the last thing I heard. The fury I was in, and the
necessity of keeping it down, almost suffocated me. I turned
round to leave the place forever, when, who should I see,
standing close behind me, but Father Rocco. He must have
discovered in my face that I knew all, but he took no notice of
it. He only asked, in his usual quiet, polite way, if I was
looking for anything I had lost, and if he could help me. I
managed to thank him, and to get to the door. He opened it for me
respectfully, and bowed--he treated me like a lady to the last!
It was evening when I left the studio in that way. The next
morning I threw up my situation, and turned my back on Pisa. Now
you know everything."
"Did you hear of the marriage? or did you only assume from what
you knew that it would take place?"
"I heard of it about six months ago. A man came to sing in the
chorus at our theater who had been employed some time before at
the grand concert given on the occasion of the marriage. But let
us drop the subject now. I am in a fever already with talking of
it. You are in a bad situation here, my dear; I declare your room
is almost stifling."
"Shall I open the other window?"
"No; let us go out and get a breath of air by the river-side.
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