Go on."
"But--"
"Go on, Ruffo."
" 'Has Gaspare ever said you were like somebody?' my mamma said."
"And you--what did you say?"
"I said, 'No,' Signora. And that is true. Don Gaspare has never said I
was like somebody."
The boy had evidently finished what he had to say. He stood quietly by
Hermione, waiting for her to speak in her turn. For a moment she said
nothing. Then she put her hand on Ruffo's arm.
"Whom do you think your mother meant when she said 'somebody,' Ruffo?"
"Signora, I do not know."
"But surely--didn't you ask whom she meant?"
"No, Signora. I told my mamma Don Gaspare had never said that. She was
crying. And so I did not say anything more."
Hermione still held his arm for a moment. Then her hand dropped down.
Ruffo was looking at her steadily with his bright and searching eyes.
"Signora, do you know what she meant?"
"I! How can I tell, Ruffo? I have never seen your mother. How can I
know what she meant?"
"No, Signora."
Again there was a silence.
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