"Then," she said--"then--I'll tell you!"
Maddalena looked up.
"Yes, I'll tell you."
Hermione paused. She had begun to tremble. She put one hand down to
the back of the chair, grasping it tightly as if to steady herself.
"I'll tell you."
What? What was she going to tell?
That first evening in Sicily--just before they went in to bed--Maurice
had looked down over the terrace wall to the sea. He had seen a light
--far down by the sea.
It was the light in the House of the Sirens.
"You once lived in Sicily. You once lived in the Casa delle Sirene,
beyond the old wall, beyond the inlet. You were there when we were in
Sicily, when Gaspare was with us as our servant."
Maddalena's lips parted. Her mouth began to gape. It was obvious that
she was afraid.
"You--you knew Gaspare. You knew--you knew my husband, the Signore of
the Casa del Prete on Monte Amato. You knew him. Do you remember?"
Maddalena only stared up at her with a sort of heavy apprehension,
sitting widely in her chair, with her feet apart and her hands always
resting on her knees.
Pages:
825
826
827
828
829
830
831
832
833
834
835
836
837
838
839
840
841
842
843
844
845
846
847
848
849