The young girl in the lilac hat handed him a parcel.
Vronsky, smiling, said something to her.
The carriage drove away, he ran rapidly upstairs again.
The mists that had shrouded everything in her soul parted suddenly.
The feelings of yesterday pierced the sick heart with a fresh pang.
She could not understand now how she could have lowered herself by spending a whole day with him in his house.
She went into his room to announce her determination.
"That was Madame Sorokina and her daughter. They came and brought me the money and the deeds from maman.
I couldn't get them yesterday.
How is your head, better?" he said quietly, not wishing to see and to understand the gloomy and solemn expression of her face.
She looked silently, intently at him, standing in the middle of the room.
He glanced at her, frowned for a moment, and went on reading a letter.
She turned, and went deliberately out of the room.
He still might have turned her back, but she had reached the door, he was still silent, and the only sound audible was the rustling of the note paper as he turned it.
"Oh, by the way," he said at the very moment she was in the doorway, "we're going tomorrow for certain, aren't we?"
"You, but not I," she said, turning round to him.
"Anna, we can't go on like this..."
"You, but not I," she repeated.
"This is getting unbearable!"
"You...you will be sorry for this," she said, and went out.
Frightened by the desperate expression with which these words were uttered, he jumped up and would have run after her, but on second thoughts he sat down and scowled, setting his teeth.
This vulgar--as he thought it--threat of something vague exasperated him.
"I've tried everything," he thought; "the only thing left is not to pay attention," and he began to get ready to drive into town, and again to his mother's to get her signature to the deeds.
She heard the sound of his steps about the study and the dining room.
At the drawing room he stood still.
But he did not turn in to see her, he merely gave an order that the horse should be given to Voytov if he came while he was away.
Then she heard the carriage brought round, the door opened, and he came out again.
But he went back into the porch again, and someone was running upstairs.
It was the valet running up for his gloves that had been forgotten.
She went to the window and saw him take the gloves without looking, and touching the coachman on the back he said something to him.
Then without looking up at the window he settled himself in his usual attitude in the carriage, with his legs crossed, and drawing on his gloves he vanished round the corner.
Chapter 27
"He has gone!
It is over!" Anna said to herself, standing at the window; and in answer to this statement the impression of the darkness when the candle had flickered out, and of her fearful dream mingling into one, filled her heart with cold terror.
"No, that cannot be!" she cried, and crossing the room she rang the bell.
She was so afraid now of being alone, that without waiting for the servant to come in, she went out to meet him.
"Inquire where the count has gone," she said.
The servant answered that the count had gone to the stable.
"His honor left word that if you cared to drive out, the carriage would be back immediately."
"Very good.
Wait a minute.
I'll write a note at once.
Send Mihail with the note to the stables.
Make haste."
She sat down and wrote:
"I was wrong.
Come back home; I must explain.
For God's sake come! I'm afraid."
She sealed it up and gave it to the servant.
She was afraid of being left alone now; she followed the servant out of the room, and went to the nursery.