"My rabbit," Robert Jordan said and held her as close and as gently as he could.
But he was as full of hate as any man could be.
"Do not talk more about it.
Do not tell me any more for I cannot bear my hatred now."
She was stiff and cold in his arms and she said,
"Nay.
I will never talk more of it.
But they are bad people and I would like to kill some of them with thee if I could.
But I have told thee this only for thy pride if I am to be thy wife.
So thou wouldst understand."
"I am glad you told me," he said.
"For tomorrow, with luck, we will kill plenty."
"But will we kill Falangists?
It was they who did it."
"They do not fight," he said gloomily.
"They kill at the rear.
It is not them we fight in battle."
"But can we not kill them in some way?
I would like to kill some very much."
"I have killed them," he said.
"And we will kill them again.
At the trains we have killed them."
"I would like to go for a train with thee," Maria said.
"The time of the train that Pilar brought me back from I was somewhat crazy.
Did she tell thee how I was?"
"Yes.
Do not talk of it."
"I was dead in my head with a numbness and all I could do was cry.
But there is another thing that I must tell thee.
This I must.
Then perhaps thou wilt not marry me.
But, Roberto, if thou should not wish to marry me, can we not, then, just be always together?"
"I will marry thee."
"Nay.
I had forgotten this.
Perhaps you should not.
It is possible that I can never bear thee either a son or a daughter for the Pilar says that if I could it would have happened to me with the things which were done.
I must tell thee that.
Oh, I do not know why I had forgotten that."
"It is of no importance, rabbit," he said.
"First it may not be true.
That is for a doctor to say.
Then I would not wish to bring either a son or a daughter into this world as this world is.
And also you take all the love I have to give."
"I would like to bear thy son and thy daughter," she told him.
"And how can the world be made better if there are no children of us who fight against the fascists?"
"Thou," he said.
"I love thee.
Hearest thou?
And now we must sleep, rabbit.