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what had to be said. She asked him to come and
call for her on the following evening.
And then, walking in the dark beside the low
bushes, his arm linked in hers, he told her about
things that frightened her because she could hear
from his voice how bad they had been though she
did not understand them. He didn't dare either to
mention them by name, he merely said : * When
you've done things like that, you've fallen low,'
and perpetually he made the excuse that he had
struggled against it, but the others had been too
strong for him, and when he had done it once he
did it the next time without thinking. Sometimes
he fell silent as though he saw it all before him
again, then he called himself a coward, who would
have done better to stay away. That things had
been very bad she grasped, and that was quite
enough for her, she didn't need to know what and
how. She asked no questions, she let him talk.
And in the end he was addressing himself with
questions and answers, accusing and defending,
and they walked for so long that she was tired
out.
It was almost too late to go and see her parents,
but she dared not stay away. And after that she
had to hurry back. She arranged to meet him,
and then went, but suddenly she turned back and
threw her arms round his neck, whispering that
everything would come right. Standing alone in