Her heart misgave her when the Tzar was closeted with her father. A sort of presentiment whispered to her that the matter concerned her; and when Gavril Afanassievitch bade her to retire, while he conferred with her aunt and grandfather, she could not resist feminine curiosity, crawled quietly through the back rooms to the bedroom door, and missed no word of their terrible conversation. When she heard her father's last sentence, the poor girl fainted, and falling, struck her head against the metal-bound chest which held her dowry.
The servants rushed in, lifted Natasha, carried her to her own suite of apartments, and laid her upon her bed. After a little she came to and opened her eyes, but recognised neither father nor aunt. Fever set in; in her delirium she spoke of marriage and the Tzar's negro, and suddenly cried in a plaintive and piercing voice: "Valerian, dear Valerian, my life, save me: There they are, there they are."
Tatiana Afanassievna glanced anxiously at her brother, who turned white, bit his lip, and left the room in silence. He returned to the old Prince, who, unable to mount the stairs, had remained below.
"How is Natasha?" he asked.
"Poorly," replied the sad father; "worse than I thought: in her delirium she raves about Valerian."
"Who is this Valerian?" inquired the anxious old man. "Can it be the orphan son of the musketeer whom you brought up in your house?"
"The same, to my sorrow!" replied Gavril Afanassievitch. "His father saved my life during the insurrection, and the devil induced me to take home the accursed young wolf. Two years ago, at his own request, he was drafted into the army. Natasha cried at parting with him, while he stood as if turned to stone. I thought it suspicious, and spoke to my sister about it. But Natasha has never mentioned him since; and nothing has been heard of him. I hoped she had forgotten him, but it seems not. I have decided; she shall marry the negro."
Prince Lykoff did not contradict him; it would have been useless. He returned home. Tatiana Afanassievna remained by Natasha's bedside. Gavril Afanassievitch, after sending for the doctor, locked himself in his own room, and in his house all was still and sad. This unexpected proposal of marriage surprised Ibrahim, at any rate, quite as much as it surprised Gavril Afanassievitch. It happened thus.
Peter, while busy at work with Ibrahim, said to him: