Amelia—[Advancing into the room, shrugging.] It’s damp! [Seeing The Dove still at work.] What a sweet, gentle creature, what a little Dove it is! Ah, God, it’s a sin, truly it’s a sin that I, a woman with temperament, permit a young girl to stay in the same room with me!
The Dove—[In a peaceful voice.] I’ve loaded all the pistols——
Vera—[With suppressed anger.] Shined all the swords, ground all the poniard points! Attack a man now if you dare, he’ll think you’re playing with him!
Amelia—[In an awful voice.] Vera! [She begins pacing.] Disaster! disaster!—wherever I go, disaster! A woman selling fish tried to do me out of a quarter and when I remonstrated with her, she said with a wink: “I, too, have been bitten by the fox!”
The Dove—If you’ll sit down I’ll make some tea.
Amelia—No, no, we’ll have a little lunch soon, only I never can get the corks out of bottles.
The Dove—I can.
Vera—Rubbish! [She gets up and goes out.]
Amelia—Well, has anything happened since I went out?
The Dove—No.