At Játiva a man got into the car, a man already old, whose face seemed to the former engineer to bear some traces of a friendly appearance. The new-comer also, on his side, looked at Zureda as if he remembered him. Thus both of them little by little silently drew together. In the end they studied each other with warm interest, as if sure of having sometime known each other before. Amadeo was the first to speak.
"It seems to me," said he, "that we have already seen each other somewhere, years ago."
"That was just what I was thinking, myself," answered the other.
"The fact is," went on the engineer, "I'm sure we must have talked to each other, many times."
"Yes, yes!"
"We must have been friends, sometime."
"Probably."
And they continued looking at each other, enwrapped by the same thought. Zureda asked:
"Have you ever lived in Madrid?"
"Yes, ten or twelve years."