She opened the door for him herself. At the sight of him her face grew white as death.
“Oh, God!” she cried. “Something’s happened to them! Oh, God! I knew, if I let them go—”
“Don’t be silly!” he interrupted sharply. “They are both perfectly all right. I simply want to speak to you for a moment, if—”
He stopped short, shocked and dismayed that he had spoken in the old tone of irritation.
“Come in, Lew,” she said anxiously.
He followed her into the sitting room. It was untidy, with music scattered all about, and through the open doorway he could see the breakfast dishes still on the table.
“Madge has gone to mass,” she explained.
There was a strange sort of humility about her that he had never seen before. She was wearing a silk kimono, with her hair in a loose plait. Her face was pale and jaded and stained with tears.
“I’m sorry the place is so upset,” she said.
He knew what made her so apologetic. He had the upper hand now—he had her children.