But while she listened she was looking into the monk’s face, and her own was pale and had a frightened expression.
‘It could not be helped,’ he said in a low voice. ‘I did not know he was coming, and you are here early. If there is any fault it is mine.’
Maria listened in silence. He held out the sealed envelope Castiglione had brought him, and she saw the well-known writing.
‘This is addressed to me,’ continued Padre Bonaventura, ‘but I give it to you unopened. It contains a document which will relieve you of all anxiety about your letters.’
‘Already!’
‘Yes. He has lost no time. He is a man of action.’
The monk could not withhold a word of admiration, and Maria felt the warmth in her cheeks.
‘Indeed he is!’ she answered in a low voice. ‘Thank him for me!’
‘I have thanked him. That is enough, and we may never meet again.’