“Good news?”
He had the courage to nod his head. He kept his sorrow for himself alone; they were already separated.
“I never expect any news, myself. You are my whole heart and life.”
And as she went ahead of him along the terrace, where their little table had been set for them out of the wind, he asked himself:
“Shall I have the strength to go away?”
IV
THE RETURN
EDITH sat up on the edge of the bed and propped her chin in her hand while she watched Maurice finish his dressing. He had set the lamp on the floor, with a shade that threw the light downward, so that it should not bother her.
“Why do you get up so early?” she asked him in a sleepy voice, her eyes half opened.
“I can’t sleep any more. It’s almost morning.”
He blew out the lamp. A meagre light began presently to filter through the blinds.