The old woman came back leaving the door half open behind her, and said, with the same assumed expression of vacancy with which she had probably received Leo--
"The Herr von Sellenthin is there, but I have said that madame is engaged----"
She broke off, for there he stood. He had pushed the old creature aside, and rushed in.
"At last! At last!" she said, as she calmly offered him her hand with a melancholy smile.
"Yes, at last," he repeated with a hard brusque laugh, the sound of which from him was strange to her. At a first glance she saw a change in him. His eyes rolled restlessly, and his forehead was deeply marked with lines of anger.
Her conscience was never quite serene, even when she was not aware of having erred afresh, so she asked, stammering--
"Have I done anything to offend you again, so soon?"
"Oh no, certainly not," he retorted, and leaned back for a moment against the wall, screwing up his eyes. Then he asked when Ulrich was coming, and watched greedily for her answer.
"Not before Christmas Eve, and it may be even later, for here we don't distribute our presents till the Christmas Day."
He drew a deep breath.