“Yes, yes, I know all about it,” he interrupted. “But one thing, let me tell you; I don’t intend to fight Sarudine.”
Von Deitz turned round sharply.
Tanaroff drew himself up, and said in a tone of contempt.
“Why not, pray?”
Sanine burst out laughing. His hatred had vanished as swiftly as it had come.
“Well, this is why. First of all, I have no wish to kill Sarudine, and secondly, I have even less desire to be killed myself.”
“But …” began Tanaroff scornfully.
“I won’t, and there’s an end of it!” said Sanine, as he rose. “Why, indeed? I don’t feel inclined to give you any explanation. That were too much to expect, really!”
Tanaroff’s profound contempt for the man who refused to fight a duel was blended with the implicit belief that only an officer could possibly possess the pluck and the fine sense of honour necessary to do such a thing. That is why Sanine’s refusal did not surprise him in the least; in fact, he was secretly pleased.
“That is your affair,” he said, in an unmistakably contemptuous tone, “but I must warn you that …”