He glanced at me, and then looked away. There was a dull flush on his face.
"Please do not apologize. What did you wish to consult me about?"
"About my wife."
"Is she worse?"
"No." He dropped his hat, recovered it, and finally set it upon a corner of the table. "No, she is not worse. In fact, she is the reverse. She is better."
I waited, feeling only a mild interest in the cause of his agitation.
"She has got the Blue Disease," he continued, speaking with difficulty. "She got it yesterday and since then she has been much better. Her cough has ceased. She—er—she is wonderfully better." He began to drum with his fingers on his knee, and looked with a vacant gaze at the corner of the room. "Yes, she is certainly better. I was wondering if——"
There was a silence.
"Yes?"