"When she wakes, will you let me take it up to her?"
"Yes, if you want to."
"Miriam, tell me—does Barbara look like her mother?" His voice was full of love and longing.
"There may be a slight resemblance," Miriam admitted.
"But how much?"
The Same Old Question
A curious, tigerish impulse possessed Miriam. He had asked her this same question many times and she had always eluded him with a vague generalisation.
"How much does she resemble her mother?" he insisted. "You told me once that they were 'something alike.'"
"That was a long time ago," answered Miriam. She was breathing hard and her eyes glittered. "Barbara has changed lately."
"Don't hide the truth for fear of hurting me," he pleaded. "Once for all I ask you—does Barbara resemble her mother?"