"I have asked no question, madame!"
"Do you mean to say you are not asking me if we will resell the libretto?"
Gillier was silent.
"My answer is that the libretto is our property and that we intend to keep it. If you offered us five times what we gave you for it the answer would be the same."
She paused. Gillier said nothing. She looked at him and suddenly anger, a sense of outrage, got the better of her, and she added with intense bitterness:
"We are living here in North Africa, we have given up our home, our friends, our occupations, everything—our life in England"—her voice trembled. "Everything, I say, in order to do justice to your work, and you come, you dare to come to us, and ask—ask—"
Gillier got up.
"Madame, I see it is useless. You have bought my work, if you choose to keep it—"
"We do choose to keep it."
"Then I can do nothing."