Certainly nobody whom she wanted to meet.
Should she let him by?—yes.
A second passage opened to her left. She did not know it well. But she would not follow it up. She would only wait in it until the man outside—the man behind her—had gone by.
She pressed herself against the wall of the strange passage, keeping still and waiting quite silently. She did not breathe. She had extinguished the lamp. She stood in utter darkness, immovable.
She listened: the gliding feet were approaching. They walked in darkness as she stood in darkness. Now they were here. Now they must ... they must go past.... But they did not go. They stood quite still. Before the opening to the passage in which she stood, the feet stopped still and seemed to wait.
For what...? For her...?
In the complete silence the girl suddenly heard her own heart.... She heard her own heart, like pump-works, beating more and more quickly, throbbing more and more loudly. These loud throbbing heartbeats must also be heard by the man who kept the opening to the passage. And suppose he did not stay there any longer ... suppose he came inside ... she could not hear his coming, her heart throbbed so.
She groped, with fumbling hand, along the stone wall. Without breathing, she set her feet, one before the other.... Only to get away from the entrance.... Away from the place where the other was standing....
Was she wrong? Or were the feet really coming after her? Soft, slinking shoes on rough stones? Now the agonised, heavy breathing, heavier still, and nearer ... cold breath on her neck.... Then—
Nothing more. Silence. And waiting. And watching—keeping on the look-out....