'Drowned last summer,' he whispered, fearful lest Maciek's and the little girl's turn should come next.
But she ate greedily like a wild animal, and asked nothing further.
'Does she know?' he thought.
Zoska had finished and struck her hand cheerfully on her knee. He took courage.
'Can I stop the night?'
Uneasiness seized him; any other guest would have been a blessing in his solitude, but Zoska…. If she did not know the truth, what ill wind had blown her here? And if she knew?…'
He reflected. In the intense silence suddenly the priest's voice started again: 'I was a stranger and ye took me not in.'
'All right, stop here, but you must sleep in this room.'
'Or in the barn?'
'No, here.'