she stopped in amazement. "Come in," said Luisa. "You may place the
brazier outside the door; sprinkle whatever is necessary upon it, and
then return to the kitchen and sleep, my good Leu." The woman obeyed.

"There was no illness?" Franco repeated.

"Come," his wife answered. "I will tell you everything."

She made him sit down on the _dormeuse_ at the foot of their bed. He
wished her to sit beside him, but she made a gesture of refusal, and of
entreaty that he should not insist, that he should be quiet and wait;
then, sinking down on the floor beside her baby, she began the painful
story in a low, even voice, that sounded almost indifferent to the
tragedy it was relating, a voice that resembled poor, deaf Barborin's,
seeming to come from a far-away world. She began with her meeting with
Peppina Bianconi at Campo, and--always in the same calm tone--told him
all the thoughts, all the sentiments that had brought her to confront
his grandmother, told him everything, down to the moment when she had
realised that Maria was indeed dead. When she had finished she rose to
her knees, and kissing her dead child, whispered to her: "Now your papa
thinks that I killed you, but it is not true, dear, indeed, it is not
true!"

He rose, quivering with nameless emotion, and bending over her, raised
her--neither yielding nor resisting--from the floor. Touching her
resolutely but tenderly, he placed her on the _dormeuse_ beside him. He
encircled her shoulders with his arm, pressing her to him, speaking with
his lips on her hair, wetting it with the hot tears, which from time to
time choked his voice. "My poor Luisa! No, indeed you did not kill her!
How could you suspect me of thinking such a thing? I bless you instead
for all that you have done for her ever since she came into the world;
I, who have done nothing, bless you who have done so much. Never say
such a thing again! Never, dear. Our Maria----"

A violent sob checked his words, but the man immediately exerted his
strong will, controlled himself and continued:

"Don't you know what our Maria is saying now? She is saying: 'My darling
mamma, my darling papa, now you are all alone, you have only each
other, you are more closely united than ever; give me to God that He may
give me back to you; that I may become your little guardian angel, and
lead you to Him at last, that we may dwell together in all eternity,' Do
you hear her saying these words, Luisa?"

She trembled in his arm