straw, and sat down
above it. He had the gate of the hotel opened, followed Niewski
Street as far as the Zunamenie Church, passed through the shops in the
Rejestwenskoi district, drove the sledge out on to the frozen Neva, and
halted in the middle of the river, in front of the deserted church of
Ste. Madeleine. There, protected by the solitude and darkness, hidden
behind the black mass of his sledge, he began to break the ice, which
was fifteen inches thick, with his pick. When he had made a large enough
hole, he searched the body of Foedor, took all the money he had about
him, and slipped the body head foremost through the opening he had made.
He then made his way back to the hotel, while the imprisoned current
of the Neva bore away the corpse towards the Gulf of Finland. An hour
after, a new crust of ice had formed, and not even a trace of the
opening made by Ivan remained.

At midnight Vaninka returned with her father. A hidden fever had been
consuming her all the evening: never had she looked so lovely, and she
had been overwhelmed by the homage of the most distinguished nobles
and courtiers. When she returned, she found Annouschka in the vestibule
waiting to take her cloak. As she gave it to her, Vaninka sent her one
of those questioning glances that seem to express so much. "It is done,"
said the girl in a low voice. Vaninka breathed a sigh of relief, as if
a mountain had been removed from her breast. Great as was her
self-control, she could no longer bear her father's presence, and
excused herself from remaining to supper with him, on the plea of the
fatigues of the evening. Vaninka was no sooner in her room, with the
door once closed, than she tore the flowers from her hair, the necklace
from her throat, cut with scissors the corsets which suffocated her, and
then, throwing herself on her bed, she gave way to her grief. Annouschka
thanked God for this outburst; her mistress's calmness had frightened
her more than her despair. The first crisis over, Vaninka was able to
pray. She spent an hour on her knees, then, yielding to the entreaties
of her faithful attendant, went to bed. Annouschka sat down at the foot
of the bed.

Neither slept, but when day came the tears which Vaninka had shed had
calmed her.

Annouschka was instructed to reward her brother. Too large a sum given
to a slave at once might have aroused suspicion, therefore Annouschka
contented herself with telling Ivan that when he had need of money h