better and brighter.

"A man must perforce be cruel," said Nikolay dismally.

The mother nodded her head in confirmation. She recalled the sayings
of the Little Russian.

CHAPTER VI

Once Nikolay, usually so punctual, came from his work much later than
was his wont, and said, excitedly rubbing his hands: "Do you know,
Nilovna, to-day at the visiting hour one of our comrades disappeared
from prison? But we have not succeeded in finding out who."

The mother's body swayed, overpowered by excitement. She sat down on a
chair and asked with forced quiet:

"Maybe it's Pasha?"

"Possibly. But the question is how to find him, how to help him keep
in concealment. Just now I was walking about the streets to see if I
couldn't detect him. It was a stupid thing of me to do, but I had to
do something. I'm going out again."

"I'll go, too," said the mother, rising.

"You go to Yegor, and see if he doesn't know anything about it,"
Nikolay suggested, and quickly walked away.

She threw a kerchief on her head, and, seized with hope, swiftly sped
along the streets. Her eyes dimmed and her heart beat faster. Her head
drooped; she saw nothing about her. It was hot. The mother lost
breath, and when she reached the stairway leading to Yegor's quarters,
she stopped, too faint to proceed farther. She turned around and
uttered an amazed, low cry, closing her eyes for a second. It seemed
to her that Nikolay Vyesovshchikov was standing at the gate, his hands
thrust into his pockets, regarding her with a smile. But when she
looked again nobody was there.

"I imagined I saw him," she said to herself, slowly walking up the
steps and listening. She caught the sound of slow steps, and stopping
at a turn in the stairway she bent over to look below; and again saw
the face smiling up at her.

"Nikolay! Nikolay!" she whispered, and ran meet him. Her heart, stung
by disappointment, ached for her son.

"Go, go!" he answered in an undertone, waving his hand.

She quickly ran up the stairs, walked into Yegor's room, and found him
lying on the sofa. She gasped in a whisper:

"Nikolay is out of prison!"

"Which Nikolay?" asked Yegor, raising his head from the pillow. "There
are two there."

"Vyesovshchikov. He's coming here!"

"Fine! But I can't rise to meet him."

Vyesovshchikov had already come into the room. He locked the door
after him, and taking off his hat laughed quietly, stroking his hair.
Yegor ra