Mr.
Kroll. But we must let in the daylight now. It was not you, John. You
are innocent. It was I that lured--that ended by luring--Beata into the
tortuous path--

Rosmer (springing up). Rebecca!

Kroll (getting up). Into the tortuous path!

Rebecca. Into the path that--led to the mill-race. Now you know it,
both of you.

Rosmer (as if stunned). But I do not understand--What is she standing
there saying? I do not understand a word--

Kroll. Yes, yes. I begin to understand.

Rosmer. But what did you do? What did you find to tell her? Because
there was nothing--absolutely nothing!

Rebecca. She got to know that you were determined to emancipate
yourself from all your old prejudices.

Rosmer. Yes, but at that time I had come to no decision.

Rebecca. I knew that you soon would come to one.

Kroll (nodding to ROSMER). Aha!

Rosmer. Well--and what more? I want to know everything now.

Rebecca. Some time afterwards, I begged and implored her to let me
leave Rosmersholm.

Rosmer. Why did you want to leave here--then?

Rebecca. I did not want to. I wanted to remain where I was. But I told
her that it would be best for us all if I went away in time. I let her
infer that if I remained here any longer I could not tell
what-what-might happen.

Rosmer. That is what you said and did, then?

Rebecca. Yes, John.

Rosmer. That is what you referred to when you said that you "acted"?

Rebecca (in a broken voice). Yes, that was it.

Rosmer (after a pause). Have you confessed everything now, Rebecca?

Rebecca. Yes.

Kroll. Not everything.

Rebecca (looking at him in terror). What else can there be?

Kroll. Did you not eventually lead Beata to believe that it was
necessary--not merely that it should be best--but that it was
necessary, both for your own sake and for John's, that you should go
away somewhere else as soon as possible?--Well?

Rebecca (speaking low and indistinctly). Perhaps I did say something of
the sort.

Rosmer (sinking into a chair by the window). And she, poor sick
creature, believed in this tissue of lies and deceit! Believed in it so
completely--so absolutely! (Looks up at REBECCA.) And she never came to
me about it--never said a word! Ah, Rebecca--I see it in your face--YOU
dissuaded her from doing so.

Rebecca. You know she had taken it into her head that she, a childless
wife, had no right to be here. And so she persuaded herself that her
duty to you was to give place to another.