t he would be stabbed at the altar, or
publicly insulted, he would undoubtedly have been frightened; but not so
much at the idea of being murdered, or wounded, or insulted, as at the
thought that if such things were to happen he would be made to look
ridiculous in the eyes of society.

He knew well that Nastasia thoroughly understood him and where to wound
him and how, and therefore, as the marriage was still only in embryo,
Totski decided to conciliate her by giving it up. His decision was
strengthened by the fact that Nastasia Philipovna had curiously altered
of late. It would be difficult to conceive how different she was
physically, at the present time, to the girl of a few years ago. She was
pretty then... but now!... Totski laughed angrily when he thought how
short-sighted he had been. In days gone by he remembered how he had
looked at her beautiful eyes, how even then he had marvelled at their
dark mysterious depths, and at their wondering gaze which seemed to seek
an answer to some unknown riddle. Her complexion also had altered. She
was now exceedingly pale, but, curiously, this change only made her more
beautiful. Like most men of the world, Totski had rather despised such
a cheaply-bought conquest, but of late years he had begun to think
differently about it. It had struck him as long ago as last spring that
he ought to be finding a good match for Nastasia; for instance, some
respectable and reasonable young fellow serving in a government office
in another part of the country. How maliciously Nastasia laughed at the
idea of such a thing, now!

However, it appeared to Totski that he might make use of her in another
way; and he determined to establish her in St. Petersburg, surrounding
her with all the comforts and luxuries that his wealth could command. In
this way he might gain glory in certain circles.

Five years of this Petersburg life went by, and, of course, during that
time a great deal happened. Totski's position was very uncomfortable;
having "funked" once, he could not totally regain his ease. He was
afraid, he did not know why, but he was simply afraid of Nastasia
Philipovna. For the first two years or so he had suspected that she
wished to marry him herself, and that only her vanity prevented her
telling him so. He thought that she wanted him to approach her with a
humble proposal from his own side, But to his great, and not entirely
pleasurable amazement, he discovered that this was by no means