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gry with him at all, really; but I suddenly fancied — that
was what did it — that it would be such a fine scene.... And
yet, believe me, it was quite natural, for I really shed tears
and cried for several days afterwards, and then suddenly,
one afternoon, I forgot all about it. So it’s a fortnight since
he’s been here, and I kept wondering whether he would
come again. I wondered even yesterday, then suddenly last
night came this Gossip. I read it and gasped. Who could
have written it? He must have written it. He went home, sat
down, wrote it on the spot, sent it, and they put it in. It was
a fortnight ago, you see. But, Alyosha, it’s awful how I keep
talking and don’t say what I want to say. the words come of
themselves!’
‘It’s very important for me to be in time to see my brother
to-day,’ Alyosha faltered.
‘To be sure, to be sure! You bring it all back to me. Listen,
what is an aberration?’
‘What aberration?’ asked Alyosha, wondering.
‘In the legal sense. An aberration in which everything
is pardonable. Whatever you do, you will be acquitted at
once.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I’ll tell you. This Katya... Ah! she is a charming, charm-
ing creature, only I never can make out who it is she is in
love with. She was with me some time ago and I couldn’t
get anything out of her. Especially as she won’t talk to me
except on the surface now. She is always talking about my
health and nothing else, and she takes up such a tone with
me, too. I simply said to myself, ‘Well so be it. I don’t care’...