These conversations and discussions, this buoyant current of youthful
life charged with its questions, hopes, expectations, and opinions,
came rushing like a passionate storm upon the blind youth. At first he
listened to them with a look of surprise, but it was not long before he
found that the stream rushed along paying no heed to him. No questions
were asked him, neither was he invited to give his opinion; and it soon
became evident to him that he stood apart in a solitude, the sadder since
brought into contrast with the present wide-awake life of the mansion.
Nevertheless he listened to all this that was so new to him, and his
contracted brow and pallid face bore witness to his intense interest. Yet
this feeling was tinged with gloom; his brain was swarming with bitter
thoughts.
The mother looked sorrowfully at her son. Evelyn’s eyes expressed
sympathy and alarm. Maxim alone did not seem to notice the impression
that this noisy company made upon his nephew, and hospitably invited the
guests to come often, assuring the young men that he would furnish them
with abundant ethnographical material on their next visit.
The guests departed, promising to come again. The young men shook hands
cordially with Peter when they said good-by. He nervously returned their
pressure, and for a long time listened to the sound of the brìtchka as it
rolled along the road. Then he turned suddenly and went into the garden.
After the departure of the guests everything at the manor lapsed into its
former tranquillity; but to the blind youth this silence seemed strange,
unusual, and peculiar. It implied an acknowledgment that an important
event had taken place on the estate. The silent garden-paths where he
was wont to hear only the whisper of the beech-trees and the lilacs, now
resounded in his fancy with the echoes of recent conversations. From
the open window of the drawing-room he heard the voices of his mother
and Evelyn arguing with Maxim. He was struck by the pathetic tone of
entreaty in his mother’s voice, while that of Evelyn rang out with
indignation; Maxim meanwhile eagerly but firmly resisted the entreaties
of the two women. Upon Peter’s approach, these discussions instantly
ceased.
Consciously, and with pitiless hand, Maxim had made the first breach in
the wall which till now encompassed his nephew’s world. The first noisy
and tumultuous wave had already made its way through this breach, and
the equilibrium of the young man’s soul was shaken by its onslaught.
Now he realized the limitations of his magic circle; the quiet of the
estate seemed oppressive to him, the indolent whisper and rustle of the
old garden hung like a weight upon the peaceful dream of his young soul.
Something wavered to and fro in the darkness, pressing toward him with
wistful and enticing eagerness. It called and beckoned, awakening the
questions that had been slumbering within him. The pallor of his face and
a dull indefinite sense of misery in his soul were the visible signs
that the summons was heard. Maxim meanwhile was preparing for a second
breach.