Page 22 of 470

The hall porter sullenly pulled a bell that rang upstairs, and turned away.

“Princess Drubetskya to see Prince Vasli Sergevich,” he called to a footman dressed in knee breeches, shoes, and a swallow-tail coat, who ran downstairs and looked over from the halfway landing.

The mother smoothed the folds of her dyed silk dress before a large Venetian mirror in the wall, and in her trodden-down shoes briskly ascended the carpeted stairs.

“My dear,” she said to her son, once more stimulating him by a touch, “you promised me!”

The son, lowering his eyes, followed her quietly.

They entered the large hall, from which one of the doors led to the apartments assigned to Prince Vasli.

Just as the mother and son, having reached the middle of the hall, were about to ask their way of an elderly footman who had sprung up as they entered, the bronze handle of one of the doors turned and Prince Vasli came out—wearing a velvet coat with a single star on his breast, as was his custom when at home—taking leave of a good-looking, dark-haired man. This was the celebrated Petersburg doctor, Lorrain.

“Then it is certain?” said the prince.

“Prince, humanum est errare, * but...” replied the doctor, swallowing his r’s, and pronouncing the Latin words with a French accent.

     * To err is human.

“Very well, very well...”

Seeing Anna Mikhylovna and her son, Prince Vasli dismissed the doctor with a bow and approached them silently and with a look of inquiry. The son noticed that an expression of profound sorrow suddenly clouded his mother’s face, and he smiled slightly.

“Ah, Prince! In what sad circumstances we meet again! And how is our dear invalid?” said she, as though unaware of the cold offensive look fixed on her.

Prince Vasli stared at her and at Bors questioningly and perplexed. Bors bowed politely. Prince Vasli without acknowledging the bow turned to Anna Mikhylovna, answering her query by a movement of the head and lips indicating very little hope for the patient.

“Is it possible?” exclaimed Anna Mikhylovna. “Oh, how awful! It is terrible to think.... This is my son,” she added, indicating Bors. “He wanted to thank you himself.”

Bors bowed again politely.

“Believe me, Prince, a mother’s heart will never forget what you have done for us.”

“I am glad I was able to do you a service, my dear Anna Mikhylovna,” said Prince Vasli, arranging his lace frill, and in tone and manner, here in Moscow to Anna Mikhylovna whom he had placed under an obligation, assuming an air of much greater importance than he had done in Petersburg at Anna Schrer’s reception.

“Try to serve well and show yourself worthy,” added he, addressing Bors with severity. “I am glad.... Are you here on leave?” he went on in his usual tone of indifference.

“I am awaiting orders to join my new regiment, your excellency,” replied Bors, betraying neither annoyance at the prince’s brusque manner nor a desire to enter into conversation, but speaking so quietly and respectfully that the prince gave him a searching glance.

“Are you living with your mother?”

“I am living at Countess Rostva’s,” replied Bors, again adding, “your excellency.”

“That is, with Ily Rostv who married Nataly Shinshin,” said Anna Mikhylovna.

“I know, I know,” answered Prince Vasli in his monotonous voice. “I never could understand how Nataly made up her mind to marry that unlicked bear! A perfectly absurd and stupid fellow, and a gambler too, I am told.”

“But a very kind man, Prince,” said Anna Mikhylovna with a pathetic smile, as though she too knew that Count Rostv deserved this censure, but asked him not to be too hard on the poor old man. “What do the doctors say?” asked the princess after a pause, her worn face again expressing deep sorrow.

“They give little hope,” replied the prince.

“And I should so like to thank Uncle once for all his kindness to me and Bors. He is his godson,” she added, her tone suggesting that this fact ought to give Prince Vasli much satisfaction.

Prince Vasli became thoughtful and frowned. Anna Mikhylovna saw that he was afraid of finding in her a rival for Count Bezkhov’s fortune, and hastened to reassure him.

“If it were not for my sincere affection and devotion to Uncle,” said she, uttering the word with peculiar assurance and unconcern, “I know his character: noble, upright ... but you see he has no one with him except the young princesses.... They are still young....” She bent her head and continued in a whisper: “Has he performed his final duty, Prince? How priceless are those last moments! It can make things no worse, and it is absolutely necessary to prepare him if he is so ill. We women, Prince,” and she smiled tenderly, “always know how to say these things. I absolutely must see him, however painful it may be for me. I am used to suffering.”

Evidently the prince understood her, and also understood, as he had done at Anna Pvlovna’s, that it would be difficult to get rid of Anna Mikhylovna.

“Would not such a meeting be too trying for him, dear Anna Mikhylovna?” said he. “Let us wait until evening. The doctors are expecting a crisis.”

“But one cannot delay, Prince, at such a moment! Consider that the welfare of his soul is at stake. Ah, it is awful: the duties of a Christian...”

A door of one of the inner rooms opened and one of the princesses, the count’s niece, entered with a cold, stern face. The length of her body was strikingly out of proportion to her short legs. Prince Vasli turned to her.

“Well, how is he?”

“Still the same; but what can you expect, this noise...” said the princess, looking at Anna Mikhylovna as at a stranger.

“Ah, my dear, I hardly knew you,” said Anna Mikhylovna with a happy smile, ambling lightly up to the count’s niece. “I have come, and am at your service to help you nurse my uncle. I imagine what you have gone through,” and she sympathetically turned up her eyes.

The princess gave no reply and did not even smile, but left the room as Anna Mikhylovna took off her gloves and, occupying the position she had conquered, settled down in an armchair, inviting Prince Vasli to take a seat beside her.

“Bors,” she said to her son with a smile, “I shall go in to see the count, my uncle; but you, my dear, had better go to Pierre meanwhile and don’t forget to give him the Rostvs’ invitation. They ask him to dinner. I suppose he won’t go?” she continued, turning to the prince.