Free electronic library

Then the prattle stopped. The child laid its head against
its mother's breast and was still.
"'It was for you,' he began. 'Forgive.' His voice failed him. Presently
I heard a mutter and caught the pitiful words: 'Not strong enough.'
"She looked at him with an extraordinary intensity. He tried to smile,
and in a humble tone, 'Forgive me,' he repeated. 'Leaving you . . .'
"She bent down, dry-eyed and in a steady voice: 'On all the earth I have
loved nothing but you, Gaspar,' she said.
"His head made a movement. His eyes revived. 'At last!' he sighed out.
Then, anxiously, 'But is this true . . . is this true?'
"'As true as that there is no mercy and justice in this world,' she
answered him, passionately. She stooped over his face. He tried to raise
his head, but it fell back, and when she kissed his lips he was already
dead. His glazed eyes stared at the sky, on which pink clouds floated
very high. But I noticed the eyelids of the child, pressed to its
mother's breast, droop and close slowly. She had gone to sleep.


Pages:
94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118