He is a very good old man!"
"I have a great regard for him," said Rowland, gravely, at the same time
that he privately wondered whether the Cavaliere's pension was paid
by Prince Casamassima for services rendered in connection with his
marriage. Had the Cavaliere received his commission? "And what do you
do," Rowland continued, "on leaving this place?"
"We go to Italy--we go to Naples." She rose and stood silent a moment,
looking down the valley. The figure of Prince Casamassima appeared in
the distance, balancing his white umbrella. As her eyes rested upon it,
Rowland imagined that he saw something deeper in the strange expression
which had lurked in her face while he talked to her. At first he had
been dazzled by her blooming beauty, to which the lapse of weeks had
only added splendor; then he had seen a heavier ray in the light of her
eye--a sinister intimation of sadness and bitterness. It was the outward
mark of her sacrificed ideal. Her eyes grew cold as she looked at her
husband, and when, after a moment, she turned them upon Rowland, they
struck him as intensely tragical.
Pages:
578
579
580
581
582
583
584
585
586
587
588
589
590
591
592
593
594
595
596
597
598
599
600
601
602