Anna Karenina - Part 5

"Ah, Vronsky! When are you coming to the regiment? We can't let

you off without a supper. You're one of the old set," said the

colonel of his regiment.

"I can't stop, awfully sorry, another time," said Vronsky, and

he ran upstairs towards his brother's box.

The old countess, Vronsky's mother, with her steel-gray curls,

was in his brother's box. Varya with the young Princess Sorokina

met him in the corridor.

Leaving the Princess Sorokina with her mother, Varya held out her

hand to her brother-in-law, and began immediately to speak of

what interested him. She was more excited than he had ever seen

her.

"I think it's mean and hateful, and Madame Kartasova had no

right to do it. Madame Karenina..." she began.

"But what is it? I don't know."

"What? you've not heard?"

"You know I should be the last person to hear of it."

"There isn't a more spiteful creature than that Madame

Kartasova!"

"But what did she do?"

"My husband told me.... She has insulted Madame Karenina. Her

husband began talking to her across the box, and Madame Kartasova

made a scene. She said something aloud, he says, something

insulting, and went away."

"Count, your maman is asking for you," said the young Princess

Sorokina, peeping out of the door of the box.

"I've been expecting you all the while," said his mother, smiling

sarcastically. "You were nowhere to be seen."

Her son saw that she could not suppress a smile of delight.

"Good evening, maman. I have come to you," he said coldly.

"Why aren't you going to _faire la cour à Madame Karenina_?" she

went on, when Princess Sorokina had moved away. "_Elle fait

sensation. On oublie la Patti pour elle_."

"Maman, I have asked you not to say anything to me of that," he

answered, scowling.

"I'm only saying what everyone's saying."

Vronsky made no reply, and saying a few words to Princess

Sorokina, he went away. At the door he met his brother.

"Ah, Alexey!" said his brother. "How disgusting! Idiot of a

woman, nothing else.... I wanted to go straight to her. Let's

go together."

Vronsky did not hear him. With rapid steps he went downstairs;

he felt that he must do something, but he did not know what.

Anger with her for having put herself and him in such a false

position, together with pity for her suffering, filled his heart.

He went down, and made straight for Anna's box. At her box stood

Stremov, talking to her.