When he came up to her he could only say: "Hermione, my friend--"
The loneliness of this mountain summit was a fit setting for her
loneliness, and these two solitudes, of nature and of this woman's soul,
took hold of Artois and made him feel as if he were infinitely small, as
if he could not matter to either. He loved nature, and he loved this
woman. And of what use were he and his love to them?
She stretched up her hand to him, and he bent down and took it and held
it.
"You said some day I should leave my Garden of Paradise, Emile."
"Don't hurt me with my own words," he said.
"Sit by me."
He sat down on the warm ground close to the heap of stones.
"You said I should leave the garden, but I don't think you meant like
this. Did you?"
"No," he said.
"I think you thought we should be unhappy together. Well, we were never
that. We were always very happy. I like to think of that. I come up here
to think of that; of our happiness, and that we were always kind and
tender to each other. Emile, if we hadn't been, if we had ever had even
one quarrel, even once said cruel things to each other, I don't think I
could bear it now. But we never did. God did watch us then, I think. God
was with me so long as Maurice was with me. But I feel as if God had gone
away from me with Maurice, as if they had gone together. Do you think any
other woman has ever felt like that?"
"I don't think I am worthy to know how some women feel," he said, almost
falteringly.
"I thought perhaps God would have stayed with me to help me, but I feel
as if He hadn't. I feel as if He had only been able to love me so long as
Maurice was with me."
"That feeling will pass away."
"Perhaps when my child comes," she said, very simply.
Artois had not known about the coming of the child, but Hermione did not
remember that now.
"Your child!" he said.
"I am glad I came back in time to tell him about the child," she said. "I
think at first he was almost frightened. He was such a boy, you see. He
was the very spirit of youth, wasn't he? And perhaps that--but at the end
he seemed happy. He kissed me as if he loved not only me. Do you
understand, Emile? He seemed to kiss me the last time--for us both. Some
day I shall tell my baby that."