‘Why are you running after him!’ Ivan Fyodorovich shouted angrily at his father. ‘He’ll end up by killing you.’
‘Vanechka, Lyoshechka, she’s here, she must be, Grushenka’s here, he said so himself—he saw her hurrying here?’
He was choking. He had not been expecting Grushenka on this occasion, and the unexpected news that she was there had immediately driven him out of his mind. He was shaking all over, as if demented.
‘Surely you can see for yourself she isn’t here!’ yelled Ivan.
‘Maybe she came through that door?’
‘That door is locked and you’ve got the key…’
Suddenly, Dmitry reappeared in the drawing-room. He had found the rear door locked, of course, and, true enough, the key to it was in Fyodor Pavlovich’s pocket. All the windows in the rooms were also locked; thus there was no way that Grushenka could have entered the house and no way that she could have escaped.
‘Grab him!’ Fyodor Pavlovich screamed as soon as he saw Dmitry again. ‘He’s stolen some money from my bedroom.’ And, tearing himself loose from Ivan’s grip, he once again rushed at Dmitry. But the latter, with both hands, grabbed the old man by the last remaining tufts of hair sprouting from his temples, jerked him up, and brought him violently to the floor. As he lay there he managed to kick him two or three times in the face with the heel of his shoe. The old man moaned loudly. Though Ivan Fyodorovich was not as strong as Dmitry, he seized him and exerted all his strength to pull him off the old man. Alyosha too helped as best he could by grabbing his brother from the front.
‘You’re mad, you’ve killed him!’ Ivan shouted.
‘Serves him right!’ cried Dmitry, out of breath. ‘And if I haven’t, I’ll come back and finish him off. You won’t stop me!’
‘Dmitry, get out of here at once!’ commanded Alyosha.
‘Aleksei! You tell me, you’re the only one I trust: has she been here or hasn’t she? I saw her myself going past the fence and turning into here from the lane. I called to her, but she ran off…’
‘I swear to you she hasn’t been here, and what’s more, no one was expecting her!’
‘But I saw her… That means she’s… I’ll soon find out where she is now… Goodbye, Aleksei! Remember, not a word to Aesop* about the money, but off you go to Katerina Ivanovna immediately and make sure you say: “He sends his regards, his regards!” Those very words, “He sends his sincere regards!” Explain the situation to her.’
In the meantime Ivan and Grigory had helped the old man up and sat him in an armchair. His face was covered in blood, but he was fully conscious and was listening attentively to Dmitry’s shouting. He was still under the impression that Grushenka really was somewhere in the house. Dmitry Fyodorovich gave him a parting look of hatred.
‘I’m not sorry that I made you bleed!’ he shouted. ‘Watch out, old man, watch out for your dream, because I too have a dream! I curse you and dissociate myself from you for ever…’
He rushed out of the room.
‘She’s here, she must be here! Smerdyakov, Smerdyakov,’ the old man croaked, scarcely audibly, beckoning with his finger for Smerdyakov to approach.
‘She’s not here, she’s not, you’re out of your mind,’ Ivan shouted in anger. ‘He’s going to faint! Get some water and a towel! Move yourself, Smerdyakov!’
Smerdyakov rushed off for some water. Finally, they undressed the old man, carried him into the bedroom, and put him to bed with a wet towel round his head. Exhausted by the brandy, the unexpected excitement, and the beating, no sooner had his head touched the pillow than he closed his eyes and fell asleep. Ivan Fyodorovich and Alyosha returned to the drawingroom. Smerdyakov was clearing up the pieces of the broken vase, while Grigory stood by the table, his head hanging despondently.
‘You ought to put something wet on your head and lie down, too,’ Alyosha said, turning to Grigory. ‘We’ll take care of him; my brother gave you a nasty blow… on the head.’
‘He dared to hit me!’ Grigory said sombrely, pausing after each word.
‘You’re not the only one, he “dared” to hit his own father!’ said Ivan Fyodorovich with a wry grin.
‘I used to bath him in a tub… and he dared to hit me!’ Grigory repeated.
‘Dammit, if I hadn’t pulled him away, he’d have probably killed him. It wouldn’t take much to finish Aesop off!’ Ivan Fyodorovich whispered to Alyosha.
‘God forbid!’ exclaimed Alyosha.
‘Why “God forbid”?’ continued Ivan in a whisper as before, his lips contorted in malice. ‘Let dog eat dog, and to hell with them both!’
Alyosha shuddered.
‘I prevented a murder just now, and you can be sure I’d do the same again. You stay here, Alyosha, I’m going for a walk in the yard; I’ve got a headache coming on.’
Alyosha went to his father’s bedroom and sat at his bedside, behind the screen, for about an hour. The old man suddenly opened his eyes and stared at Alyosha in silence, apparently attempting to gather his thoughts. Suddenly, his face contorted with alarm.
‘Alyosha,’ he whispered warily, ‘where’s Ivan?’
‘Out in the yard, he’s got a headache. He’s keeping a lookout.’
‘Give me the little mirror, it’s over there, let me have it!’
Alyosha passed him a small, round, folding mirror which stood on the dresser. The old man took a look at himself: his nose had swollen badly and on his forehead, just above the left eyebrow, was a prominent red bruise.
‘What was Ivan saying? Alyosha, my dear Alyosha, my one and only child, Ivan scares me. Ivan frightens me more than the other one does. You’re the only one who doesn’t frighten me…’
‘Don’t be afraid of Ivan either, Ivan’s angry, but he’ll defend you.’
‘Alyosha, what about the other one? He’s run off to find Grushenka! Dear boy, tell me the truth: was Grushenka here just now or not?’
‘Nobody saw her. It’s all in your imagination, she hasn’t been here!’
‘Do you realize, Mitka wants to marry her—to marry her!’
‘She won’t have him.’
‘She won’t, she won’t, she won’t, she won’t, not for all the tea in China, she won’t!…’ The old man worked himself up into a fit of joy, as though this was the most gratifying thing that anybody could have said to him. In his rapture he grabbed Alyosha’s hand and pressed it tightly to his heart. There were even tears in his eyes. ‘Take the little icon, the one of the Mother of God I was telling you about, and look after it. And I’ll let you go back to the monastery… I was only joking before, don’t be angry. My head’s aching, Alyosha… Put my mind at rest, my boy, tell me the truth!’
‘Are you still worrying about the same thing, whether or not she was here?’ Alyosha said with sadness.
‘No, no, no, I believe you, there’s something else though: go to Grushenka yourself, or try to see her somehow; ask her straight out, as soon as possible, try to find out who she wants, me or him. Now, can you do that or not?’
‘If I see her, I’ll ask,’ Alyosha mumbled in embarrassment.
‘No, she won’t tell you,’ the old man interrupted, ‘she’s not to be trusted. She’ll start kissing you, and she’ll say that she wants to marry you. She’s devious, she’s shameless, no, you mustn’t go to her after all, you mustn’t!’
‘I agree, father, it wouldn’t be a good idea at all.’
‘Where was it he wanted you to go when he called out to you just before he ran out?’
‘He wanted me to go to Katerina Ivanovna.’
‘For money? To ask for money?’
‘No, not money.’
‘He’s got no money, not a kopeck. Listen, Alyosha, I’ll sleep on it tonight, but you can go now. Maybe you’ll run into her… Only make sure you come and see me in the morning, without fail. I’ll tell you something tomorrow; will you come?’
‘Yes, I will.’
‘When you do, pretend you’ve come of your own accord, to see how I am. Don
’t tell anyone I asked you. Don’t say a word to Ivan.’
‘All right.’
‘Goodbye, my dear boy, you stood up for me, I’ll never forget that. I’ll tell you something special tomorrow… but I must think it over first…’
‘And how do you feel now?’
‘Come tomorrow, I’ll be up and about tomorrow, I’m all right, I’m perfectly all right, I really am all right!…’
As he was crossing the yard, Alyosha caught sight of Ivan, who was sitting on a bench by the gate; he was pencilling something in his notebook. Alyosha informed Ivan that the old man was awake and conscious, and had given him permission to spend the night at the monastery.
‘Alyosha, I’d really love to see you tomorrow morning,’ Ivan said affably, rising; his good humour came as a complete surprise to Alyosha.
‘I shall be at the Khokhlakovas’ tomorrow,’ replied Alyosha. ‘I may call on Katerina Ivanovna too, tomorrow, if I don’t find her in today…’
‘So you’re going to Katerina Ivanovna now after all! To convey his respects, is that it?’ Ivan said suddenly with a smile. Alyosha was embarrassed.
‘All the shouting, on top of everything else, has given me a pretty shrewd idea of what’s going on. Dmitry has probably asked you to go along and… well… well, in short, say that he’s washing his hands of the whole affair, hasn’t he?’
‘Ivan!’ exclaimed Alyosha, ‘how will all this terrible business between father and Dmitry end?’
‘It’s impossible to know for sure. Probably, nothing at all will happen: the whole affair will just peter out. That woman’s a dangerous animal. In any case, father ought to be kept indoors, and Dmitry mustn’t be allowed in the house.’
‘Let me ask you something else: does any man really have the right to decide who of the people around him deserves to live, and who doesn’t?’
‘Why complicate the issue with the idea of who deserves to live? For the most part, this question is decided in men’s hearts not on the basis of who deserves to live, but according to quite different, much more obvious, criteria. As regards the “right”, doesn’t everyone have the right to wish?’
‘Surely not for someone else’s death?’
‘Well, why not? Why deceive oneself, seeing that that’s how all people live, and can’t live in any other way. Are you referring to what I said earlier, “let dog eat dog”? In that case, allow me to ask you something else: do you consider that I too, like Dmitry, am capable of spilling Aesop’s blood, well, of killing him, eh?’
‘Ivan, what do you mean! Nothing of the sort ever occurred to me! And I don’t think even Dmitry…’
‘I’m grateful for that at least,’ Ivan said with a smile. ‘Remember one thing, I shall always stand up for him. But as for my wishes in this case, I reserve the right to do exactly what I want. Au revoir till tomorrow. Don’t judge me and don’t look upon me as a murderer,’ he added with a smile.
They shook hands warmly, as never before. Alyosha felt that his brother had made a move towards reconciliation with him, and that he had done so for a reason, for some particular purpose.
10
BOTH TOGETHER
NEVERTHELESS, Alyosha left his father’s house even more distraught and depressed than when he had entered it. His thoughts were in disarray, and he was afraid to collect them and form a general conclusion from all the painful contradictions that he had experienced that day. It was as if he were verging on despair, and this had never happened to Alyosha before. The overriding, insoluble, and fateful question loomed over everything like a mountain: what would be the outcome of his father’s and Dmitry’s relationship with that terrible woman? On this occasion he himself had been a witness. He had been present and had seen them confront each other. Still, it was Dmitry who was likely to end up unhappy, totally and terribly unhappy: a calamity was undoubtedly awaiting him. As it happened, there were other people who felt that all this concerned them too, and to a far greater extent than Alyosha might previously have imagined. What emerged was mysterious. His brother Ivan had made the step towards reconciliation which Alyosha had desired for so long, and now for some reason he felt intimidated by this move towards a greater intimacy. And those women? It was very strange: earlier, he had felt acutely embarrassed about going to Katerina Ivanovna; now, however, he did not feel so at all; quite the contrary, he was hurrying to get there, as though expecting to obtain some guidance from her. However, it certainly appeared to be more difficult to pass the message to her now than had previously been the case: the matter of the three thousand roubles had been resolved once and for all, and his brother Dmitry, now feeling himself to be completely without honour and hope, would stop at nothing, no matter what humiliation he might suffer. Besides, he had instructed him to describe to Katerina Ivanovna the whole scene that had just taken place at their father’s.
It was already seven o’clock and getting dark when Alyosha set off to visit Katerina Ivanovna, who lived in a very spacious and comfortable house on the main street. Alyosha knew that she lived with two aunts. In actual fact, one of them was an aunt only to her sister Agafya Ivanovna; she was the taciturn woman in her father’s house who, together with her sister, had looked after her when she came back from boarding-school. The other aunt, although from a humble background, was a rather grand Muscovite lady. It was said that they both deferred to Katerina Ivanovna in everything and continued to live with her only for the sake of appearances. Katerina Ivanovna, on the other hand, deferred only to her benefactress, the General’s wife, who was too sick to leave Moscow and to whom she had to write two letters a week with all the news about herself.
When Alyosha stepped into the entrance hall and asked the maid who opened the door to announce him, it seemed that they were already aware in the drawing-room of his arrival (perhaps he had been spotted from the window), and then suddenly he heard a noise, the sound of women scurrying and the rustling of dresses; it could have been two or three women running out of the room. It seemed strange to Alyosha that his arrival could have caused such a disturbance. He was, however, immediately shown into the drawing-room. It was a large room, elegantly and sumptuously furnished, with no trace of provincial taste about it. There were many sofas, couches, and divans, large and small tables; there were pictures on the walls, lamps and vases on the tables, flowers were very much in evidence, and there was even an aquarium by the window. It was dusk, and it had become somewhat dark in the room. Alyosha noticed a silk mantilla lying on the sofa, which had evidently just recently been vacated, and on the table in front of the sofa stood two unfinished cups of chocolate, some biscuits, and a crystal plate with dark raisins and another one with sweets. Someone was being entertained. Alyosha realized that he had intruded upon visitors and frowned. But at that very instant the curtain hanging over the door was raised, and Katerina Ivanovna entered the room with hurried steps and, beaming with delight and joy, held out both hands towards Alyosha. At the same time a maid brought in two lighted candles and placed them on the table.
‘Thank God, you’re here at last! You’re the very person I’ve been praying to see all day long! Do sit down.’
Katerina Ivanovna’s beauty had made a great impression on Alyosha ever since his brother Dmitry had first taken him to her house to meet her, at her own express request, about three weeks before. However, they had not said much on that occasion. Sensing that Alyosha was very embarrassed, Katerina Ivanovna had done her best to spare his feelings and spent the whole time talking to Dmitry Fyodorovich. Alyosha had remained silent, but succeeded in observing a great deal. He was astonished at the air of authority, ease, and self-confidence that this proud young woman displayed. All this was beyond doubt. Alyosha felt that his impressions were not exaggerated. He was captivated by her large, dark, burning eyes, which perfectly complemented her pale, even somewhat olive-hued, oval face. But although there was indeed something in those eyes, as well as in the shape of her wonderful lips, with which his brother might fall terribly in love,
there was maybe something about them that one could not love for long. He had made little attempt to disguise his thoughts from Dmitry when, after the visit, the latter began to press him for an opinion of his bride-to-be, imploring him to hide nothing.
‘You will be happy with her, but perhaps… it will be a troubled happiness.’
‘You’re right, my boy, some people will never change, they won’t submit to their fate. So, you don’t think my love for her will last for ever?’
‘Well, perhaps you’ll love her for ever, but perhaps you won’t be happy with her for ever…’
Alyosha had given his opinion on that occasion, blushing and rebuking himself for giving in to his brother’s importuning and for expressing such ‘silly’ thoughts. He himself had been struck by the naïvety of his opinion as soon as he had expressed it. And besides, he felt ashamed to have passed such a definite opinion about a woman. His surprise was all the greater when he realized, on catching sight of Katerina Ivanovna as she entered the room to greet him, that perhaps he had been terribly mistaken on that previous occasion. This time her face shone with genuine, simple-hearted kindness, open and passionate sincerity. All that remained of her former ‘pride and disdain’, which had so struck Alyosha previously, was a bold and noble vitality and a powerful, evident faith in her own self. From his first glance at her, from her very first words, Alyosha realized that the whole tragedy of her situation with regard to the man whom she loved so deeply was no secret to her, that perhaps she already knew everything, absolutely everything. And yet in spite of that, there was so much radiance in her face, so much faith in the future. Alyosha suddenly felt that he had gravely and deliberately maligned her. He was at one and the same time vanquished and attracted by her. On top of everything else, he noticed from the first words she spoke that she was in a state of great excitement, perhaps quite unprecedented for her—an excitement bordering on ecstasy.
‘I’ve been so wanting to see you, because now you’re the only person who can tell me the whole truth—you and no one else!’
The Karamazov Brothers Page 24
