She looked at me searchingly and said in a friendly tone:
"There, farther on, you will find an inn. But if you wish, you can come to us and get a glass of tea."
Indifferently and without thinking, I followed her. I came to the room. On the wall in the comer burned a little lamp, and under the holy images sat a stout old woman, chewing something. A samovar was on the table; everything seemed cozy and warm.
The woman asked me to sit down at the table. She was young, with red cheeks and a high bosom. The old woman looked at me from her corner and sniffed. She had a large, withered face, almost, it seemed, without eyes.
I was embarrassed. What was I doing here? Who were they? I asked the young woman:
True. On the wall were hung bunches of bobbins. Suddenly she laughed boldly and looked me straight in the face, and added:
The old woman laughed coarsely: "What a shameless hussy you are, Tanka!"
Had the old woman not said that, I would not have understood Tatiana's words. Now I knew what she meant, and became ill at ease. It was the first time in my life I had seen a loose girl, near-to, and naturally I did not think well of such women. Tatiana laughed.
I became angry. "And so I have fallen in here--from penance right into sin," I thought. I said to the girl:
The old woman began to sniff again: "Oh, Tatiana, Tatiana!"
I did not know what to say or how to go away from them. No excuse came to me.
I sat there silent. The wind rattled on the windows, the samovar sang and Tatiana began to tempt me.
"Oh, it's hot," she said, and unbuttoned the collar of her waist.
She had a pretty face and her eyes attracted me in spite of her bold expression. The old woman put vodka on the table, a bottle of "ordinary," and also some cherry brandy.
"That's good," I thought to myself. "I will drink some, pay and then go."
"Why are you so miserable?" Tatiana asked suddenly.
I could not restrain myself and answered:
Then she asked very low: "When did she die?"
The girl buttoned her waist and became more reserved. It pleased me. I looked into her face and said to myself:
Though my heart was heavy, yet I was young and was used to women. I had two years of married life behind me. But the old woman said, gasping:
"Your wife is dead--that is nothing much. You are young and there are women enough. The streets are full of them."