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Anna sat down at the hearth with an English novel and waited for

her husband. Exactly at half-past nine she heard his ring, and he

came into the room.

"Here you are at last!" she observed, holding out her hand to

him.

He kissed her hand and sat down beside her.

"Altogether then, I see your visit was a success," he said to

her.

"Oh, yes," she said, and she began telling him about everything

from the beginning: her journey with Countess Vronskaya, her

arrival, the accident at the station. Then she described the pity

she had felt, first for her brother, and afterwards for Dolly.

"I imagine one cannot exonerate such a man from blame, though he

is your brother," said Alexey Alexandrovitch severely.

Anna smiled. She knew that he said that simply to show that

family considerations could not prevent him from expressing his

genuine opinion. She knew that characteristic in her husband, and

liked it.