"Or else she'll make a row," said Peredonov, with a touch of anxiety in his eyes. "That means that we should have to pay her a month's rent for her beastly hole." Peredonov laughed with joy at the thought of leaving the house without paying. "She's bound to make a demand," observed Vershina. "Let her--she won't get anything out of me," replied Peredonov angrily. "We went to Peter[1] and we made no use of the house while we were away." "But you had rented it." "What then? She ought to make a discount; why should we have to pay for time when we weren't there? Besides, she is very impertinent." "Well, your landlady is impertinent because she's yours--your cousin is particularly quarrelsome," said Vershina, with an emphasis on the "cousin." Peredonov frowned and looked dully in front of him with his half-sleepy eyes. Vershina changed the subject. Peredonov pulled a caramel out of his pocket, tore the paper off and began to chew it. He happened to glance at Marta and thought that she wanted a caramel. "Shall I give her one or not?" thought Peredonov. "She's not worth it. I suppose I ought to give her one to show that I'm not stingy. After all, I've got a pocketful." And he pulled out a handful of caramels. "Here you are!" he said, and held out the sweets, first to Vershina and then to Marta. "They're very good bonbons," he said, "expensive ones--thirty kopecks a pound." Each of the women took a sweet. "Take more," he said, "I've lots of them. They're very nice bonbons--I wouldn't eat bad ones." "Thank you, I don't want any more," said Vershina in her quick, monotonous voice. And Marta repeated after her the same words, but with less decision. Peredonov glanced incredulously at Marta and said: "What do you mean--you don't want them? Have another." He took a single caramel for himself from the handful and laid the others before Marta. She smiled without speaking and bent her head a little. "Little idiot!" thought Peredonov, "she doesn't even know how to thank one properly." He did not know what to converse about with Marta. She had no interest for him, like all objects and people with which he had no well-defined relations, either pleasant or unpleasant. The rest of the beer was poured into Peredonov's glass. Vershina glanced at Marta. "I'll get it," said Marta. She always guessed what Vershina wanted without being told. "Send Vladya--he's in the garden," suggested Vershina. "Vladislav!" shouted Marta. "Yes?" answered the boy from so close that it seemed as if he had been listening to them. "Bring some more beer--two bottles," said Marta, "they're in the box in the corridor." Vladislav soon came back noiselessly, handed the beer to Marta through the window and greeted Peredonov. "How are you?" asked Peredonov with a scowl. "How many bottles of beer have you got away with to-day?" Vladislav smiled in a constrained way and said: "I don't drink beer."