At this he turned away from the window and looked Terenti in the face. The hunchback, in his turn looked searchingly at his nephew's strong face, moving his lips, he tried to find a word in reply, and at last he said, emphatically: "'No' you say; but it does come! There--I fell into sin, and have been punished for it." "How?" asked Ilya, darkly. "Is anxiety nothing? I lived in fear and trembling. Any moment it might be found out, and I should----" "Well. I fell into sin, and I'm not afraid at all," said Ilya, with an insolent laugh. "Don't jest!" said Terenti warningly. "It's a fact! I'm not afraid! Life is hard for me, but----" "Aha!" cried Terenti, and stood up in triumph. "Hard, you say?" "Yes! Every one keeps away from me as if I were a mangey dog." "That's your punishment! D'you see?" "But why?" screamed Ilya, almost in fury; his jaw quivered, and he tore at the wall behind his back with his fingers. Terenti looked at him in terror, and flourished in the air with a piece of string. "Don't shout--don't shout so!" he said, half aloud. But Ilya went on unheeding. It was so long since he had spoken to any one, and now he hurled from his soul all that had accumulated there in these last days of loneliness; he spoke passionately and furiously. "You've been on a pilgrimage for nothing--nothing--nothing! It's all the same. Nothing would have happened to you. It's not only stealing; you can kill if you like. Nothing will come of it. There's no one to punish you! The stupid get punished; but the clever man--he can do anything, everything!" "Ilya," answered Terenti, approaching him anxiously, "Wait, wait. Don't get so excited! Sit down. We can talk of it quite quietly." Suddenly from the other side of the door came the noise of something breaking; there was a rolling and a cracking, and finally whatever it was came to a stop close to the door. The two men startled and were silent for a moment. All was still again; only the rain poured down. "What was that?" asked the hunchback, softly and timidly. Ilya went silently to the door, opened it, and looked through. "Some card-board boxes have fallen down," he said, closed the door and returned to his old place by the window. Terenti still stood up arranging his belongings. After a short silence he began again. "No--no, think a moment! You say such things! Such Godlessness does not anger God, but it destroys you yourself. Try to understand that; they are wise words. I heard them on my pilgrimage. Ah! how many wise sayings I heard!" He began again to tell of his travels, looking sideways at Ilya from time to time. But his nephew listened, as he listened to the patter of the rain, and wondered all the time how he should live with his uncle. Things adjusted themselves fairly well.