“What now? what now?” the voice squeaked.  “I am only sincere.  It’s not denied that the other was the leading spirit.  Well, it would have been better if he had been the one spared to us.  More useful.  I am not a sentimentalist.  Say what I think...only natural.”

Squeak, squeak, squeak, without a gesture, without a stir—­the horrible squeaky burlesque of professional jealousy—­this man of a sinister alliterative nickname, this executioner of revolutionary verdicts, the terrifying N.N. exasperated like a fashionable tenor by the attention attracted to the performance of an obscure amateur.  Sophia Antonovna shrugged her shoulders.  The comrade with the martial red moustache hurried towards Razumov full of conciliatory intentions in his strong buzzing voice.

“Devil take it!  And in this place, too, in the public street, so to speak.  But you can see yourself how it is.  One of his fantastic sallies.  Absolutely of no consequence.”

“Pray don’t concern yourself,” cried Razumov, going off into a long fit of laughter.  “Don’t mention it.”

The other, his hectic flush like a pair of burns on his cheek-bones, stared for a moment and burst out laughing too.  Razumov, whose hilarity died out all at once, made a step forward.

“Enough of this,” he began in a clear, incisive voice, though he could hardly control the trembling of his legs.  “I will have no more of it.  I shall not permit anyone....  I can see very well what you are at with those allusions....  Inquire, investigate!  I defy you, but I will not be played with.”

He had spoken such words before.  He had been driven to cry them out in the face of other suspicions.  It was an infernal cycle bringing round that protest like a fatal necessity of his existence.  But it was no use.  He would be always played with.  Luckily life does not last for ever.

“I won’t have it!” he shouted, striking his fist into the palm of his other hand.

“Kirylo Sidorovitch—­what has come to you?” The woman revolutionist interfered with authority.  They were all looking at Razumov now; the slayer of spies and gendarmes had turned about, presenting his enormous stomach in full, like a shield.

“Don’t shout.  There are people passing.”  Sophia Antonovna was apprehensive of another outburst.  A steam-launch from Monrepos had come to the landing-stage opposite the gate, its hoarse whistle and the churning noise alongside all unnoticed, had landed a small bunch of local passengers who were dispersing their several ways.  Only a specimen of early tourist in knickerbockers, conspicuous by a brand-new yellow leather glass-case, hung about for a moment, scenting something unusual about these four people within the rusty iron gates of what looked the grounds run wild of an unoccupied private house.  Ah!  If he had only known what the chance of commonplace travelling had suddenly put in his way!  But he was a well-bred person; he averted his gaze and moved off with short steps along the avenue, on the watch for a tramcar.