Page 69 - the-trial

and maybe it wasn’t quite worthless. And maybe there was
no better revenge against the examining judge and his cro-
nies than to take this woman from him and have her for
himself. Maybe then, after much hard work writing dis-
honest reports about K., the judge would go to the woman’s
bed late one night and find it empty. And it would be empty
because she belonged to K., because this woman at the win-
dow, this lush, supple, warm body in its sombre clothes of
rough, heavy material belonged to him, totally to him and
to him alone. Once he had settled his thoughts towards the
woman in this way, he began to find the quiet conversation
at the window was taking too long, he rapped on the podium
with his knuckles, and then even with his fist. The student
briefly looked away from the woman to glance at K. over his
shoulder but did allow himself to be disturbed, in fact he
even pressed himself close to the woman and put his arms
around her. She dropped her head down low as if listening
to him carefully, as she did so he kissed her right on the
neck, hardly even interrupting what he was saying. K. saw
this as confirmation of the tyranny the student held over
the woman and which she had already complained about,
he stood up and walked up and down the room. Glancing
sideways at the student, he wondered what would be the
quickest possible way to get rid of him, and so it was not
unwelcome to him when the student, clearly disturbed by
K.’s to-ing and fro-ing which K. had now developed into a
stamping up and down, said to him, “You don’t have to stay
here, you know, if you’re getting impatient. You could have
gone earlier, no-one would have missed you. In fact you

The Trial