Page 233 - the-brothers-karamazov
P. 233

Meanwhile  Ivan  and  Grigory  had  raised  the  old  man
            and seated him in an arm-chair. His face was covered with
            blood, but he was conscious and listened greedily to Dmi-
           tri’s cries. He was still fancying that Grushenka really was
            somewhere in the house. Dmitri looked at him with hatred
            as he went out.
              ‘I don’t repent shedding your blood!’ he cried. ‘Beware,
            old man, beware of your dream, for I have my dream, too. I
            curse you, and disown you altogether.’
              He ran out of the room.
              ‘She’s here. She must be here. Smerdyakov! Smerdyakov!’
           the old man wheezed, scarcely audibly, beckoning to him
           with his finger.
              ‘No, she’s not here, you old lunatic!’ Ivan shouted at him
            angrily. ‘Here, he’s fainting? Water! A towel! Make haste,
           Smerdyakov!’
              Smerdyakov ran for water. At last they got the old man
           undressed, and put him to bed. They wrapped a wet tow-
            el round his head. Exhausted by the brandy, by his violent
            emotion, and the blows he had received, he shut his eyes
            and fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow. Ivan
            and Alyosha went back to the drawing-room. Smerdyakov
           removed the fragments of the broken vase, while Grigory
            stood by the table looking gloomily at the floor.
              ‘Shouldn’t you put a wet bandage on your head and go
           to bed, too?’ Alyosha said to him. ‘We’ll look after him. My
            brother gave you a terrible blow — on the head.’
              ‘He’s insulted me!’ Grigory articulated gloomily and dis-
           tinctly.

                                           The Brothers Karamazov
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