Page 1286 - ANNA KARENINA

Anna Karenina

to her vexation stumbling over a high stump into the
water, but righting herself with her strong, supple legs, she
began making the circle which was to make all clear to
her. The scent of them reached her, stronger and stronger,

and more and more defined, and all at once it became
perfectly clear to her that one of them was here, behind
this tuft of reeds, five paces in front of her; she stopped,
and her whole body was still and rigid. On her short legs
she could see nothing in front of her, but by the scent she
knew it was sitting not more than five paces off. She stood
still, feeling more and more conscious of it, and enjoying
it in anticipation. Her tail was stretched straight and tense,
and only wagging at the extreme end. Her mouth was
slightly open, her ears raised. One ear had been turned
wrong side out as she ran up, and she breathed heavily but
warily, and still more warily looked round, but more with
her eyes than her head, to her master. He was coming
along with the face she knew so well, though the eyes
were always terrible to her. He stumbled over the stump
as he came, and moved, as she thought, extraordinarily
slowly. She thought he came slowly, but he was running.
Noticing Laska’s special attitude as she crouched on the
ground, as it were, scratching big prints with her hind
paws, and with her mouth slightly open, Levin knew she

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