“If I’d supposed you’d ‘a’ made any objection to Jotham Powell’s driving me over-” she began again, as though his silence had implied refusal.  On the brink of departure she was always seized with a flux of words.  “All I know is,” she continued, “I can’t go on the way I am much longer.  The pains are clear away down to my ankles now, or I’d ‘a’ walked in to Starkfield on my own feet, sooner’n put you out, and asked Michael Eady to let me ride over on his wagon to the Flats, when he sends to meet the train that brings his groceries.  I’d ‘a’ had two hours to wait in the station, but I’d sooner ‘a’ done it, even with this cold, than to have you say-”

“Of course Jotham’ll drive you over,” Ethan roused himself to answer.  He became suddenly conscious that he was looking at Mattie while Zeena talked to him, and with an effort he turned his eyes to his wife.  She sat opposite the window, and the pale light reflected from the banks of snow made her face look more than usually drawn and bloodless, sharpened the three parallel creases between ear and cheek, and drew querulous lines from her thin nose to the corners of her mouth.  Though she was but seven years her husband’s senior, and he was only twenty-eight, she was already an old woman.

Ethan tried to say something befitting the occasion, but there was only one thought in his mind:  the fact that, for the first time since Mattie had come to live with them, Zeena was to be away for a night.  He wondered if the girl were thinking of it too....

He knew that Zeena must be wondering why he did not offer to drive her to the Flats and let Jotham Powell take the lumber to Starkfield, and at first he could not think of a pretext for not doing so; then he said:  “I’d take you over myself, only I’ve got to collect the cash for the lumber.”

As soon as the words were spoken he regretted them, not only because they were untrue-there being no prospect of his receiving cash payment from Hale-but also because he knew from experience the imprudence of letting Zeena think he was in funds on the eve of one of her therapeutic excursions.  At the moment, however, his one desire was to avoid the long drive with her behind the ancient sorrel who never went out of a walk.

Zeena made no reply:  she did not seem to hear what he had said.  She had already pushed her plate aside, and was measuring out a draught from a large bottle at her elbow.

“It ain’t done me a speck of good, but I guess I might as well use it up,” she remarked; adding, as she pushed the empty bottle toward Mattie:  “If you can get the taste out it’ll do for pickles.”

IV

As soon as his wife had driven off Ethan took his coat and cap from the peg.  Mattie was washing up the dishes, humming one of the dance tunes of the night before.  He said “So long, Matt,” and she answered gaily “So long, Ethan”; and that was all.