Chapter IV, pages 81-98 Summary

During the summer Don Jaime has no interest in the volatile political situation, but it is impossible for him to escape hearing the constant repeating of rumor. At the Café Progreso, Carceles is more boisterous than ever. He shows a recent newspaper article that he believes corroborates things he has been saying all along. Other group members try to get Don Jaime to take sides in the endless debate, but he says that his business in life is fencing, not politics.

Dona Adela comes to Don Jaime's residence and fencing gallery as agreed for her lessons. Don Jaime teaches her the two-hundred-escudo thrust, and she learns quickly. Don Jaime is still impressed with her abilities, and Dona Adela seems delighted to learn a new technique. Dona Adela asks if Don Jaime ever used the thrust to kill...