The Beast Within - Emile Zola [165]
Meanwhile they continued to meet outside until they could move into Séverine’s newly acquired apartment, where they would be able see each other whenever they wished. Winter was drawing to a close. That February, the weather was very mild; they walked for hours on end round the station yards and precincts. Jacques never wanted to stop; he always preferred to be on the move. But when Séverine clung to his shoulder and compelled him to sit down and make love to her, he always insisted that it was somewhere dark, terrified that if he caught even a glimpse of her naked flesh he would strike her down dead. As long as he could not see her he might be able to resist. In Paris, where she still accompanied him every Friday, he always made sure the curtains were pulled to, telling her that making love in broad daylight spoiled his pleasure. She now made this weekly trip without bothering to give her husband any explanation. As for the neighbours, she used the old excuse of having treatment for her knee, and also told them that she went to visit her foster-mother, Madame Victoire, whose convalescence in hospital was taking longer than expected. For both of them the outing always provided a welcome change. On this occasion Jacques was particularly interested in seeing how the engine performed, and Séverine was delighted to see him in better spirits. The journey, for her, was always a pleasure, although by now she was getting to know every little hill and clump of trees along the way. From Le Havre to Motteville the line ran through meadows and flat fields, surrounded by hedges and planted with apple trees. Then, as far as Rouen, the country became more hilly and deserted. After Rouen the railway followed the Seine, crossing it at Sotteville, Oissel and Pontde-l’ Arche. The river then broadened out across the open plain, now and then rejoining the railway at various points along the line. After Gaillon the line ran alongside the river, which flowed more slowly to its left, between low banks lined with poplar and willow. The railway followed the foot of the hillside, leaving the river at Bonnières, only to rejoin it at Rosny, at the other end of the Rolleboise tunnel. The river kept company with the train for the whole journey; the line crossed it three more times before reaching Paris. The journey continued: Mantes with its church tower among the trees, Triel with its white chalk-pits, Poissy, where the line cut right through the centre of the town, the two green walls of the forest of Saint-Germain, the slopes of Colombes abloom with lilac, and finally the outskirts of the capital and a glimpse of Paris as the train crossed the Pont d’Asnières, with the Arc de Triomphe in the distance rising above rows of shabby houses and bristling factory chimneys.3 The train plunged into the Batignolles tunnel, ran into the noisy station, and the passengers all got off. Jacques and Séverine then had the whole day to themselves, free to do as they wished. The return journey was made in the dark. Séverine would close her eyes and relive the pleasures of the day. But whether it was morning or night, every time they passed La Croix-de-Maufras, she glanced quickly out of the window,