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By Root 1394 0

good-looking face, the same curly hair, dark moustache and brown eyes with the little flecks of gold in them, but his jaw was pushed forward in a savage grimace that made him appear almost deformed.3 As he came towards her, he had looked at her, but as if he were doing his best not to, and a red mist seemed to dull his eyes. He jumped back, his whole body recoiling from her. Why was he trying to avoid her? Was he beginning to lose his nerve again? For some time now, totally unaware that her life was in danger whenever she was with him, Séverine had attributed the inexplicable, instinctive fear she felt in his presence to the possibility that their relationship might shortly come to an end. She suddenly realized that if Jacques could not now bring himself to kill Roubaud, he would run away, never to return. She determined that this time he would kill him, and that if need be she would somehow give him the strength to do it. Another train passed by outside, an endless goods train, with a long string of wagons, invading the deep silence of the room with its interminable clatter. Séverine raised herself on her elbow, waiting for the noise to fade into the distance and disappear into the stillness of the night.

‘Another quarter of an hour!’ said Jacques. ‘He’ll be past the Bécourt wood by now. He’s half-way. I can’t stand this waiting!’

As he turned to walk back towards the window, he found Séverine standing beside the bed in her nightdress.

‘Why don’t we go downstairs with the lamp,’ she suggested. ‘You could decide where you’re going to stand. I’ll show you how I’m going to open the door and you can see what you need to do.’

Jacques backed away from her, trembling.

‘No! Not the lamp!’ he exclaimed.

‘We can easily hide it afterwards,’ she said. ‘We need to know what we’re doing.’

‘No, no!’ he stammered. ‘Get back into bed.’

She took no notice, advancing towards him with the invincible, triumphant smile of the woman who knows she is irresistible. Once he was in her arms, he would yield to her nakedness and do as she wished. She continued to talk to him, coaxing him, trying to allay his fear.

‘What is it, darling?’ she said. ‘Anyone would think you are frightened of me. The minute I come near you, you try to avoid me. If only you knew how much I need you at this moment. I want to know that you are there, that we are together, now and for ever. Do you understand?’

She had driven him back against the table. He could retreat from her no further. He had never seen her like this, with her nightdress unfastened and her hair tied up over her head, utterly naked, her neck laid bare and her breasts exposed. He was gasping for breath, fighting to control himself, reeling from the rush of blood to his head as his murderous desire rose within him. He remembered that the knife lay on the table behind him. He could almost feel it; all he had to do was stretch out his hand.

With a supreme effort he managed once again to stammer, ‘Please, I beg you, get back into bed.’

Séverine was convinced that his shaking was due to uncontrollable desire. It made her feel almost proud. Why should she obey him? That night she wanted to be loved, loved beyond measure, loved to distraction. She pressed herself against him, softly, invitingly.

‘Darling,’ she whispered. ‘Kiss me. Kiss me as you’ve never kissed me before. Show me how much you love me. It will give us courage. We shall need all the courage we have. Our love must be a love that has no equal, a love greater than any love on earth, if we are to do what we have to do ... Kiss me. Give me your heart. Give me your soul.’

It was as if he were being strangled. He couldn’t breathe. There were voices screaming inside his skull, deafening him. Burning pains pierced his head, starting behind his ears and spreading to his arms and legs. He felt as if he were being chased from his own body, trampled underfoot by the unnamed creature, the beast within that now possessed him. Her nakedness made his senses reel; he would not be able to control his hands. She pressed her breasts against him and offered