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the bells of san pasquale.
95
her, which she knew. But it had all been in vain,
because as soon as she thought of heaven’s radiant
queen, the old black goddess came and placed
herself between. And she saw her coming like a dried
up and officious old maid obscuring the great queen
of heaven, so that for her there was now no longer
any Madonna. She believed that the holy Mother
was angry with her because she had done too much
for the other one, and that she hid her countenance
and grace from her. But on account of the false
Madonna, misfortune would now fall upon her father.
Now she would no longer be allowed to keep him in
her home. Now she would never gain his
forgiveness. O God, O God!
And all this she repeated to Gaetano, who honored
the black Madonna of Diamante more than anything
else.
He now came quite close to Donna Micaela, and
she feared that it was her last moment. She said in
a feeble voice, as if to justify herself : " I am insane.
This anguish makes me insane. I never sleep."
But Gaetano had walked quietly beside her,
thinking only of what a child she was, and how wholly
ignorant she was of how to get on in life.
He was hardly aware of it himself, before he had
drawn her, gently, close up to him and kissed her,
because she was such a lost, helpless child.
She was so wonderstruck that it did not occur to
her to get away. And she neither screamed nor fled.
She understood immediately that he kissed her as
one kisses a child. She only walked on faster and
then began to cry. Just this kiss had made her feel
how powerless and forsaken she was, and how she
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