“What fabulous weather!” Sheptunov would sigh from dme to time. “You’re not cold, are you?”
Instead of answering, she would snuggle up closer and closer to his uniform.
At 2:20 in the morning the stationmaster looked at the clock and said, “The train will be coming any minute. Come on, Marya, let’s gaze at the tracks: whoever sees the train lights first will be the one whose love is stronger... lets watch.”
They stared into the wide expanse. Here and there faint lights shone softly along the endless tracks. The train was not yet to be seen. Looking off into the distance, Sheptunov saw something strange. He saw two long shadows striding over the rails. The shadows were moving right toward him, becoming bigger and wider.... One of the figures seemed to emanate from a persons body, the second from a long stick, which the figure was holding.
The shadow was coming closer. It was whisding an aria from Madam Ango.
“Do not walk on the rails! It is forbidden!” Sheptunov shouted. “Get off the tracks!”
“Don’t order me about, you swine!” the answer came back.
Outraged, Sheptunov rushed forward, but Marya Ilinish- na grabbed his coattail.
“For God’s sake, Stepa!” she whispered. “It’s my husband! Nazark!”
She had barely uttered the words when Kutsapyetov appeared in front of the stunned stationmaster. The stunned stationmaster cried out, banged his head against something metallic, and dove under a car. He wiggled out from under it on his belly and ran along the right-of-way. Jumping across the ties, stumbling over the rails, he ran toward the water tower like a dog with a tin can tied to its tail.
“That sdck... that stick he’s carrying!” he thought as he bolted.
At the water tower he stopped to catch his breath, but he heard footsteps behind him. He looked back and saw the fast- moving shadow of a man with the shadow of a stick. Panic- stricken, he ran on.
“Wait a minute! Stop!” he heard Kutsapyetov’s voice behind him. “Stop! Watch out! The train!”
Sheptunov looked forward and saw the train with its ter-rifying, fiery eyes. His hair stood on end. His pounding heart suddenly froze. Gathering all his strength, he jumped into the darkness. For about four seconds he flew through the air, and then fell on something hard and slanted and began rolling down, snatching at burdocks.
“I’m on the embankment!” he thought. “Well, it doesn’t matter. Better a safe fool rolling down an embankment than a nobleman beaten black and blue by a lout!”
A large, heavy boot stepped into a puddle by his right ear. He felt two hands prodding his back.
“Is that you?” he heard Kutsapyetov’s voice. “Is that you, Stephan Stephanitch?”
“Have mercy!” Sheptunov moaned.
“What’s wrong with you, my dear fellow? What is it that frightened you? Its me, Kutsapyetov! Don’t tell me you didn’t recognize me! I ran after you as fast as I could. I even called out! My dear fellow, that train almost ran over you! When Marya saw you run like that, she too was seized with fright, and fainted on the platform. Maybe my calling you a swine frightened you! Please don’t be offended! I thought you were a railroad worker!” “Do not mock me! If you are here for vengeance, go ahead! I am in your hands!” Sheptunov moaned. “Beat me, maim me!”
“My dear fellow, what’s wrong with you? I came here to talk about something. I ran after you to talk business!”
Kutsapyetov was silent for a few seconds, and then contin- ued: “It’s an important matter. My Marya told me that you like a bit of hanky-panky with her. As far as that goes, it’s fine by me. You see, when it comes to these matters I personally don’t give a damn, but if we look at the situation fair and square, I would be honored if you would be ready to come to some sort of an acco-modation with me. After all, I am her husband, the head of the family, you might say... legally speaking. When Prince Mikhail Dimitritch was hanky-pankying with her, he would slip me two twenty-fivers a month. How much would you setde for? An honest man’s word is good as gold. But please, get up!”
Sheptunov stood up. Broken, sullied, he dragged himself up the embankment.
“How much would you setde for?” Kutsapyetov repeated. “I was thinking of only asking for a twenty-fiver... because I wanted to see if you might have a little position available for my nephew.”
In a daze, Sheptunov stumbled blindly to the station and threw himself on the bed. When he woke up the next morning, his cap and one of his shoulder straps were missing.
To this day he is ashamed.
A
WOMAN’S
REVENGE
THE BELL RANG. Nadyezhda Petrovna, the lady of the house in which this story took place, jumped up from the sofa and ran to open the door.
“It’ll be my husband!” she thought.
But when she opened the door, it wasn’t her husband she saw. A tall, handsome man in an expensive bear-fur coat and gold-rimmed spectacles stood before her. There was a frown on his forehead, and his sleepy eyes looked out on the world with languid indifference.
“How may I help you?” Nadyezhda Petrovna asked.
“I am the doctor, madam. I was called here by... let me see, the Chelobitevs. Do the Chelobitevs live here?”
“Yes, we are the Chelobitevs. But... I’m sorry, doctor. My husband had an abscess on his gum and a fever. He sent you a letter, but as it looked like you weren’t coming, he lost patience and rushed off to the dentists.”
“I see. But he might as well have gone straight to the dentist without inconveniencing me.”
The doctor frowned. A minute passed in silence.
“I am sorry, doctor, that we inconvenienced you, that we had you come all this way for nothing. If my husband had known that you were coming, I can assure you he would never have run off to the dentists! I am so sorry!”
Another minute of silence passed. Nadyezhda Petrovna scratched her head.
“What is he waiting for?” she thought, glancing at the door. “I have to go, madam!” the doctor mumbled. “Please don’t keep me. Time is money!”
“Well... I, well... I’m not keeping you.”
“But madam! I cannot leave without being compensated for my efforts!”
“Your efforts?... Oh, I see!” Nadyezhda Petrovna stammered, turning bright red. “You are right... it’s true, you must be paid for coming... you went to all that trouble, you came over! But doctor, this is very embarrassing... my husband left home taking all our money with him! I don’t have a kopeck in the house!”
“Well... that’s strange. Let me see. I can’t wait for your husband to return, but if you look carefully through the house you might find a little money... the amount, in actual fact, would be quite negligible.”
“But I can assure you, my husband took everything with him! I am sorry, this is so embarrassing! I would never want to go through all of this for a few rubles... what an impossible situation!”
“I have never understood the publics view of a doctors job, never! It’s as if we ourselves weren’t people, as if our job wasn’t a job! After all, I did come over to your house, I lost time, I was inconvenienced!”
“No, I’m fully aware of what you’re saying, but you will surely agree that there are times when there isn’t even a kopeck in the house!”
“That may well be. But what it is, is that you, madam, are simply... naïve, illogical. You must understand, not paying a person... that’s unethical. You take advantage of the fact that I can’t take you to court, and so... simply and without ceremo-ny... it’s so strange!”
The doctor fell silent. He was disgusted with humanity. Nadyezhda Petrovna blushed. She felt awkward.