What disturbed him most was the thought of the consequences of his
discovery, and he resolved to conceal the girl's name and his own
if possible. If she were indeed dead, it would be wiser to convey
her body to her father's house privately; if she were still alive,
secrecy was doubly necessary. In either case it would be utterly
impossible to account to the world for the fact that Faustina
Montevarchi had been alone in the Borgo Nuovo at such an hour; and
San Giacinto had a lively interest in preserving the good
reputation of Casa Montevarchi, since he had been meditating for
some time past a union with Donna Flavia.
At last the panel opened again, and when the porter had satisfied
himself that the gentleman was still without, a little door in the
heavy gate was cautiously unfastened and San Giacinto went in,
bending nearly double to pass under the low entrance. In the great
vestibule he was immediately confronted by the surgeon in charge,
who was in his shirt sleeves, but had thrown his coat over his
shoulders and held it together at the neck to protect himself from
the night air. San Giacinto begged him to retire out of hearing of
the porter, and the two walked away together.
"There was a lady killed just now by the explosion, was there
not?" inquired San Giacinto.
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