She walked nervously up and down the room.
"Should you like to fence?" asked Taquisara. "We have not touched a foil
to-day."
Anything seemed good which could pass the time without talking. But to
her it seemed heartless just then.
"No," she answered, almost curtly. "It seems to me that we are always
fencing."
But Gianluca understood why she refused. And to him, perhaps, anything
was better than thinking.
"Please do!" he said. "I enjoy it so much!"
Mechanically and without a word, she went to the corner where the foils
and other things were kept in a great carved chest.
Taquisara moved a large table out of the way, pushing it slowly before
him.
"Do you think you can see? Or shall we have more lamps?" asked Veronica.
"I can see very well--as well as one can, by lamp-light," answered
Taquisara, as he placed the lamps together upon the table, so that the
light should fall sideways upon them when they fenced.
Veronica was glad to slip her mask over her face, just then. She was
conscious of the fact when she had done it, though she hardly knew what
she was doing as she took a foil from the long chest and stepped out
into the room to meet Taquisara. Then, as he raised his arm to engage
and she still held her foil down, her habitual interest in the amusement
momentarily asserted itself.
"Shall we try that feint of yours that you were doing the other day?"
she asked. "You know, you touched me with it. I think I can meet it now,
for I have been thinking about it.
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