this expedition. But to his surprise Anna received the news with entire calmness, and only asked him when he should be back. He looked at her scrutinizingly, not understanding her calmness. She smiled as he looked at her. He knew her power of retiring into herself, and he knew that it was manifested only when she was planning something about herself and did not wish him to know her plans. He was afraid of this now, but he was so desirous of avoiding a scene that he almost forced himself into believing that her manner was sincere.
"I hope you will not be lonely."
"I hope so too," said Anna. "I received a box of books from Gautier yesterday; no, I shall not be lonely."
"She is adopting a new tone, and so much the better," thought he; "but it is all the same thing."
And so, without entering into any frank explanation with her, he started off for the elections. This was the first time since the beginning of their liaison that he had left her without full and complete explanation. In one way this disquieted him; in another, he felt that it was better so.
"At first there will be something as there is now, not altogether clear and above board, but after a while she will get used to it. At all events," he thought, "I can give up to her everything except my independence as a man."
CHAPTER XXVI
In September Levin returned to Moscow for Kitty's confinement.
He had already been there a whole month without anything to do, when Sergyeï Ivanovitch, who had an estate in the government of Kashin, and who took a great interest in the approaching elections, was getting ready to make the journey. He took with him his brother, who had a parcel of land in the Seleznevsky district, and who, moreover, had some very important business to transact in regard to a trusteeship and the
