Chapter 27: Between Poverty and Disgrace

⁠​​​‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​⁠Three weary days had passed. The countess was ill. At least she permitted her household to believe that she was unable to leave her room. No one was allowed to know that she had returned, and the windows of the Wildenau Palace remained closed, as when the owner was absent Thus condemned to total inactivity in the twilight of her apartments, she became the helpless prey of her gnawing anxiety. The