She was painfully conscious of the quiet hand on her knee.

It seemed to press upon her with a weight that was almost intolerable.
The silence that followed was terrible to her.

She wondered afterwards how she sat through it.
Then at last he moved and took her by the wrists.

"Will you look at me ?" he said.
His voice sent a quiver through her.

She had never felt so desperately scared and ashamed in all her healthy young life.