The door at the end was open, and he saw his wife standing in the bright light in the sitting-room, anxiously looking towards him as though she had heard his coming.
"For God's sake, Gigia," he said, addressing her by her old pet name, "tell me quickly what has happened!" The Signora Pandolfi explained as well as she could, frequently giving way to her grief in passionate sobs.

She was incoherent, but the facts were so simple that Marzio understood them.

He was standing by the table, his hand resting upon the wooden case he had brought, and his face was very pale.
"Let me understand," he said at last.

"Tista was on the ladder.

The ladder slipped, Paolo ran to catch it, and it fell on him.