解説　場面 25「重なる警告」

"'It is not worth your while to wait,' she went on. 'You can pass through the door; no one hinders.' And then, seeing that I smiled and shook my head, she suddenly threw aside her constraint and made a step forward, with her hands wrung together. 'For the love of Heaven!' she whispered, 'get away from here before it is too late!'

「『待っても、あなたのためになりません』と彼女は続けました。『扉から行けます。誰も止めません』私が笑って首を振るのを見ると、彼女は突然ためらいを捨て、両手を握り締めて一歩進みました。『お願いです！』とささやきました。『遅くなる前に、ここから逃げて！』

"But I am somewhat headstrong by nature, and the more ready to engage in an affair when there is some obstacle in the way. I thought of my fifty-guinea fee, of my wearisome journey, and of the unpleasant night which seemed to be before me. Was it all to go for nothing? Why should I slink away without having carried out my commission, and without the payment which was my due? This woman might, for all I knew, be a monomaniac. With a stout bearing, therefore, though her manner had shaken me more than I cared to confess, I still shook my head and declared my intention of remaining where I was. She was about to renew her entreaties when a door slammed overhead, and the sound of several footsteps was heard upon the stairs. She listened for an instant, threw up her hands with a despairing gesture, and vanished as suddenly and as noiselessly as she had come.

「しかし私は生来いくらか頑固で、障害があればなおさら物事に取り組みたくなる性質です。五十ギニーの報酬、退屈な旅、これから待つらしい不快な夜を思いました。すべてを無駄にするのか。依頼を果たさず、受け取るべき報酬も得ずに、なぜこそこそ逃げなければならないのか。もしかすると、この女性は一つの妄想に取りつかれた人かもしれません。そこで、態度に認めたくないほど動揺しながらも、毅然として再び首を振り、ここに残ると宣言しました。彼女がまた懇願しようとしたとき、頭上で扉が閉まり、階段を下りる数人の足音が聞こえました。一瞬耳を澄ませ、絶望の身ぶりで両手を上げると、来たときと同じく突然、音もなく消えました。