He was suffering physically at that moment, there was a weight on his chest and he could not breathe.

He knew that he must do something to put an end to this suffering, but what he wanted to do was too terrible.

"We had better separate," he muttered in a broken voice.

"Separate? Very well, but only if you give me a fortune," said Helene.

" Separate! That's a thing to frighten me with!" Pierre leaped up from the sofa and rushed staggering toward her.