He looked at her in surprise. He had not expected such sarcasm from Ethne, “the quiet one”.
“Sometimes it is necessary to give up one’s personal wishes for the good of the whole,” he said, “though it is not easy to judge what is for the good of the whole in a world subject to such constant change. But,” he added, “I agree, it can never be right to give up responsibility for one’s actions.”
Ethne sighed. She was thinking about her own situation. She was expected to give up her own chance of happiness for “the good of the whole”.
Suddenly a voice hailed them. It was Lucius rowing along the river towards them. After her first heart-leap of joy, she was disappointed. She had hoped to see him at the villa, but he was heading towards the town. He had manoeuvred his boat to the bank and Decius
