The explanationcame a week later. It was about ten o' clock at night; I had been dining bymyself at a restaurant, and having returned to my small apartment, was sittingin my parlour, reading I heard the cracked tinkling of the bell, and, goinginto the corridor, opened the door. Stroeve stood before me.

"Can Icome in?" he asked.

In the dimnessof the landing I could not see him very well, but there was something in hisvoice that surprised me. I knew he was of abstemious habit or I should havethought he had been drinking. I led the way into my sitting room and asked himto sit down.

"Thank GodI've found you, " he said.

"What'sthe matter?" I asked in astonishment at his vehemence.

I was able nowto see him well. As a rule he was neat in his person, but now his clothes werein disorder. He looked suddenly bedraggled. I was convinced he had beendrinking, and I smiled. I was on the point of chaffing him on his state.

"I didn'tknow where to go, " he burst out. "I came here earlier, but you weren'tin. "

"I dinedlate, " I said.

一个星期以后我知道谜底了。这一天我一个人在外面吃了晚饭，饭后回到我的住处。大约十点左右，我正坐在起居间看书，忽然，门铃暗哑地响起来。我走到过道上，打开门，站在我面前的是施特略夫。

“可以进来吗？”他问。

楼梯口光线很暗，我看不清他的样子，但是他说话的声音却使我吃了一惊。我知道他喝酒从来不过量，否则我会以为他喝醉酒了。我把他领进起居间里，叫他坐下。

“谢天谢地，总算找到你了，”他说。

“怎么回事？”我问；他的激动不安的样子叫我非常吃惊。

进到屋子里面，我可以清清楚楚地打量他了。平时他总是穿戴得干净整齐，这次却衣冠不整，突然给人以邋里邋遢的感觉。我一点也不怀疑了，他一定是喝醉了。我对他笑了笑，准备打趣他两句。

“我不知道该到哪儿去，”他突兀地说了一句，“刚才来了一次，你不在。”

“我今天吃饭晚了，”我说。