didn’t send him, he went himself, but I ought to have prevented him by all the means in my power, by force, by craft, by persuasion. I ought to have prevented him, but if I had to decide again this very day, and if I were to feel as keenly as I did then and still do the straits Barnabas is in, and our whole family, and if Barnabas, fully conscious of the responsibility and danger ahead of him, were once more to free himself from me with a smile and set off, I wouldn’t hold him back even today, in spite of all that has happened in between, and I believe that in my place you would do exactly the same. You don’t know the plight we are in, that’s why you’re unfair to all of us, and especially to Barnabas. At that time we had more hope than now, but even then our hope wasn’t great, but our plight was great, and is so still. Hasn’t Frieda told you anything about us?” “Mere hints,” said K. , “nothing definite, but the very mention of your name exasperates her.” “And has the landlady told you nothing either?” “No, nothing.” “Nor anybody else?” “Nobody.” “Of course; how could anybody tell you anything? Everyone knows something about us, either the truth, so far as it is accessible, or at least some exaggerated rumour, mostly invention, and everybody thinks about us more than need be, but nobody will actually speak about it, people are shy of putting these things into words. And they’re quite right in that. It’s difficult to speak of it even before you, K. , and when you’ve heard it all it’s possible⁠—isn’t it?⁠—that you’ll go away and not want to have anything more to do with us, however little it may seem to concern you. Then we should have lost you, and I confess that now you mean almost more to me than Barnabas’s service in the Castle. But yet⁠—and this argument has been distracting me all the evening⁠—you must be told, otherwise you would have no insight into our situation, and, what would vex me most of all, you would go on being unfair to Barnabas. Complete accord would fail between us, and you could neither help us, nor accept our additional help. But there is still one more question: Do you really want to be told?” “Why do you ask?” said K. , “if it’s necessary, I would rather be told, but why do you ask me so particularly?” “Superstition,”