Ergo igitur impatientia furoris altius agitata diutinum rupit silentium et ad se vocari praecipit filium : quod nomen in eo , si posset , ne ruboris admoneretur , libente eraderet . Nec adulescens aegrae parentis moratus imperium , senili tristitie striatam gerens frontem cubiculum petit , uxori patris matrique fratris utcumque debitum sistens obsequium . Sed illa cruciabili silentio diutissime fatigata , et ut in quodam vado dubitationis haerens , omne verbum quod praesenti sermoni putabat aptissimum rursum improbans mi tante etiam nunc pudore , unde potissimum caperet exordium decunctatur . At iuvenis nihil etiam tunc sequius suspicatus , summisso vultu rogat ultro praesentes causas aegritudinis . Tunc illa nancta solii tudinis damnosam occasionem , prorumpit in audaciam , et ubertim allacrimans laciniaque contegens faciem voce trepida sic eum breviter affatur : Causa omnis et origo praesentis doloris et etiam medela ipsa et salus unica mihi tute ipse es : isti enim tui oculi per meos oculos ad intima delapsi praecordia meis medullis acerrimum commovent incendium . Ergo miserere tua causa pereuntis nec te religio patris omnino deterreat , cui morituram prorsus servabis uxorem : illius enim recognoscens imaginem in tua ; facie merito te diligo . Habes solitudinis plenam

She became more and more agitated by her unbearable ardour , until at last breaking her long silence she summoned to her side this ‘son’ whom she would gladly have called by another name to spare her sense of shame . The youth responded at once to his stepmother’s request , entering the patient’s bedroom , with as anxious a brow as some melancholy old man , but only out of courtesy to his father’s wife and brother’s mother . She , long tormented and harassed by her secret , was now however aground on a shoal of doubt . Every time she grasped at a phrase appropriate for the moment at hand , she rejected it again ; and even as her feelings of shame abated , she still hesitated as to how to begin her speech . But the youth it was who took the lead , suspecting nothing , with a respectful look asking the cause of her present illness . As they were alone she seized the moment to speak with dangerous boldness , and weeping floods of tears , hiding her face with the hem of her robe , she addressed him briefly in a quivering voice :
‘The whole root and origin of my present illness , as well as my only hope of cure and recovery , is you yourself . Those eyes of yours penetrated my eyes , and plunged to the depths of my heart , and set the fiercest flames burning in my marrow . Take pity on one who dies because of you , and don’t be concerned by your respect for your father , for his wife is at death’s door and you can save her for him . I am right to love you since I see his likeness in your face . And have no fear , we are alone , and there is time enough for what is needed . What none know of has scarcely happened . ’

So there you have it . Her insupportable insanity was shaking her to the core , and at long last she broke her silence and ordered her stepson to be summoned before her—she would have loved to expunge the " son " part , that shameful reminder , from any reference to him . The young man lost no time in complying with his sick parent’s command . His forehead was grooved with a sadness far beyond his years as he headed for the bedroom to attend dutifully to his father’s wife and brother’s mother . But the wife’s silence had plagued her so excruciatingly and so mercilessly that now her boat was stuck in the shallows of doubt , so to speak . She ended up rejecting every word she had at first thought perfect for the matter at hand . Her honor was going to come crashing down at any moment , but here she still was , at a dead loss for the right preamble . But even at this moment , the youth didn’t suspect any sort of shady business . His expression was demure as he began the conversation by asking , with a deferential expression on his face , about her present indisposition . She now seized the baneful opportunity offered by this private conference and let go of any vestige of self-control . Weeping abundantly and covering her face in her garment , she addressed him a few words in a timid voice .
" The entire cause , the sole source of my present agony , and at the same time the one lifesaving remedy , is yourself and no other . A glance from your eyes has slipped into my eyes , sunk down into my heart’s inmost recesses , and set off a conflagration that rages through my marrow . Have pity , then , on someone who is perishing because of you . Don’t let reverent regard for your father deter you , for you’ll do nothing short of saving his dying wife . You can understand my affection for you , as , for me , your face is like a picture of him . And right now you have the complete reassurance that comes from being alone with me—as well as enough time to do what needs doing . When nobody knows about something , it’s practically not happening . "