An Old Meerschaum / From Coals Of Fire And Other Stories, Volume II. (of III.)

The story begins with Barndale idly sleeping in a sunlit square and shifts when a letter arrives from Thecla asking for refuge in London; her friends plan accommodations while Demetri, concealed nearby, overhears and is driven to jealous fury. He broods through a storm, conceals his agitation beneath a composed exterior, and resolves to kill James Leland, traveling to England intent on revenge. The tale follows the inward logic of obsession and rage, setting polite social interaction against private passion, and creates suspense through eavesdropping, atmospheric detail, and the protagonist’s deliberate preparations for a violent confrontation.