This sound was the smothered sobbing of the red-haired woman. The

red-haired woman was crying because she had been abused and had

not got any of the vodka she wanted so badly; also because she

remembered how all her life she had been abused, mocked at,

offended, beaten. Remembering this, she pitied herself, and,

thinking no one heard her, began crying as children cry, sniffing

with her nose and swallowing the salt tears.

"I'm sorry for her," said Maslova.