It's infectious!

　　"Yes, I shall. I was at church last week, too... I had a requiemservice."

　　"For whom?"

　　"For Lizaveta. She was killed with an axe."

　　His nerves were more and more strained. His head began to go round.

　　"Were you friends with Lizaveta?"

　　"Yes.... She was good... she used to come... not often... shecouldn't.... We used to read together and... talk. She will see God."

　　The last phrase sounded strange in his ears. And here wassomething new again: the mysterious meetings with Lizaveta and both ofthem- religious maniacs.

　　"I shall be a religious maniac myself soon! It's infectious!"

　　"Read!" he cried irritably and insistently.

　　Sonia still hesitated. Her heart was throbbing. She hardly daredto read to him. He looked almost with exasperation at the "unhappylunatic."

　　"What for? You don't believe?..." she whispered softly and as itwere breathlessly.

　　"Read! I want you to," he persisted. "You used to read to Lizaveta."

　　Sonia opened the book and found the place. Her hands were shaking,her voice failed her. Twice she tried to begin and could not bring outthe first syllable.

　　"Now a certain man was sick named Lazarus of Bethany..." sheforced herself at last to read, but at the third word her voicebroke like an overstrained string. There was a catch in her breath.

　　Raskolnikov saw in part why Sonia could not bring herself to read tohim and the more he saw this, the more roughly and irritably heinsisted on her doing so. He understood only too well how painful itwas for her to betray and unveil all that was her own. He understoodthat these feelings really were her secret treasure, which she hadkept perhaps for years, perhaps from childhood, while she lived withan unhappy father and a distracted stepmother crazed by grief, inthe midst of starving children and unseemly abuse and reproaches.But at the same time he knew now and knew for certain that, althoughit filled her with dread and suffering, yet she had a tormentingdesire to read and to read to him that he might hear it, and to readnow whatever might come of it!... He read this in her eyes, he couldsee it in her intense emotion. She mastered herself, controlled thespasm in her throat and went on reading the eleventh chapter of St.John. She went on to the nineteenth verse:

　　"And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary to comfort themconcerning their brother.