I pulled a large sofa out of its place near the corner, because I wanted to lie and look at the lovely view. I did not think of care about the dust, but just prepared myself for sleep. I think I did fall asleep. I hope I did, but I am afraid I did not, because what happened next seemed to be real. In fact it was so real that now, whilst I am sitting here in the full sunlight of the morning, I really cannot believe that it was all a dream.

I was not alone. The room was the same. It had not changed at all since I came in. In the brilliant moonlight I could see my own footsteps on the floor, marked in the dust which had collected over the years. In the moonlight three young women were standing next to me. They seemed to be ladies by their dress and manner. I thought when I saw them that I must be dreaming, because their bodies made no shadow on the floor. They came close to me, and looked at me for a while, and then whispered together. Two were of the women were dark. They had high, thin, straight noses, like the Count's, and big dark eyes that seemed to see straight through me. Their eyes looked almost red in the light from the pale yellow moon.

The other woman was pale, very pale indeed. She had great masses of golden hair and eyes like pale blue stones. I thought I recognized her face, and that there was something about her like a frightning dream, but I could not remember exactly what it was. All three ladies had brilliant white teeth that shone against their bright red lips. There was something about them that made me uncomfortable. I wanted something yet at the same time I was very scared. I felt in my heart a wicked, burning hope that they would kiss me with those red lips.