It makes me furious to think that this can go on. This is happening while I am shut up here. I am actually a prisoner, but without the protection of the law which is even a criminal's right and consolation.

I thought I would watch for the Count to come back. For a long time I sat near the window. Then I began to notice that there were some little specks floating in the the moonlight. They were like the tiniest grains of dust, and they whirled round and gathered in clusters like patches of mist. I watched them and felt soothed. A sort of calm came over me. I leaned back to a more comfortable position, so that I could enjoy watching the specks float through the air.

Something made me jump. Perhaps it was the howling of dogs somewhere far below in the valley, which I could not see from where I was. The sound in my ears seemed to get louder. As they danced in the moonlight the floating specks of dust seemed to take new shapes with the sound. I felt myself struggling to awake. My instincts were calling to me. No, my very soul was struggling, and my half-remembered senses were trying to answer the call. I was becoming hypnotized!

Vocabulary:

Consolation: Something that makes you feel better
Specks: Little spots like dust
Whirl: Go around quickly
Cluster: A small group
Soothe: Make more relaxed
Howl: What wolves do at the moon
Instinct: What you know without being taught
Struggle: Try hard with difficulty
Hypnotized: Put in a sleep where you obey orders