THE LIGHTHOUSE 241staring and staring at the frail blue shape whichseemed like the vapour of something that had burntitself away. What do you want? they both wantedto ask. They both wanted to say, Ask us anythingand we will give it you. But he did not ask themanything. He sat and looked at the island and hemight be thinking, We perished, each alone, or hemight be thinking, I have reached it. I have foundit, but he said nothing.

Then he put on his hat.

‘Bring those parcels,’ he said, nodding his headat the things Nancy had done up for them to take tothe Lighthouse. ‘The parcels for the Lighthousemen,’ he said. He rose and stood in the bow of theboat, very straight and tall, for all the world, Jamesthought, as if he were saying: ‘There is no God,’ andCam thought, as if he were leaping into space, andthey both rose to follow him as he sprang, lightlylike a young man, holding his parcel, on to the rock.

14

‘He must have reached it,’ said Lily Briscoe aloud,feeling suddenly completely tired out. For theLighthouse had become almost invisible, had meltedaway into a blue haze, and the effort of looking at itand the effort of thinking of him landing there, whichboth seemed to be one and the same effort, hadstretched her body and mind to the utmost. Ah, butshe was relieved. Whatever she had wanted to givehim, when he left her that morning, she had givenhim at last.

‘He has landed,’ she said aloud. ‘It is finished.'

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