In December 1886, Count Andrea Serelli awaits his beloved in his chambers. Refined atmosphere evokes memories - Elena’s hands touched these things, Elena’s eyes fell on these paintings and curtains, the smell of these flowers intoxicated Elena. When she bent down to the fireplace, her figure resembled Danai Correggio. Two years passed, and Elena must again cross the threshold of the room. The great farewell took place on March 25, 1885. This date is forever engraved in the memory of Andrea. Why did Elena leave, why did she renounce the love that bound them forever? Now she is married: a few months after a sudden departure from Rome, she married an English aristocrat.
Andrea hears the steps on the stairs, the rustling of a dress. Elena looks even more seductive than before, and when looking at her, the young man feels almost physical pain. She came to say goodbye. The past will never return. Andrea dutifully escorts her to the carriage, tries to call out for the last time, but she presses a finger to her lips with a pained gesture and gives vent to tears only when the crew moves away. In the family of Serelli, hereditary traits were secularism, grace of speech, love for everything sophisticated. Count Andrea worthily continued the family tradition. Gifted with a tremendous power of sensitivity, he squandered himself, not noticing the gradual decline in ability and hope. While he was young, captivating youth redeemed everything. His passion was women and Rome. Having received a significant inheritance, he settled in one of the most beautiful corners of the great city. A new period began in life. Donna Elena Muti was created for him.
She was unspeakably beautiful. She had such a rich timbre of her voice that the most banal phrases acquired some hidden meaning in her mouth. When Andrea saw the first glimpse of tenderness in her eyes, he enthusiastically told himself that he was waiting for an unknown pleasure. The very next day they smiled at each other, like lovers. Soon she surrendered to him, and Rome shone for them with a new light. Churches of Aventine Hill, the noble garden of St. Mary Priorato, the bell tower of St. Mary in Cosmedin - everyone knew about their love. Both of them did not know the measures of wastefulness of soul and body. He liked to close his eyelids in anticipation of a kiss, and when her lips touched him, he barely restrained Scream, and then he began to shower her with small frequent kisses, leading to exhaustion with caresses and forcing passions to burn out in a flame.
In the first days after the separation, he felt the bouts of desire and pain so acutely that he seemed to die from them. Meanwhile, a connection with Elena Muti raised him in the eyes of the ladies to an unattainable height. The vain thirst for possession has taken possession of all women. Andrea could not resist the temptation. He passed from one love to another with incredible ease, and the habit of deception dulled his conscience. The news of Helena's marriage corrupted an old wound: in every naked woman, he sought to find the ideal nudity of his former lover. Caring for the bottom Hippolyta Albonico, Count Serelli severely insulted her lover and in a duel he was hit with a sword in the chest.
The Marquise d’Ataleta took her cousin to her estate — to recover or die. Serelli survived. A period of purification has come for him. All the vanity, cruelty and falsehood of his existence disappeared somewhere. He rediscovered the forgotten impressions of childhood, again indulged in art and began to compose sonnets. Elena seemed to him now distant, lost, dead. He was free and felt a desire to surrender to a higher, purer love. In early September, her cousin told him that her friend would come to visit her soon. Maria Bandinelli recently returned to Italy with her husband, the plenipotentiary minister of Guatemala.
Maria Ferres amazed the young man with her mysterious smile, magnificent magnificent hair and a voice, as if combining two tones - female and male. This magical voice reminded him of someone, and when Maria began to sing, accompanying herself on the piano, he almost burst into tears. From this moment on, the need for gentle adoration took hold of him - he experienced bliss at the thought that he was breathing the same air as she. But jealousy was already stirring in his heart: all of Maria’s thoughts were occupied by her daughter, and he wanted to completely possess her - not her body, but a soul that completely belonged to little Dolphin.
Maria Ferres remained true to the girl’s habit of writing down all the joys, sorrows, hopes and impulses of the past day every day. A few days after arriving at Francesca d’Atalet’s estate, the diary page was completely occupied by Count Serelli. In vain did Mary persuade herself not to succumb to the overwhelming feeling, appealing to prudence and wisdom. Even the daughter, who always brought her healing, was powerless - Mary loved for the first time in her life. Her perception intensified so much that she penetrated the secret of her friend Francesca, was hopelessly in love with her cousin. On October 3, the inevitable happened - Andrea snatched a confession from Mary. But before leaving, she returned a volume of Shelley to him, emphasizing two lines with her fingernail: “Forget me, for I will never be yours!”
Soon, Andrea left his sister's estate. Friends immediately involved him in the pool of social life. Having met one of the former mistresses at the rout, he plunged into the abyss of pleasure with one leap. On New Year's Eve, he ran into the street with Elena Muti. The first movement of his soul was to reunite with her - to subjugate her again. Then doubts aroused, and he was imbued with the confidence that the former miracle would not rise again. But when Elena came to him to abandon the cruel “goodbye”, he suddenly felt a frantic thirst to crush this idol.
Serelli meets Elena’s husband. Lord Hysfield inspires him with hatred and disgust - the more he wants to possess a beautiful woman in order to get fed up with her and get rid of her forever, because now Maria has all his thoughts. He launches the most sophisticated tricks in order to win a new lover and return the former. He was given a rare, great feminine feeling - true passion. Realizing this, he becomes the executioner of himself and the poor creature. They walk with Mary around Rome. On the terrace of the Medici villa, the columns are dotted with inscriptions of lovers, and Maria recognizes Andrea's hand - two years ago he dedicated a poem to Goethe Elena Muti.
Lord Hisfield shows Andrea a rich collection of depraved books and obscene drawings. The Englishman knows what effect they have on men, and with a mocking smile he watches his wife’s ex-lover. When Andrea completely loses her head, Elena scornfully sends him away. Offended to the depths of his soul, he rushes away and meets his good angel - Mary. They visit the grave of the beloved poet Percy Shelley and kiss for the first time. Mary is so shocked that she wants to die. And it would be better if she died.
It becomes known that the plenipotentiary minister of Guatemala turned out to be a sharpie and fled. Mary is disgraced and ruined. She needs to go to her mother, in Siena. She comes to Andrea to give him the first and last night of love. The young man pounced on her with all the madness of passion. Suddenly she breaks out of his embrace, hearing her familiar name. A sobbing Andrea tries to explain something, screams and begs - the answer is the knock of a slammed door. On June 20, he comes to the sale of the property of the plenipotentiary minister of Guatemala and, panting with despair, wanders through the empty rooms.
