In the suspended condition of awaiting divorce, Anna and Vronsky find their relationship at a standstill. Both are irritable with each other: Anna feels his love is cooling, Vronsky is reproachful that instead of her trying to ease this position he placed himself in for her sake, Anna makes it harder to bear. Without discussing their problem, each seizes every opportunity to prove the other one wrong. Faced with his declining love, Anna assumes his affections belong to someone else. Her jealousy makes her quarrelsome although Vronsky remains faithful. Despite the bitterness, they enjoy brief moments of tenderness.
Their last quarrel begins when Vronsky puts off their journey back to the country because he must see his mother about some property. Anna refuses to let him go, assuming Vronsky wants to visit the attractive Princess Sorokin who lives with the old countess. "You will be sorry for this," she threatens as Vronsky steps into the carriage. Immediately regretful, Anna dispatches a servant with a note begging Vronsky to come back and talk things over. When the note misses him, she writes a telegram to him at his mother's home, and the suspense of waiting makes her desperate. Anna decides to seek Dolly for comfort and advice. Her thoughts during the drive are bitter and distracted. What a dreary business love is, she thinks. She has lost Seriozha and now Vronsky.
