[Dave Plowman (News)]

interrupted. Nobody spoke. After the stopping of the
telescreen the room seemed deadly silent. The seconds marched past,
enormous. With difficulty Winston continued to keep his eyes fixed on
O'Brien's. Then suddenly the grim face broke down into what might have been
the beginnings of a smile. With his characteristic gesture O'Brien
resettled his spectacles on his nose.
'Shall I say it, or will you?' he said.
'I will say it,' said Winston promptly. 'That thing is really turned
off?'
'Yes, everything is turned off. We are alone.'
'We have come here because--'
He paused, realizing for the first time the vagueness of his own
motives. Since he did not in fact know what kind of help he expected from
O'Brien, it was not easy to say why he had come here. He went on, conscious
that what he was saying must sound both feeble and pretentious:
'We believe that there is some kind of conspiracy, some kind of secret
organization working against the Party, a