Read the excerpt from "The Story of an Hour." When she abandoned herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath: “free, free, free!” The vacant stare and the look of terror that had followed it went from her eyes. They stayed keen and bright. Her pulses beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body.
Which words best establish a mood of relief in the excerpt?
A. “slightly,” “vacant,” “eyes,” and “beat”
B. “whispered,” “stare,” “terror,” and “pulses”
C. “lips,” “stayed,” “keen,” and “blood”
D. “escaped,” “free,” “warmed,” and “relaxed”