The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1943-01-08
CHAPTER TX

80
sI'm in tr-trouble and I've
been crying, and 1 wondered if
you'd c0me-cOme-cOme and
take me for drive!" SIAM
mered Cherry.
olive had-bad news-and I'm
-all-all alone!"
p "Trouble, Marchioness?" Kelly
said, instantly concerned. Hold ev-
erything, and I'll be there in twenty
minutes, and you come on over here
and have supper with me. Hey?
Good girl! I was just feeling very
low and blue and we'll fix each 9TH
err up. !. I'm on my way!"
Kelly would not let her begin on
the story Of her troubles until she
had eaten. Then he piled things on
a tray, carried them away, came
back to. sit in the chair opposite
her, stufing his pipe and looking
expectant1y toward her.
''Now, who's been mean to you?"
She gave him a flicker of smile,
but immediately her face was Sc
rieus again. M A
81 feel so ashamed of having both
cred you with it! But II felt that
l was going mad, and you were the
only friend / could think of. I just
thought that if you were coming to
town you might take me for a drive.
/ didn't mean all this 1" -
81 tell you my troubles ne re-
minded her, drawing on his pipe.
q "You4see, we girls at Saint Doro-
thea's never know much about our
families. Itnisnt regular school,
you know There aren't any vaca-
tions, and no relatives coming to
see you." Aao4s tv.4 u
''That's !. the, school you came
'front.'
eyes. was there thirteen years,
from the time / was seven. But I
remembered my mother before that,
and that :. ! had, a nurse named
Emma"
''Fran told me something about
it,
Sat least l thought she was my
nurse, and I used to imagine that
my mother had been-weI, rich, I
suppose, because someone had left
money to take care of me-and that
Judge Marshbanks was my guard
ian.'
81 see. Go on, Marchioness.
"Well, then when ! came down
and they'd found me position with
Mrs. Porter, Emma told me one
day that she was my mothers sis
ter. She wasn't a nurse at all, she
was-she. is my aunt!''
"a jolt. huh?" e
~ don't think it was a jolt be-
cause she was housekeeper and
because I'd always thought of her
as a nurse" Cherry said.
Close to tears again she looked
bIindly into the darling daggers and
stars of the fire, and tried to steady
her trembling lips.
s''My dear girl, Kelly Coates said,
taking his pipe from his mouth,
''loads of people are going to love
you, don't you worry!"
/, Cherry laughed brokenly, stealth
lily wiped her eyes, and went on,
"but, you see, Mrs. Porter left me
some money" ss
"Well, bully for her!" Kelly COM
mented. Have a good cry over
that" 7lss4ss; ~
'.They read the viii today. The
house is going to be museum, and
lots of the furniture will be left
there, and Amy gets lot, and we
all get money"
Cherry paused as if undecided how
to proceed, then rushed on, "But
then-but then, after they'd read
the will, Amy and the judge and i
were having tea in the library, and
we were talking about what Amy'd
do and what I'd do and all that,
and happened to call Emma Aunt
Emma
''But he's your guardian. He'd
know that she was your aunt"
ooh, yes, that wasn't it. And
when Amy seemed surprised / just
said that / called her that some
times, and Amy didn't pay any at
tention. But afterward Amy went
out and then the judge asked me if
Emma had told me about it, and /
said yes, because thought that was
all he meant. ~
''What was all he meant?"
"That Aunt Emma was mothers
sister,"
"And what more did he mean?"