Part 6 (1/2)
”Where's Mrs. Raymond; the strange woman?” she asked Nettie.
”She did not come out here,” replied the maid. ”Isn't she with you?”
”No, we left her in the library,” Cora replied, and without further inquiry she looked down the driveway and could just see a vanis.h.i.+ng shadow turn into the road. But it may not have been Mrs. Raymond.
”I guess she's gone,” continued Cora to Nettie. ”And I am sorry, for we wanted to keep her for the night. Well, I hope the poor creature was cheered up some. She seemed to need encouragement. We did all we could, perhaps.”
”Is she gone?” asked Bess, when they all had come in again, having satisfied themselves that fine weather was promised for the morning. ”I hoped she would tell us more about the Ford girl--give us a description of her, at least. We might run across her somewhere.”
”It all seemed rather weird,” said Cora. ”But really we must be on the lookout. Who knows but we may help unravel the mystery?”
”But why did the woman hurry off so?” asked Belle, as if any one present knew.
”Suppose she thought we might think she caused the fire,” Ed answered. ”It looked strange for her to be in the barn at that time. But anyone could see that it was a small explosion--too much gas somewhere.”
”Well, all we know about Nancy is her name,” observed Cora. ”We will have to trust to motor girls' luck for the rest. But I love a mystery.”
”Of course,” Eline declared, ”if we could have the wonderful luck to find that girl we might be able to clear the poor woman's name. It looked to me as if the girl was in league with the robbers when she ran before they entered the room.”
”No use speculating,” Cora commented. ”Better finish our arrangements.
It's getting late.”
CHAPTER IV
ON THE ROAD
There was more ”finis.h.i.+ng” to be done than even Cora had thought, and, with her usual habit of looking after matters, she had counted on much.
But the thunder-shower, the fire, the finding of the strange woman, and listening to her still more strange story all combined to make the affair of getting ready for the trip in the morning no easy one.
But Cora was determined to carry out the plans as agreed on, so when her friends showed a disposition to delay, and dwell in conversation on the recent happenings, she ”brought them up with a round turn,” as Jack expressed it.
”I just can't get over that queer woman,” observed Belle, during a lull in the talk, while Cora was jotting down in a pretty red leather notebook some matters she did not want to forget. ”She had such--such a patient face.”
”Maybe she was tired of waiting for a new one,” suggested Norton, who was usually flippant. ”I've heard that ladies can get new faces at these--er--beauty parlors.”
”It's a pity there isn't some sort of a parlor where one can get--manners!” murmured Eline. She seemed to have taken a distinct dislike to the new young man.
Belle and Bess, who had overheard the remark, looked rather askance at Cora's relative, but said nothing.
”Now then!” exclaimed the young hostess, ”since you have all gotten rid of as much of the effects of the fire as possible, we'll go over the main points to be sure nothing will go wrong. Oh, that's something I almost forgot. I must send mamma our address.”
Mrs. Kimball had gone to Europe for a summer tour, leaving her daughter and son at home. When they went to the Cove the house would be in charge of a care-taker. Cora had not fully determined on her vacation plans when her mother went away, and now there was necessity for forwarding the address.
”I'll attend to that the last thing to-night,” Cora went on. ”I'll send mother a long letter, and write again as soon as we get settled at the Cove.”
”If we ever _do_ get settled,” murmured Walter. ”Say, boys, am I any less--hammy?” and he sniffed at his coat about which still lingered the smell of gasoline.
”You're of the ham--saltiest--or hammiest!” declared Ed.