Part 27 (1/2)
CHAPTER XXI--TESS AND DOT TAKE A HAND
Up to this time Tess and Dot Kenway had heard nothing about the Gypsy junkman haunting the house at night, or about other threatening things connected with the wonderful silver bracelet.
Their young minds were quite as excited about the ornament as in the beginning, however; for in the first place they had to keep run exactly of whose turn it was to ”wear” the Gypsies' gift.
”I don't see what we'll do about it when Alice grows up,” Dot said.
She was always looking forward in imagination to the time when her favorite doll should become adult. ”She will want to wear that belt, Tess, for evening dress. You know, a lady's jewelry should belong to her.”
”I'm not going to give up my share to your Alice-doll,” announced Tess, quite firmly for her. ”And, anyway, you must not be so sure that it is going to be ours all the time. See! Aggie says we can't take it out of the house to play with.”
”I don't care!” whined Dot. ”I don't want to give it back to those Gypsy ladies.”
”Neither do I. But we must of course, if we can find them. Honest is honest.”
”It--it's awful uncomfortable to be so dreadful' honest,” blurted out the smaller girl. ”And I think they meant us to have the bracelet.”
”All right, then. It's only polite to offer it back to them. Then if they don't want it we'll know that it is ours and even Ruth won't say anything.”
”But--but when my Alice-doll grows up--”
”Now, don't be a little piggie, Dot Kenway!” exclaimed Tess, rather crossly. ”When your wrist gets big enough so the bracelet won't slip over your hand so easy, you will want to wear it yourself--just as I do. And Agnes wants it, too.”
”Oh! But it's ours--if it isn't the Gypsy ladies',” Dot hastened to say.
Two claimants for the ornament were quite enough. She did not wish to hear of any other people desiring to wear it.
As it chanced, Tess and Dot heard about the Gypsy encampment on the Buckshot Road through the tongue of neighborhood gossip, quite as had Sammy's mother. Margaret and Holly Pease heard the store man tell their mother; and having enviously eyed the silver bracelet in the possession of the Kenway girls, they ran to tell the latter about the Gypsies.
”They've come back,” declared Margaret decidedly, ”to look for that bracelet you've got. You'll see them soon enough.”
”Oh, Margie! do you think so?” murmured Tess, while Dot was immediately so horror-stricken that tears came to her eyes.
”Maybe they will bring the police and have you locked up,” continued the cheerful Pease child. ”You know they might accuse you of stealing the bracelet.”
”We never!” wailed Dot. ”We never! They gave it to us!”
”Well, they are going to take it back, so now!” Margaret Pease declared.
”I don't think it is nice of you to say what you do, Margie,” said Tess. ”Everybody knows we are honest. Why! if Dot and I knew how to find them, we would take the bracelet right to the Gypsy ladies.
Wouldn't we, Dot?”
”But--but we don't know where to find them,” blurted out the youngest Corner House girl.
”You can find them I guess--out on the Buckshot Road.”
”We don't know that _our_ Gypsy ladies are there,” said Tess, with some defiance.
”You don't dare go to see,” said Margaret Pease.
It was a question to trouble the minds of Tess and Dot. Should they try to find the Gypsies, and see if the very ladies who had given them the bracelet were in that encampment?