Part 6 (1/2)

Brenda tossed her head.

”Oh, I asked Belle to come and tell you.”

”She may have left word that you were not coming, I think that Thomas gave me some message, but let us hear where you have been.”

Mrs. Barlow spoke pleasantly, for she knew by the cloud on Brenda's face that there might be a storm if for the present she said too much about her absence from luncheon.

”Yes,” added Julia, ”do tell us where you have been. I have an idea that you have had an adventure.”

”How could you guess?” exclaimed Brenda, and then, with the ice broken by these words of Julia's, she gave her mother an animated account of Nora's bravery, Manuel's beauty and the fruit-woman's picturesqueness.

Mrs. Barlow and Julia were interested. Brenda had a graphic way of telling a story, and the events of the morning lost nothing by her telling. But Mrs. Barlow shook her head when Brenda spoke of visiting Manuel in his home.

”It might not be at all a proper place,” she said, ”and besides, Manuel's mother may not care to have strangers visit her. Poor people sometimes are very sensitive about such things.”

Before Brenda had time to argue this point with her mother, the portiere was pushed aside and Belle and Edith came into the room. Julia rose to shake hands with Belle, while Edith with a very sweet smile, stepping toward her, said:

”I am glad to see you. I am one of 'the Four.' Brenda's told you about us. I am Edith.”

Julia felt strongly drawn to the pleasant-faced girl. She liked her better than Belle, although on the two occasions of their meeting the latter had been markedly polite to her.

”Yes, we're all here now except Nora. We ought to be ready to give her a serenade, or something like that when she comes. She's really a kind of a heroine, isn't she?”

”Oh, nonsense, Edith,” said Belle. ”She did not actually do so very much. Those horses were not running away, and a little paddy like that child has as many lives as a cat.”

”He _isn't_ a paddy,” interrupted Brenda, ”but a Portuguese,--a dear little Portuguese--and Nora was very brave. It's just like you, Belle, to think that a thing isn't of any account unless you have had something to do with it.”

Belle was silent. In the presence of a stranger she never forgot her good manners, and Julia was still sufficiently a stranger to act as a check on the sharp reply which otherwise might have risen to her lips.

Edith now came in as a peacemaker.

”Well, it was great fun to have anything out of the ordinary happen at school. You can't imagine,” turning to Julia, ”how stupid it is to have things go on in the same way day after day. Last week there was a fire alarm about two blocks away, and just think, the engines pa.s.sed scarcely five minutes after recess was over, and Miss Crawdon wouldn't let us run out to see where the fire was.”

”Naturally not,” said Mrs. Barlow, as she left the room, adding, as she pa.s.sed out,

”By the time you are ready, Julia, the carriage will be here.”

”Yes, Aunt Anna,” answered Julia, and she, too, after a few pleasant words with Edith, excused herself with the explanation that her aunt had promised to accompany her to do some important errands down town.

”Come upstairs with me,” said Brenda, with an air of relief, as Julia left. ”There's Nora, now, I know her ring of the bell.”

Nora soon joined the other three in Brenda's pretty bedroom.

”Here we are, all four together again,” exclaimed Brenda, as she threw herself down on the chintz-covered sofa. ”It's so much pleasanter not to have any strangers about.”

”Do you call your cousin a stranger?” asked Nora.

”Why, yes, any one can see that she's terribly serious, and that she won't take a bit of interest in the things we do.”