Part 28 (1/2)

”But Zoie,” persisted Aggie, as she followed her young friend in trepidation, ”don't you realise that if you persist in keeping this baby, that mother will dog Jimmy's footsteps for the rest of his life?”

”That will be nice,” murmured Jimmy.

Zoie busied herself with her toilet, and turned a deaf ear to Aggie.

There was a touch of genuine emotion in Aggie's voice when she continued.

”Just think of it, Zoie, Jimmy will never be able to come and go like a free man again.”

”What do I care how he comes and goes?” exclaimed Zoie impatiently. ”If Jimmy had gone when we told him to go, that woman would have had her old baby by now; but he didn't, oh no! All he ever does is to sit around and talk about his dinner.”

”Yes,” cried Jimmy hotly, ”and that's about as far as I ever GET with it.”

”You'll never get anywhere with anything,” was Zoie's exasperating answer. ”You're too slow.”

”Well, there's nothing slow about you,” retorted Jimmy, stung to a frenzy by her insolence.

”Oh please, please,” interposed Aggie, desperately determined to keep these two irascible persons to the main issue. ”What are we going to tell that mother?”

”You can tell her whatever you like,” answered Zoie, with an impudent toss of her head, ”but I'll NOT give up that baby until I get ANOTHER one.'

”Another?” almost shrieked Jimmy. It was apparent that he must needs increase the number of his brain cells if he were to follow this extraordinary young woman's line of thought much further. ”You don't expect to go on multiplying them forever, do you?” he asked.

”YOU are the one who has been multiplying them,” was Zoie's disconcerting reply.

It was evident to Jimmy that he could not think fast enough nor clearly enough to save himself from a mental disaster if he continued to argue with the shameless young woman, so he contented himself by rocking to and fro and murmuring dismally that he had ”known from the first that it was to be an endless chain.”

While Zoie and Jimmy had been wrangling, Aggie had been weighing the pros and cons of the case. She now turned to Jimmy with a tone of firm but motherly decision. ”Zoie is quite right,” she said.

Jimmy rolled his large eyes up at his spouse with a ”you too, Brutus,”

expression.

Aggie continued mercilessly, ”It's the only way, Jimmy.”

No sooner had Aggie arrived at her decision than Zoie upset her tranquillity by a triumphant expression of ”I have it.”

Jimmy and Aggie gazed at Zoie's radiant face in consternation. They were accustomed to see only reproach there. Her sudden enthusiasm increased Jimmy's uneasiness.

”YOU have it,” he grunted without attempting to conceal his disgust.

”SHE'S the one who generally has it.” And he nodded toward Aggie.

Inflamed by her young friend's enthusiasm, Aggie rushed to her eagerly.

”What is it, Zoie?” she asked.

”The washerwoman!” exclaimed Zoie, as though the revelation had come straight from heaven. ”SHE HAD TWINS,” and with that, two pairs of eyes turned expectantly toward the only man in the room.

Tracing the pattern of the rug with his toe, Jimmy remained stubbornly oblivious of their attentions. He rearranged the pillows on the couch, and finally, for want of a better occupation, he wound his watch. All to no avail. He could feel Zoie's cat-like gaze upon him.

”Jimmy can get the other one,” she said.