It seemed long to wait with her heart thumping so, and why did it
thump? She found herself praying, "O God, show me what to say!" and
then the door was open a crack and a sharp wizened face with a striking
resemblance to Cherry's bold little beauty, was thrust at her. It must
be Cherry's mother. Of course it was!
"Mr. Fenner ain't in the shop!" said the woman, "He can't do nothin
to-day. He's sick!"
Marilyn smiled: "But I wanted to see Cherry," she said, "Aren't you her
mother? Don't you remember me? I'm Marilyn Severn, her old music
teacher. Is Cherry in?"
A frightened look passed over the woman's face as she scanned the sweet
face before her, and then a wily expression darted into her eyes: "Oh," she said with a forced smirk, "Yes, Miss Marilyn. Excuse me fer
not recognizing you. You've grown a lot. Why no, Cherry ain't at home
this morning. She'll be awful sorry not to see you. She thought a lot
of you, she did. She got on so well with you in her music too. I says
to her the other day, I says Cherry, I hear Miss Marilyn is home again,
you'll have to take up yer music again, and she says yes, she guessed
she would. She'll be round some day to see you. Sorry I can't ask you
in, but Mr. Fenner's pretty sick. Oh, just the grip I guess. He'll soon
be all right."
She began to realize that the woman was in a hurry to get rid of her
and she hastened away, relieved yet puzzled at the whole affair. She
rode down into the village mechanically and bought a spool of silk and
the coffee strainer which had been her legitimate errand to the
village, and turning back had scarcely passed the last house before she
saw the Chief's car coming toward her, and Mark, his face white and
haggard, looking out from the back seat. He drew back as he recognized
her, and tried to hide, and she rode on with only a passing bow which
comprehended the whole car; but she was aware of Mark's eyes upon her,
steadily, watching her. She would have known he was watching her from
the darkness of the back seat if her own eyes had been shut. What was
it all about and what were they doing to Mark?