The City of Fire - Page 200/221

And then suddenly, without warning, Miss Marilyn herself went away, to

New York she said, for a few weeks, she wasn't sure just how long. But

there was something sad in her voice as she said it, and something

white about the look she wore that made him sure she was not going to

the part of New York where Mark Carter lived.

Billy accepted it with a sigh. Things were getting pretty dry around

Sabbath Valley for him. He didn't seem to get his pep back as fast as

he had expected. For one thing he worried a good deal, and for another

the doctor wouldn't let him play baseball nor ride a bicycle yet for

quite a while. He had to go around and act just like a "gurrull!" Aw

Gee! Sometimes he was even glad to have Mary Little come across the

street with her picture puzzles and stay with him awhile. She was real

good company. He hadn't ever dreamed before that girls could be as

interesting. Of course, Miss Marilyn had to be a girl once, but then

she was Miss Marilyn. That was different.

Then too, Billy hadn't quite forgotten that first morning that Saxy got

her arms around him and cried over him glad tears, bright sweet tears

that wet his face and made him feel like crying happy tears too. And

the sudden surprising desire he felt to hug her with his well arm, and

how she fell over on the bed and got to laughing because he pulled her

hair down in his awkwardness, and pulled her collar crooked. Aw Gee!

She was just Aunt Saxy and he had been rotten to her a lot of times.

But now it was different. Somehow Saxy and he were more pals, or was it

that he was the man now taking care of Saxy and not the little boy

being taken care of himself? Somehow during those weeks he had been

gone Saxy had cried out the pink tears, and was growing smiles, and

home was "kinda nice" after all. But he missed the bells. And nights

before he got into bed he got to kneeling down regularly, and saying

softly inside his heart: "Aw Gee, God, please why'n'tcha make Mark

understand, an' why'n'tcha bring 'em both home?"