estimate of the entire amount loaned for all those articles, when suddenly she heard the kitchen door open and a boy’s voice.
“What’s the idea, Betts, of having the cellar window open? Did you think it was milder out than in?”
And then as the door shut behind him:
“Gosh! You’ve got a fire! What did you do? Burn up our only chair? That’s too bad. I found a place where they would pay sixty cents for it, since it’s almost new!”
Marjorie turned, startled, letting the pawn tickets fall back into the cup, and facing him, not realizing that she still held the cup in her hands.
“Gee, but it feels good in here, anyway! But how did you manage a fire? There wasn’t even a match! Did Dad—?” And then he turned and looked her straight in the face!
Chapter 4
S
he saw a tall boy, lean and wiry, with a shock of red hair and big gray eyes that had green lights in them. Under the mahogany brows and lashes they looked enormous, and they were weary, haunted eyes that seemed to have been perpetually puzzling out some anxious problem. There were shadows under them, too, and he looked too utterly worn for one of his age.
He stared at her first with a bewildered gaze, like one who had come in out of the sun and could not rightly see in the dimmer light. He put up his hand and passed it over his eyes, and then his gaze grew puzzled, and then frightened, almost as if he were afraid his sight had played him a trick. Marjorie began to sense what he was feeling and spoke quickly.
“You are Ted, aren’t you?” She did not know how much her voice was like Betty’s, only for that rich silken note that a luxurious surrounding had given her, and the boy was still more startled. He stiffened visibly, realizing that he was in the presence of a stranger.
The light of the pantry window was behind Marjorie’s head which made the likeness to Betty still more elusive.
“Yes?” he said coldly, lifting his head a trifle, with a gesture that in a man would have been called haughty. He was alert, ready to resent the intrusion of a stranger into their private misery.
Then he saw the cup in her hand, and putting down the bucket of coal he had picked from the dump, he stepped over and took the cup possessively.
“That wouldn’t interest you,” he said coldly, reprovingly.
“Ted!” said Marjorie impulsively, “I’m your sister! Don’t speak to me that way!”
“My sister!” said Ted scornfully. “Well, I can’t help it if you are, that doesn’t give you a right to pry into our private affairs, does it?”
An angry flush had stolen over the boy’s lean cheeks, and his eyes were hard as steel.
“Oh, please don’t!” said Marjorie, covering her face with her hands. “I wasn’t prying. I was trying to help!”
“Well, we don’t need your help!” said the boy, with young scorn in his eyes, “and it would be much better if you were to go back wherever you came from. This wasn’t a very good time to select to visit us. We’ve got sickness in the house, and we’ve been unfortunate!”
“Oh, I know!” moaned Marjorie, “but you see, I didn’t know anything about you till three or four days ago. I didn’t even know I had a brother! But now I’ve come, and I want to help.”
“Well, I don’t think there is anything you can do,” he said icily. “We’ll manage somehow by ourselves. You might leave your address and we can let you know when things are more prosperous, and then you could come and see Mother. Just at present it wouldn’t be possible for us to have visitors.”
“But you see, Ted, I’m not a visitor. I’m one of the family, and Betty and I are working together.”
“Betty! Does my sister Betty know you are here? Where is she?”
“She’s upstairs now with the doctor.”
“The doctor! Is my mother worse?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen her yet, but as soon as I heard she was so sick, I begged Betty to get the doctor. You know, pneumonia is a very treacherous
“What’s the idea, Betts, of having the cellar window open? Did you think it was milder out than in?”
And then as the door shut behind him:
“Gosh! You’ve got a fire! What did you do? Burn up our only chair? That’s too bad. I found a place where they would pay sixty cents for it, since it’s almost new!”
Marjorie turned, startled, letting the pawn tickets fall back into the cup, and facing him, not realizing that she still held the cup in her hands.
“Gee, but it feels good in here, anyway! But how did you manage a fire? There wasn’t even a match! Did Dad—?” And then he turned and looked her straight in the face!
Chapter 4
S
he saw a tall boy, lean and wiry, with a shock of red hair and big gray eyes that had green lights in them. Under the mahogany brows and lashes they looked enormous, and they were weary, haunted eyes that seemed to have been perpetually puzzling out some anxious problem. There were shadows under them, too, and he looked too utterly worn for one of his age.
He stared at her first with a bewildered gaze, like one who had come in out of the sun and could not rightly see in the dimmer light. He put up his hand and passed it over his eyes, and then his gaze grew puzzled, and then frightened, almost as if he were afraid his sight had played him a trick. Marjorie began to sense what he was feeling and spoke quickly.
“You are Ted, aren’t you?” She did not know how much her voice was like Betty’s, only for that rich silken note that a luxurious surrounding had given her, and the boy was still more startled. He stiffened visibly, realizing that he was in the presence of a stranger.
The light of the pantry window was behind Marjorie’s head which made the likeness to Betty still more elusive.
“Yes?” he said coldly, lifting his head a trifle, with a gesture that in a man would have been called haughty. He was alert, ready to resent the intrusion of a stranger into their private misery.
Then he saw the cup in her hand, and putting down the bucket of coal he had picked from the dump, he stepped over and took the cup possessively.
“That wouldn’t interest you,” he said coldly, reprovingly.
“Ted!” said Marjorie impulsively, “I’m your sister! Don’t speak to me that way!”
“My sister!” said Ted scornfully. “Well, I can’t help it if you are, that doesn’t give you a right to pry into our private affairs, does it?”
An angry flush had stolen over the boy’s lean cheeks, and his eyes were hard as steel.
“Oh, please don’t!” said Marjorie, covering her face with her hands. “I wasn’t prying. I was trying to help!”
“Well, we don’t need your help!” said the boy, with young scorn in his eyes, “and it would be much better if you were to go back wherever you came from. This wasn’t a very good time to select to visit us. We’ve got sickness in the house, and we’ve been unfortunate!”
“Oh, I know!” moaned Marjorie, “but you see, I didn’t know anything about you till three or four days ago. I didn’t even know I had a brother! But now I’ve come, and I want to help.”
“Well, I don’t think there is anything you can do,” he said icily. “We’ll manage somehow by ourselves. You might leave your address and we can let you know when things are more prosperous, and then you could come and see Mother. Just at present it wouldn’t be possible for us to have visitors.”
“But you see, Ted, I’m not a visitor. I’m one of the family, and Betty and I are working together.”
“Betty! Does my sister Betty know you are here? Where is she?”
“She’s upstairs now with the doctor.”
“The doctor! Is my mother worse?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen her yet, but as soon as I heard she was so sick, I begged Betty to get the doctor. You know, pneumonia is a very treacherous
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