Mandie Collection, The: 8 (17 page)

“Amanda, come on in,” Mrs. Taft called from down the hallway. “We’ll be leaving soon.”

Mandie set Snowball down and hurried to embrace her grandmother. Snowball ran off down the hallway. “I haven’t seen you since we came back to Asheville. We never stay apart that long at one time.”

“I know, dear,” Mrs. Taft said, squeezing Mandie’s shoulders. “We’re going to have to work out our schedules so we have more time together. Now take off your coat and tam, and we’ll sit by the fire in the parlor until it’s time to leave.”

Mandie hung her coat and tam on the hall tree and followed her grandmother into the parlor. She saw the fire burning brightly in the fireplace and asked, “Oh, Grandmother, you haven’t had one of those furnaces put in your house yet?”

As they sat down, Mrs. Taft smiled and replied, “Oh yes, dear, we do have what they call central heat now, but I don’t intend doing away with my fires in the fireplaces all the time.”

Mandie quickly looked around the room and spotted a radiator beneath the windows to the front porch in the room. “I see,” she said. “Do your radiators make all that racket like the ones at school? Celia and I always think something is blowing up when it happens.”

Mrs. Taft laughed and replied, “They do make some noise, but once you learn how to stoke them, they are not so bad. Evidently Uncle Cal at the school isn’t keeping them going evenly.”

“I suppose as soon as it gets warm weather, Miss Prudence will have them all turned off,” Mandie said with a big sigh. Then she changed
the subject. “Are you going to stay at our house until it’s time for me to come back to school?”

“I’m not certain at the moment,” Mrs. Taft told her. “But I probably will. Hilda is still at the Mannings’ house, and they have been asking if they can keep her. They want to give her a home.”

“Hilda live with the Mannings?” Mandie questioned. “Well, I suppose that would be all right, provided we could see her now and then.”

“Of course, that would be understood,” Mrs. Taft said. “You know, Hilda is much better off with them because they have that daughter who lives at home. She doesn’t go off to school out of town like you do. And Hilda seems to get along very well with the daughter.”

“Have you already promised them Hilda could live with them?” Mandie asked.

Mandie and Celia had found Hilda hiding in their schoolhouse and had rescued her and brought her home to Mrs. Taft. Therefore, Mandie felt a close connection with the girl, even though Hilda didn’t seem to know how to talk very well and had some kind of handicap for learning.

“No, dear, I just told them we would discuss it later, when you and I come back to Asheville,” Mrs. Taft said.

The maid came into the parlor just then with a tray and put it on the table next to Mrs. Taft. Mandie spotted sweet rolls on it alongside the coffeepot.

“Now, let’s have a little refreshment before we board that noisy, dirty old train,” Mrs. Taft told Mandie, picking up the cup of coffee the maid had poured for her.

Mandie took the other cup of coffee and moved closer to the table to look over the fancy delicacies on the tray, but especially the sweet rolls.

“We made them especially for you, Missy ’Manda,” Ella, the maid, told her with a big grin as she watched.

“Oh, thank you,” Mandie said, smiling up at the girl as she quickly took one of the rolls on a little plate from the tray. She took a big bite and spoke with her mouth full. “Umm! Good!”

“Thank you, Ella, that will be all for now,” Mrs. Taft dismissed the maid, who quickly left the room. Then turning to Mandie, Mrs. Taft
asked, “Amanda, are you not learning anything at that school? You know you shouldn’t talk with food in your mouth.”

Mandie quickly swallowed and replied, “I know. I’m sorry, Grandmother. I suppose Miss Prudence is so strict on us that I have to loosen up when I get away from her.”

“But that is a big mistake, Amanda,” Mrs. Taft said. “If you don’t mind your p’s and q’s all the time, you will forget sometime and make a big blunder, like, uh ...” She tried to think of an example.

“Like visiting with the President of the United States?” Mandie quickly finished for her. “Yes, President McKinley was so nice and so friendly. It was hard to remember to be on my best behavior, but I don’t believe I made a real big mistake. I tried hard.”

“No, as I remember, you did very well,” Mrs. Taft agreed. “Now, have you thought about what you would like to do this summer? We went to Europe last summer, but we could always go back if you’re interested.”

Mandie quickly replied, “Oh no, Grandmother, I don’t want to go anywhere. I mean, not Europe at least. I would like to stay home this summer, I think.”

Mrs. Taft quickly looked at her and asked, “Have you lost all interest in seeing the world? You know I would like to show you everything.”

“No, it isn’t that, Grandmother,” Mandie said, not daring to look at her grandmother as she tried to think of some excuse. “I think my friends will all visit after school is out—Celia, Sallie, Jonathan, and Joe, that is.”

“I see,” Mrs. Taft said, watching her closely. “Then perhaps they would like to go with you and me somewhere, some special place that you’d like to visit.”

Mandie took a deep breath, set down her coffee cup, and said, “I just don’t know. I’d have to ask them. You see, we had all talked about this at Christmastime and decided we would visit all our homes. You know, we would all go to Joe’s, Sallie’s, Jonathan’s, and Celia’s, and they would come to my house first.”

“Now, that sounds like a weary summer, running from Franklin, to Charley Gap, to Deep Creek, to Richmond, and New York. Why, you’d be spending most of your time traveling all that distance,” Mrs. Taft
said. “Why don’t you just ask all your friends to come along with you and me, and we’ll go wherever you want.”

“Thank you, Grandmother,” Mandie said, hoping her grandmother would change the subject. She didn’t want her to know that she would be running off to Joe’s house as soon as Uncle John would take her. “I’ll ask everyone.”

“Now that we have that settled, I believe we’d better get ready to go to the depot,” Mrs. Taft said, rising from her chair.

Oh goodness
, Mandie thought. Her grandmother seemed to think she had agreed to take her friends and go with her someplace. And she didn’t believe her friends would go along with that. They all wanted to escape adult supervision for the summer. They were getting too old to tag along with parents and grandparents all the time. How was she ever going to get out of this?

“Come along, Amanda,” Mrs. Taft said as she left the room.

“Yes, ma’am, I’m coming,” Mandie said, following her out the door.

When they arrived at the depot, the train came in on time. After they got aboard, Mandie held Snowball in her lap and was thankful to see that her grandmother intended to doze off during the trip. That way she wouldn’t have to discuss the possibility of a summer journey. But Mandie soon found herself getting sleepy. She wrapped Snowball’s red leash around her wrist and slid down in her seat to get comfortable.

The next thing Mandie knew the conductor was calling, “Franklin! Franklin!” She quickly straightened up to see her grandmother smoothing her skirt and preparing to stand up.

“Home!” Mandie exclaimed, looking out the window. There was Uncle John waiting for them on the platform. Holding securely to the white cat, she followed her grandmother out of the train.

Uncle John Shaw greeted Mrs. Taft. “So glad you could come with Mandie.”

“Of course,” Mrs. Taft replied.

Then the tall man bent down to embrace Mandie and the white kitten she was holding. “I’m glad you’re home, my little blue eyes.”

“So am I, Uncle John,” Mandie replied, putting an arm around his neck. Then looking up at him, she asked, “Uncle John, do you have any messages for me?”

“Messages for you?” John Shaw asked with a puzzled expression as he straightened up.

Mandie noticed that her grandmother had also turned to listen as they left the platform of the depot. “You know, any word from anyone I know?” she tried to explain without really explaining.

“Oh, I see,” John Shaw said, winking at her. “No, I don’t believe I have heard anything from any of your friends.”

Mandie frowned, thinking to herself that he must have understood that she was really asking if he had heard whether Joe was home or not. Somehow she just didn’t want her grandmother to know, mainly because her grandmother was trying to arrange her summer vacation.

Uncle John had come in the rig, and Jason Bond was with him. Mr. Bond was already inside the depot getting their luggage.

“I’ll be right back. I need to help Jason Bond with the luggage,” John Shaw told Mrs. Taft as he helped her board the rig.

Mandie jumped up and sat on the backseat. Snowball was trying to get away from her, but she held firmly to his leash.

When they got to the house, all the servants were waiting to greet her in the hallway. To Mandie they were all a part of her family and she loved them all—Aunt Lou, Liza, Jenny, and Abraham. And they always seemed happy when Mandie came home.

After removing her coat and tam and hanging them on the hall tree, Mandie hugged every one of the servants. Then she finally got to the parlor, where her mother was sitting and where her grandmother had already sat down.

“I’m glad you’re home, dear,” her mother, Elizabeth Shaw, told her as they embraced.

“Me too,” Mandie said with a big smile.

Her mother had married Mandie’s uncle John Shaw after Mandie’s father had died, and Mandie was so grateful to have a real home. She sat down on a stool by the fire in the fireplace.

“I was just asking Amanda what she would like to do this summer,” Mrs. Taft said to her daughter. “Perhaps you and John could join us this summer for a trip somewhere.”

Oh goodness, why doesn’t Grandmother forget about that journey she wants to take this summer?
Mandie thought to herself.

“I’m not sure yet what our plans are, but John and I can discuss it,” Elizabeth replied.

At that moment Mandie happened to look at the doorway and saw Liza, the young maid, standing there, motioning to her. Mandie quickly glanced at her mother and grandmother and managed to get up and go out to the hallway without being noticed.

“Missy ’Manda, you got a letter,” Liza whispered.

“A letter? Where is it?” Mandie asked in surprise.

“Over dere in dat plate whut holds de mail,” Liza replied, pointing to the table in the hallway.

Mandie rushed over to look. Sure enough, there was a small white envelope addressed to her, and, if she wasn’t terribly mistaken, the handwriting belonged to Joe. She snatched it up and ran to sit on the bottom step of the huge staircase in the main hallway. Liza silently followed, almost as excited as Mandie.

Mandie tore the envelope open and glanced at the one sheet of paper with only three lines of writing on it. “I will be home by the time you get this. Are you coming here, or am I coming there?” It was signed, “Joe.”

“From Doctuh son, ain’t it?” Liza said, excitedly dancing around the hallway.

“Yes, it is, Liza, and he’s already home from school,” Mandie replied as she tried to decide what to do next. She couldn’t very well run off as soon as she arrived home, but, on the other hand, she wanted to go to the Woodards’ instead of having Joe come to her house. That was what they had been planning, anyway.

“He not comin’ heah?” Liza asked as she came to a stop by Mandie.

“No, I don’t think so,” Mandie said thoughtfully. Uncle John had previously promised her he would take her to the Woodards, so that was what she was going to do.

“Den you gwine out dere?” Liza asked.

“Yes, I am,” Mandie replied.

“Right now?” Liza asked.

Mandie smiled at her friend and said, “No, not right now, Liza. I just got home. I have to stay a little while, and then I’ll go.”

“Don’t tell Missy Polly, ’cause she be wantin’ to go, too,” Liza warned her.

“Polly wants to go to Joe’s house?” Mandie asked as she stood up and carefully folded the letter and put it in her pocket.

“Dat whut she dun tole huh cook, and huh cook dun tole me dat she be wantin’ to do sumpin’ dis heah summer, so she might be gwine somewhere wid you,” Liza explained.

“Oh no, Liza, don’t let her know anything,” Mandie said quickly. “She got home yesterday, didn’t she, because she left school one day early?”

“Dat’s right,” Liza said. “Don’t you worry none now, Missy ’Manda. I won’t be tellin’ huh nuthin’, nuthin’ a-tall.”

Polly Cornwallis lived next door to Mandie, and their mothers were good friends. But Polly was always butting into things and inviting herself. And she was especially interested in Joe. That was another reason Mandie decided she didn’t want Joe to come to her house. Polly would find out and be right underfoot the whole time.

“Thanks for telling me, Liza,” Mandie said. “I’ll let you know when I’m going to Joe’s.”

As she went back toward the parlor, Mandie wondered when she would be able to leave, but the sooner the better. She wanted to know what Joe had been trying to tell her out of the train window when he had gone away to school.

CHAPTER TWO

MORE PLANS

Mandie was pleasantly surprised the next morning when Uncle John asked at the breakfast table, “When are you planning to go to the Woodards’? I have some business I’d like to attend to in Asheville as soon as possible. So if we could go to the Woodards’ tomorrow after church, I could go on to Asheville from there, and then come back to get you whenever you are ready to return home. What do you think?”

Mandie smiled and replied as she laid down her fork, “Oh, Uncle John, that would be just fine.”

“Amanda,” her mother said from the end of the huge table. “You just got home, and you are going away?”

“I’m sorry, Mother,” Mandie quickly told her. “But if I could go to the Woodards’ with Uncle John tomorrow, I could come back in a few days ... whenever he could get me.”

John Shaw looked at his wife from the head of the table and said, “If you don’t want us to do this, we can postpone her visit a few days. But you know I do have to go to Asheville and see our lawyer.”