Brentwood (21 page)

“What line?”

“He is an expert accountant!”

“Indeed? What was the name of the firm, do you know?”

“Hamilton, McIvor and Company,” said Marjorie, glad that she had remembered to ask Ted that yesterday.

“You don’t say!” said Mr. Melbourne. “They had a fine standing. I should say there ought to be something pretty good somewhere for a man whom they employed. I’ll see what wires I can pull.”

Five minutes later, Marjorie turned from her expensive telephone call, well satisfied. Mr. Melbourne had been just as kind and helpful as she had known he would be. And he hadn’t asked for details nor tried to put obstacles in her way. She was a little surprised at that. She had thought he would demur at the proposition of her buying a house right out of the blue as it were, but he had evidently been somewhat prepared for her to do something of the sort. It must be that Mrs. Wetherill had given him a hint that there might be some such thing. Well, she felt a warm glow in her heart for the mother who in her death had at least put her in the way of making restitution for the wrong she had unwittingly done during the years. How dear she had been always! The tears sprang to Marjorie’s eyes, and she had much ado to control them as she came out into the store.

But there was still much to be done before she could get to her shopping. She glanced at her watch. Half past eleven already! She must hurry. She must go to see Mr. Bryant at once and get the matter of the house well started. So she took another taxi to the Federal Trust Company Building and found to her joy that Mr. Bryant was in and had just been talking with the Chicago lawyer, so her way was smoothed for her at once.

Mr. Bryant had keen eyes and a kindly smile. He was not as old as Mr. Melbourne, but gave the impression of being able to comprehend a matter at a glance. He asked a lot of questions about the way the Gays had lost their property, some of which Marjorie could not answer, but she told him all she knew about it and confided that she wished to give the house back to her father for Christmas if it could be managed.

Marjorie was delighted with the kind interest Mr. Bryant took in the matter and promised to return to his office at three o’clock to learn the result of his interview with the real estate company.

She went on her way with a lighter heart now, summoning her wits to remember all the things she wanted to buy.

First of all, she had it in mind to get a warm, lovely robe for her mother and comfortable, pretty slippers to go with it. The doctor had given them hope that she might be able to come downstairs for dinner on Christmas Day if she was reasonably careful beforehand. She needed something to wear down. Marjorie chose a charming robe of wine red wool, exquisitely finished with soft silk facings, a rich sash girdle, and frothy lace ruffling falling deeply from the wide sleeves and V-neck collar. It was such a lovely thing that she couldn’t resist it. She selected a rosy quilted bed jacket for when Mother began to sit up in bed, and then a couple of very pretty simple dresses. She wasn’t quite sure of the size, and she must buy cautiously, for she did not want to hurt her dear new people. She merely wanted to get necessities now, and Christmas made a good excuse. But they all needed so many things, almost
every
thing, that she scarcely knew where to begin.

While she was eating a hurried lunch, she wrote out a brief list of necessities. Tablecloths and napkins, mittens and stockings for the children, galoshes … But how could she fit them? Oh, the list would be endless if she got all they needed. She must have Betty along to select things. The children’s clothes were all too short and too tight and too ragged. But, of course, they didn’t have to have everything before Christmas. Better just to get something for each and buy other needs after Christmas in a leisurely way.

So she hurried up to the credit department, opened a charge account, giving her Chicago references, and also Mr. Bryant, then went and found a squirrel coat for Betty that was almost an exact duplicate of her own. If Betty wanted to change it after Christmas she could, but she had admired Marjorie’s so much that it seemed as if that might be her choice. Passing the millinery department, she found a little soft gray felt hat with a bright dash of pheasant’s feather cocked aslant in the crown. She was sure it would be becoming to Betty. She bought a couple of little brother and sister suits for Sunny and Bonnie. They were so cute she could not resist them; red jersey trimmed with braid for one set and navy blue sailor style with chevrons for the other. It didn’t take long. Children’s things were so pretty, it required strength of character not to buy the store out.

It was getting near three o’clock, when she was to meet Mr. Bryant. She hurried to the toy department and reveled in the bewilderment of delights for the children there displayed. She wished she could buy them all. A doll for Bonnie, of course, blocks and some wind-up toys for Sunny, an electric train for Bud. Would there be room to set it up? Oh, but there would be plenty of room in the house at Brentwood. Her heart throbbed joyously as she remembered that.

After that it didn’t take much time to select a warm housecoat of brown for her father, a nice leather coat for Ted, and a thick, warm sweater for Bud with a bright band of colors in the roll of the turtleneck collar. Then she was off, breathless with anxiety to meet the lawyer.

She found a better report than she had hoped for. Mr. Bryant had looked up the records of the transactions at the time Mr. Gay had surrendered his property and found more than one questionable trick that the perpetrators would not care to have brought to light by such a lawyer as William Bryant. He had succeeded in persuading them to accept a reasonable sum for back payment with interest, and the transfer of the property was not going to cost quite as much as Marjorie had been told at first.

It is true that Marjorie had been in control of her property for so short a time that money as yet did not mean much to her, and she would have as readily bought the house at twice the sum she was paying for it, but it was nice to know that things were being adjusted in a way that would please both her lawyers and would probably afford her father much satisfaction when he knew about it, so she went on her way homeward with a light of satisfaction in her eyes. She could hardly wait for her purchases to be delivered. They would probably wait for two or three days before sending them, until they had looked up her references, but they had promised positively that the things would all be there before Christmas. Tomorrow or the next day she would have to go down to Mr. Bryant’s office to sign the check and get the papers. Then she could get anything she had forgotten, and perhaps a few more Christmas things.

She stopped on the way out of the store to get a five-pound box of candy and another of salted nuts. Those would be things she couldn’t purchase at the little grocery store near Aster Street.

She felt conscience-stricken as she neared home to think she had left Betty so long with her mother still in bed and all the work to do. But she had got a lot done. That was good. And now she began to think of the things she should have brought and didn’t. However, that didn’t matter. They had got along without them so far and probably would keep on a few days more.

She realized as the taxi drove up to the door that the house had become home to her, so different from what it had seemed the day she arrived, only a few brief days before! Home because there were dear ones there, and already her interests were tied up with theirs.

The children met her at the door, Sunny holding up a smeary face to be kissed and Bonnie clasping her arm and nestling against her. Betty came wearily from the kitchen, peering out into the hall at her with a relived look.

“Oh, I’m glad you’ve come! I thought something dreadful had happened to you in the strange city—or else—” She stopped suddenly.

“Or else what?” Marjorie looked at her with a sharp note in her voice, as if her answer meant a great deal.

“Or else, maybe you had got tired of us and gone back to Chicago,” she said, with her eyes half averted.

“Oh, and would you have cared?” asked Marjorie breathlessly. “Wouldn’t you have been rather glad to get rid of me?”

“Well, I should say not!” said Betty with a catch in the last word like a sob.

“I should say
not
!” echoed Sunny with a stamp of his foot and a funny little shake of his head, ending with a joyous peal of laughter.

And Marjorie caught him in her arms and hugged and kissed him, while her heart gave a great throb of joy and her bundles flew this way and that. Bud had to rush from the dining room and pick them up, touching them with awe. New bundles! So many of them!

Suddenly a flood of happiness rolled into Marjorie’s heart. This was her home, where she belonged! They loved her!

I
t was such a pleasant homecoming. Everybody had something to tell her: how Sunny had slipped on the ice on the front step and bumped his head against the railing and a great blue lump had come on his forehead and Betty had to put iodine on it; how Bonnie had mended a hole in her apron all by herself so Mother wouldn’t have to do it—and the mended hole with its crooked stitches was proudly exhibited; how Bud’s cat had stood up against the neighbor’s dog, arched her back and spit at him bravely, with all her feathers on end, and then had scuttled into the house, jumped on the kitchen table, and eaten every drop of the cream off the tray Betty had ready for Mother; how Ted had a job evenings the rest of the week clerking in the ten-cent store and Betty was mending a shirt for him to wear tonight; how Mother ate all her egg for lunch and took a nice long nap afterward; how Father had been helping a man with his books all day and maybe it would last another two days; how Betty had been to the window every half-hour all the afternoon looking for her to come!

And then came Ted with a happy face.

“Great! You’ve got back!” he said with relief. “I was thinking maybe I’d have to go out and hunt you and be late to my new job if you didn’t come pretty soon!”

So! They were all glad to see her!

And then Mother rang the little call bell, and when Bonnie ran up to see what she wanted, it was Marjorie she asked for.

So she went to her mother and had a sweet little talk with her about how much better she was and how she was going to sit up in bed tomorrow, and maybe in a chair the next day if she was good and very careful, and then perhaps the next, or the next, she might walk around her room. And the doctor had promised that if all went well she might come downstairs for dinner on Christmas.

Marjorie unwrapped the little quilted pink bed jacket and put it about her mother’s shoulders, and they all trooped up joyously to see how pretty she looked in it.

Then Marjorie went down to help Betty with the dinner. Not that she knew much about the actual dinner, but she could set the table and make everything dainty and ready for the food, and not forget a thing, even to water in the glasses and napkins at every place, though they were only paper ones. Tomorrow or the next day the new ones would come, she was glad of that.

They gave Ted his dinner early and saw him off, excited and happy, so glad to be earning the pitiful sum the store would pay him for his work. Yet Marjorie reflected that she was proud of him that he did not want to lie back and let her take care of everybody. He was a manly fellow, a brother in whom she could rejoice. She had wanted to tell him about the house, but there hadn’t been any chance, and perhaps there wouldn’t be now until it came as a Christmas surprise.

Mr. Gay came in a little after six, looking weary, but with a strange new content upon him, a new self-respect. Marjorie, looking at the light in his eyes, realized what a hard thing it must be for him that he could earn nothing to support his family, and wished with all her heart that something might come of her request to the lawyer about a position for him.

That night after they had gone to their room, the sisters talked for a long time. Marjorie got little sidelights on various matters that Betty didn’t realize she was revealing.

“Betty,” she said, “isn’t there going to be some way you and I can get out together shopping for a little while? If Father is going to be home tomorrow or the next day, or if Ted didn’t have to work all day, couldn’t he take care of the children, now that Mother is so much better? I’d like to have you with me. I really don’t know how to pick out Christmas gifts for them all. You know what they want and need.”

“Christmas gifts!” said Betty excitedly. “You’ve already given us a fortune! What more do you want?”

“Oh, little pretty things and surprises,” laughed Marjorie. “You and I could have a lot of fun shopping together!”

Betty was still a minute and then she said decidedly, “I couldn’t! I haven’t anything fit to wear to go with you. After a while, when things get straightened around so I have time to get my clothes in shape, it will be different. I’ve got to get my coat cleaned and pressed and mended. You don’t realize. And besides, Father said he would be two days more on those books. I can see he’s very proud and happy about them, too. He wants to get Mother something for Christmas, I guess. He’s always made a lot of Christmas for us all when he had any money. And Ted will be out hunting jobs, too. No, I couldn’t leave now.”

“Well, why couldn’t I stay with the family and let you go out alone then, Betty? I want you to have some more money and go get things you want them all to have. You can wear my hat and coat if you like. I’m sure my things fit you, and we needn’t worry about clothes for you. I have plenty.”

Betty’s hand stole over and gave hers a quick clasp and slipped back again.

“You’re good!” she said. “You’re wonderful! It would be swell, but I couldn’t do it. I just couldn’t. Besides, there’s a lot to be done here. I’d better stay. Don’t bother about Christmas. It’s enough this year to have you and plenty to eat and a warm house and Mother getting well.”

“Well,” said Marjorie thoughtfully, “I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable, of course, but we’re going to have a Christmas, if I have to get it myself. You see, I had to call up my lawyer in Chicago today and talk to him about some business that I hadn’t settled before I came away, tell him where I was, and all that, and he’s sending on some papers for me to sign. They’ll be at another lawyer’s office. I’ll have to go there day after tomorrow, likely. I thought that after I got that done, I’d get some trimmings for the tree. Would Ted know where to get a tree? I’d like a nice big one, wouldn’t you, to celebrate our having found each other? And I’ll buy ornaments and balls and things.”