“This here’s Will Belter, one of our neighbors,” Jeff said by way of introduction. “He lives up on the ridge beyond the village.”
Will, greedy eyes upon her, said, “Howdo, ma’am!”
The woman watched him through the screen door, and answered, “How do you do!”
He said no more, and after a moment she turned back into the obscurity of the kitchen.
Will told Jeff, “She’s older than I figured she’d be.”
“She looks older,” Jeff agreed. “That long train trip was pretty hard; and she was kind of sick.”
“Ain’t but twenty-two or three, is she? I’d think she was thirty, anyway.”
“Twenty-four,” Jeff told him.
When Will presently went on his way Jeff watched his disappearing figure with stern eyes, and there was trouble in his countenance when he turned and saw the woman standing inside the screen door and also watching.
“Who was that?”