"Poor child!" she said presently. "What a time you've had!"
"Oh, Miss Elizabeth!" said Gusta, the tears starting afresh at this expression of sympathy, "we've had a dreadful time!"
"And we've missed you awfully," said Elizabeth. "When are you coming back to us?"
Gusta looked up gratefully. "I don't know, Miss Elizabeth; I wish I did. But you see my mother is sick ever since father--"
"And how is your father? We saw in the newspaper how badly he had been hurt."
"Was it in the paper?" said Gusta eagerly, leaning forward a little.
"Yes, didn't you see it? It was just a little item; it gave few of the details, and it must have misspelled--" But Elizabeth stopped.
"I didn't see it," said Gusta. "He was hurt dreadfully, Miss Elizabeth; they cut his leg off at the hospital."
"Oh, Gusta! And he's there still, of course?"
"Yes, and we don't know how long he'll have to stay. Maybe he'll have to go under another operation."