Zizi hesitated. Should she whistle beneath Penny Wise’s window, or——
The alternative she thought of seemed to her best, and she drew her wet draperies about her and scuttled off at a smart pace toward the village.
Barefooted as she was, she chose grassy ground whenever possible, but her feet were sadly cut and bruised before she reached her destination.
This was the house of Dan Peterson, and a ring at his doorbell, brought the sound of a hastily flung-up window, and a sharp “Who’s there?”
“Me,” said Zizi, truthfully, “please let me in.”
Not quite certain of the identity of his caller, but touched by the pleading little voice, Peterson came downstairs, followed by his wife.
A few words of explanation resulted in Zizi’s being put into warm, dry clothes, and tucked into bed by Mrs. Peterson, who admonished her to ‘sleep like a baby till mornin’.’
Which, nothing loth, Zizi did.
Morning at Black Aspens brought a shock of surprise.
It was Hester who first discovered the absence of Zizi from the Room with the Tassels.