"I am very glad to see you, my dear," she said heartily, "and I hope you will have a happy home with us."
"Thank you," Marigold answered. She gave a quick look at the kind old face, and then returned the caress, feeling that here was one who meant to be her friend.
Miss Pamela now came forward to greet her niece, but her stiff manner repelled the child, and the cold, clear tones of her voice struck chill on her sensitive heart. It seemed to Marigold that those piercing dark eyes were looking her through and through, and she felt restive under their steady gaze.
"There is a look of our nephew about her, I think," Miss Pamela remarked to her sister. "Do you not see it? She has his eyes."
"Yes," Miss Holcroft agreed, "I saw that at once. Are you considered like your father, my dear?"
"Mother says we are all three like him, and she is very glad."
A distinct look of approval was visible on both aunts' faces.
"Sit down, Marigold," Miss Holcroft said; "you must be tired after your long journey. You know which is which of us, I suppose? My sister is Aunt Pamela, and I am Aunt Mary!"
"Yes," the little girl answered smiling, "I thought so!"
"They will miss you at home," Miss Holcroft continued. "What will your brothers do, now they have lost you for a playfellow?"