He bathed her face with cold water, and gave her a drink. Then he carried her into the sitting room.
“Don’t cry so, Marty dear! Shall I read to you?”
“I didn’t mean to be—so unpolite to you, daddy darling!”
“Don’t say that, Marty!” he cried. “It’s—”
Her wet cheek was pressed against his.
“I missed you so, daddy,” she whispered, her voice hoarse from sobbing.
She was growing quieter now, and he held her in his arms, feeling her little heart beat against his. Then, suddenly, she burst out again wildly:
“Oh, daddy! Oh, daddy! I’ve got to be—always going away—and missing you both! I can’t bear it, daddy! Oh, I miss mother so awfully, terribly much! Oh, daddy, I want mother!”
“Hush, Marty!” he said in anguish. “You’ll wake Renie, you know.”
That calmed her at once. She sobbed a little longer, but her tears had ceased.