"Freedom—at last!" exclaimed Peter, increasing his speed. Ahead they saw the gleam of roofs through the trees. "And it looks as though they'd caught the storm worse than we did!"
CHAPTER XXIII
WHAT THE CHIMNEY HELD
The storm, sweeping down the valley, had reached the heighth of its fury over Freedom.
As the flashes of lightning grew sharper and more frequent, B'lindy bade Miss Milly watch the baby while she made things fast around the house. Beth women had been hanging over the sleeping child with something like awe. "Poor little mite—like as not right this minit Sarah Hopkins is watchin' us," B'lindy had whispered, "little bit of a thing, goin' to grow into a big, big man some day! Ain't it just wonderful, Milly Leavitt?"
Milly's awe of the baby had been mixed with alarm at the increasing intensity of the storm. So that, as B'lindy moved to go, she held out an imploring hand.
"Now you just hold yourself together, Milly Leavitt—that storm ain't goin' to hurt you! Anyways, it's lots more likely to if I don't see that everything's shut up tight, so's the lightnin' can't get in! Ouch!" Even B'lindy covered her eyes from a blinding flash. "You hold on to that baby, Milly Leavitt," she commanded, bolting from the room.
But with each flash, each roar of thunder, poor Miss Milly's courage ebbed. Her cry—rising above, the noise of the storm brought Miss Sabrina and B'lindy to her.
"I can't—help—it!" she sobbed, covering her face. "It's so—so dreadful! And where's—Nancy! Oh—oh!"