That talk of leaving Three Towers Hall. What did it mean? Was there any actual possibility of Edina being forced to such a thing? Was something wrong with those oil wells out in Oklahoma? Edina had gone so far as to admit that the letter was from home. Had the visionary Paw of Edina’s childhood overreached himself again?
Billie wondered, but, in the face of Edina’s resolute silence, could find no answer.
Meanwhile, the girl from the West became increasingly silent and thoughtful. She rarely spoke unless first spoken to, and almost never smiled.
“She acts like a person with a dreadful secret,” observed Vi upon one occasion when Edina had been more than usually uncommunicative.
“A worm is gnawing at the heart of the rosy apple,” Laura agreed. “Maybe she is trying to keep the family skeleton in its closet. Most families have them.”
Vi giggled.
“It’s hard to think of skeletons in relation to Edina Tooker!” she said.
The two girls were in the study hall preparing their lessons for the next day. Vi struggled with her always-difficult “math” while Laura marshaled ideas for a composition on “The Relation of Science to World Progress.”
Into this studious atmosphere Billie dashed like a breath of cool fresh air. With her were Rose Belser and Connie Danvers.
“Miss Gay is going to leave to be married,” Billie announced without preamble. “A number of the girls are keen to form a gift club and raise some money for a really nice parting gift.”