Nellie was a friend of the chums who had rather expected to go to Three Towers Hall with them at first. But Mr. and Mrs. Bane had suddenly decided to go to Europe and take Nellie with them, which had rather upset Nellie's plans. And now here she was on the train with them.
"Why, Nellie!" Billie cried, almost dropping the chocolates again in her surprise and delight. "How did you get here——"
"Through the window," mocked Nellie, and dropped into a vacant seat beside Laura.
"But," stammered the latter, her eyes round and wide with wonder, "the last we heard of you you were going to England."
"Yes. But an aunt of Daddy's died and he decided we'd better postpone the voyage until next summer."
"Are you glad or sorry?" demanded Billie breathlessly.
"Glad," said Nellie without a moment's hesitation. "I want to go to Europe, of course. But I can go there any old time, and I was simply wild to go to Three Towers with you girls. You'll never know how jealous I was," she ended with a sigh.
"Isn't it funny?" marveled Violet. "And here we were envying you!"
They laughed, and thereupon entered into a spirited conversation that lasted until Ferd interrupted to inquire what they were keeping the chocolates to themselves for, anyway. Did they think they had a corner on the chocolate market? To this Billie answered by holding out the whole box, showing that they had been too busy talking even to open it.
This interruption led to others, however, and they found that nearly the whole car was occupied by girls and boys from North Bend who were going to Three Towers or the Boxton Military Academy.