Mrs. Burtsch had also arisen. She was fairly trembling with offended pride. She looked at Eliza as though she had never seen her before. Indeed, she had never seen such an Eliza before. She could not say a word. She made an effort, but it only ended in a clack of her tongue against her false teeth. With what dignity she could command, she turned and, jerking Rose up by the hand, fairly pulled her from the room.
Her tongue was loosened before she reached home. Rose listened to a storm of abuse against Eliza and her fosterchild. She learned all the particulars of Beth’s advent into the Wells home.
When they had gone, Eliza went back to her sewing. Her hand trembled with nervousness. Beth came and stood back of her chair. “Adee, I think I’ll fix your hair like you used to wear it when I was a baby.”
She loosened the smooth bands until the soft chestnut locks fell loosely about the high, broad forehead. The roll of hair was too heavy for the child to manage, so Adee herself coiled it loosely as Beth wished it to be.
The child disappeared for a moment, but soon returned with some sweet peas in a delicate pink.
“This is the way you used to wear them, Adee.” She stuck them in with her light, easy touch.
“Now, look how sweet you look, Adee,” she cried. Eliza viewed herself in the big mirror and smiled. She recognized beauty when she saw it and—well, she was growing to look like her own flowers, and her own heart.
CHAPTER VIII.
Mrs. Burtsch remained away all the remainder of the summer and until late in the fall. Rose, of course, was prohibited from visiting Beth. For her own part, Eliza was better pleased than otherwise with the arrangement of affairs. She regretted that Beth was cut off from intimate companionship with those of her own age, yet Rose had never been the most desirable acquaintance. Being alone was preferable to undesirable friends.
Eliza made a point of inviting Helen Reed from Friday until Sunday evening. The two little girls had the best of times. There were bushels of pop-corn and barrels of apples. When the weather was not too cold, they spent hours playing in the attic. Eliza had given them each a play skirt which could trail behind, and they were happy.