"Scenery!" she exclaimed as she took Pappina's hand in hers. "There is nothing so beautiful as this child. I am almost hoping no one will claim her when we land at Naples, for I need her. Her eyes are like my Harold's, so—" She could not finish the sentence for the tears that welled to her eyes and the sorrow that choked her.
At Naples no one came for Pappina, alone and sick, still tossing her head in pain and fever.
"I cannot leave her," her new friend declared. "She must be cared for. Oh, how glad I am that I can do everything for her!"
Pappina, still unconscious, was carried to a carriage and taken to the International Hospital.
"See that every attention is given her," Mrs. Thurston said. "Leave nothing undone. Here is my card, and I am responsible for her. I will be back in the morning."
It was hard for Mrs. Thurston to leave Pappina, but friends were waiting for her and there was an engagement to fulfill.
The nurse put Pappina to bed, dressed in a little white nightgown, the first she had ever worn.
Early the following day Mrs. Thurston called.
"How is she?" she inquired eagerly. "Still unconscious? Take me to her. All night I have thought and dreamed of her. Her eyes have haunted me even in my sleep. Take me to her."
She asked anxiously if any one had sought the child.