“Oh indeed, indeed it has. Ah, if you only knew half, if I could tell you, if I could confide in you! We of the Lower School have all been rendered miserable on account of it. Dear Mrs. Wyndham, you don’t know what we have lived through, how we have been suspected, and even now are suspected! But we’ve made up our minds, we will at any risk keep our knowledge to ourselves. We have quite made up our minds.”
“But is that right or fair, Kitty? Is it right that you should allow wickedness to go on unpunished in your midst?”
“Oh, please, please, I can’t explain; I oughtn’t to have said as much as I did, only you are so sympathetic! There, I must not say any more. You see, if we are patient all may come right, and we cannot ruin people, can we?”
Mrs. Wyndham looked distressed, and Kitty thought it well to change the subject.
The next day was Christmas Day, which was kept in a truly old-fashioned style, and each girl and boy staying in the house received various and handsome presents. Kitty came off very well indeed, with boxes of handkerchiefs and a case of lovely scent, to which she was very partial. Mrs. Wyndham gave her a lovely little coral necklace, which exactly suited her piquant appearance.
Mr. Wyndham, standing at the head of the breakfast table on Christmas morning, said, “My dear children, I am anxious to give you all what you really want. I think it a mistake to give presents that are not useful; for instance, one girl may adore books, and another not care a bit about them, and so on. So I determined to wait until Christmas Day, and then to ask you all to write down on a piece of paper what you wish most for, and, if possible, and within my means, I will give it to you.”
The children all looked rather surprised at this speech, and one or two were even a little disappointed; but Kitty’s eyes glowed with intense pleasure, for a sudden thought darted through her mind. Soon after breakfast she found herself alone with Peggy.
“What are you going to ask for, Peggy?” she remarked.
“To be sure, I have it fixed up,” answered Peggy, “but for certain I’m not going to enlighten ye.”
“Peggy,” said Kitty, in her most coaxing voice, “why should you always be so cross and disagreeable to me? I can’t make it out, I really can’t.”