“Yes. The Nelsons were proud old stock, Babs,” her father told her. “And I always thought you were about one hundredth of one per cent Nelson,” he laughed. “But go get slicked up. I’m going over to that show myself this afternoon, and we can both take the sampler. I promised Dave Hunt I’d look in, and he asked me to be there at two-thirty this afternoon. Seems he expects some other old settlers to go there and greet the ladies, and he wants to include me.”
“Oh, that will be fine,” said Barbara, feeling that it wouldn’t be anything of the kind. For proud as she was of her professional father, and glad and happy as she might be to bring that sampler to the Community House, she had other plans for the afternoon. She was going out with Cara to Miss Davis’ house to tell her that Nicky hadn’t stolen the ship. After that they were both going down to the lighthouse to see Captain Quiller, and they hoped he might know something of the Marcusis’ whereabouts.
But how could Barbara refuse to go to the Community House with her father when he was so sure she would be delighted to go?
He saw her hesitate. “Unless you have some better plans,” he said then. “If you have, of course——”
“Nothing could be better than going with you, Dad,” she told him, “but I did promise to go—some place with Cara.”
“Oh, that’s all right, of course,” the doctor quickly replied. “I’m always glad to have you go any place with Cara,” he added. “She’s a fine girl and she has done you a heap of good.” He ran his hand under her chin at that, in a way he had of bringing her face up to look into his own.
“You’re better this afternoon,” he continued. “Thought you had something on your mind this morning but I see it’s all right now,” he ended, in that unerring way some fathers and all mothers seem to possess. “Then, you’ll turn in the sampler, of course?” he questioned. “It wouldn’t look just the thing for a doctor of bacteriology to contribute, would it?”
“Certainly I’ll take it, Dad. And I’ll get there before you leave, I hope,” said Barbara, feeling guilty that she was failing him in his laudable pride, while she was following her own selfish interest in trying to ferret out the suspicion that had fallen upon an obscure Italian boy.
She knew it wasn’t just being generous to Nicky; that her interest in him was a gratification of her love of adventure.
And she realized again that as a girl she was—different.