“Oh no!” cried Loveday; “Mrs. Peters would fret dreadfully for me.”
“Do you think she would, dear, now she has her little ones to interest her?”
“Oh yes, I am sure she would. You see she would have no one to talk to her.”
“I would talk to her,” said mother, “and make much of her,” and looking rather grave, “you see there is a great deal of water at Porthcallis, and the kittens are so very young. If they escaped from you or their mother, and got down on the sands and a wave came in, and——”
“Can kittens swim?” asked Loveday, looking very anxious.
“No, dear; such baby things, too, would be too frightened to do anything. I really think it would be kinder to leave them at home with Nurse and me, and Priscilla would be glad, too, to have them to watch and play with when she gets better. She will be rather lonely and dull without you, you know.”
“So she will,” sighed Loveday, “but of course I shall come home at once if Prissy wants me.”
“You must breathe in all the sea air you can, and grow strong and rosy, and you must collect all the pretty shells you can find, for Priscilla, and then, perhaps—but remember it is only perhaps—when Priscilla and Geoffrey are well enough we may all come down to Porthcallis for a holiday with you.”
“Oh, how lovely!” cried Loveday, dancing and clapping her hands with joy. “I shall like going ever so much better now than I did.” She went over and leaned on her mother, and looked up into her face. “I—I didn’t want to go before you said that,” she confided to her in a half whisper, “at least not very much; but I do now, and I will get all the shells I can for Prissy, and I will get to know my way everywhere so as to be able to lead you all about when you come. And now,” bustling away, “I am going to take out all my toys to see which of them I shall pack;” and off she ran. In a moment or two, though, she was back again.
“Mother, don’t you think I ought to take one of my toys, or one of Prissy’s, to Aaron Lobb? I don’t expect he has very many, and little boys and girls always like to have something brought to them when people come on a visit.”