“A man came for him.” She stopped speaking when she saw the blank way that the children were looking at her.
“Who was the man?” they asked.
“He didn’t give his name. He asked about the glasses but I’d forgotten where you put them. I called and called.”
“We were in the workshop.”
Tommy didn’t say, “painting a house for Bunny Bright Eyes.” He felt there was no need of saying that. His mother would say the children were foolish to plan on keeping the rabbit. She would be right too. But what a shame that they had missed seeing the Bramble Bush Man!
“Maybe he’ll come for his glasses another time and we can see him,” Mary said hopefully.
“I don’t want to see him,” sobbed Muffs. “He’s taken Bunny Bright Eyes.”
For days after that Muffs was very quiet, refusing to play and half the time refusing to talk. Then, one morning, she borrowed Mary’s pencil and paper and went out into the workshop alone.
“She’s walking the Way of Peril,” Mary whispered. “She’s like you used to be, Tommy. She’d rather be alone in the Land of Balo.”
“She’s got a secret then,” he declared. “People always want to be alone when they’ve got secrets. Let’s wait here and see if she won’t tell us when she comes out.”