But he was entirely himself as he looked at her seriously. “Really, Kit, wouldn’t you like that?”

“I think I would, Brad,” she replied just as seriously. “But we’ve an awful lot to do first.”

“Oh, of course. We’ve got to finish this big job!”

“And I can’t stay here long now. There’s work to be done down yonder.”

She moved toward the window as she spoke. A few blocks away she could see where the storm had struck with full force. It looked as though a giant mowing machine might have laid everything level in its path.

“Oh, our cottage is ruined!” she burst forth.

“Sorry, Kit. Your dad told me about it.”

How happy they had been there, she thought. But, of course, they had owned neither the house nor the furniture, so their loss was nothing to compare with that of many others near by. And they would be needing her services right now. There were many hungry mouths to feed and she must hurry off to her Canteen work. This was no time to dream of a bright future or stop to talk over a troubled past.

A few minutes later she ate a hasty lunch with her father and Billy before she put on her Canteen uniform to report for duty at the USO. The wind was still too high for them to feed the homeless outdoors, so the hall was turned into an emergency dining-room. Kitty worked hard all day and until the last dish was washed that night. It was almost twelve o’clock when she finally returned to the hospital to get a few hours’ sleep in Hazel’s bed.

She was roused next morning by Hazel standing by her bed. “I’m going to have breakfast with your father. Wouldn’t you like to come along?”