She didn’t stop to think that Joan would find out sooner or later that the cake and the book were not from her mother. She just longed to give her friend a fine surprise.
She couldn’t ask Joan to come down to the village with her, in case Joan found out what she was doing. So she asked Belinda.
“All right,” said Belinda, “I want to buy some stamps, so I’ll go after tea with you. Don’t spend your two shillings all at once, Elizabeth!” All that day Elizabeth thought about the cake and the presents for Joan. She thought about them so much in the French class, that Mademoiselle got cross with her.
“Elizabeth! Three times I have asked you a question, and you sit there and smile and say nothing!” cried the French mistress, who was very short-tempered.
Elizabeth jumped. She hadn’t heard the questions at all, “What was it you asked me, Mam’zelle?” she asked.
“This girl! She thinks she will make me repeat myself a hundred times!” cried Mademoiselle, wagging her hands about in the funny way she had. “You will listen to me properly for the rest of the lesson, Elizabeth, or else you will come to me for an extra half-hour after tea.” “Gracious!” thought Elizabeth, remembering that she wanted to go shopping after tea. “I’d better stop dreaming and think of the French lesson,” So for the rest of the lesson she did her best, and Mademoiselle smiled graciously at her. She liked Elizabeth, and found her very amusing, though she sometimes wanted to shake her when she said, “Well, you see, Mam’zelle, you needn’t bother about whether I shall be top or bottom in exams, because I’m not staying after half-term.” “You are the most obstinate child I have ever seen,” Mademoiselle would say, and rap loudly on her desk, half angry and half smiling.
After tea Elizabeth went to get her money and to find Belinda, Helen said she would come too, so the three of them set off.
“What are you going to buy, Elizabeth?” asked Helen curiously.
“It’s a secret,” said Elizabeth at once. “I don’t want you to come into the shops with me, if you don’t mind, because I really have got some secrets to-day. It’s to do with somebody else, that’s why I can’t tell you.” “All right,” said Helen. “Well, we are going to have strawberry ice-creams in the sweet-shop. You can join us there when you have finished your shopping. Don’t be too long.” Helen and Belinda went off to the sweet-shop, and sat down at a little marble-topped table there to enjoy their ice-creams. Elizabeth disappeared into the baker’s shop.
The baker’s wife came to see what she wanted. “Please, do you make birthday cakes?” asked Elizabeth.
“Yes, miss,” said the woman. “They are two shillings and sixpence, five shillings, or, for a very big one with candles on, and the name, ten shillings.” “Would the ten-shilling one be big enough for heaps of children?” asked Elizabeth, feeling certain that Joan would like to share the cake with everyone.
“It would be big enough for the whole school!” answered the woman, smiling. “It’s the size people often order for Whyteleafe School.” “Oh, good,” said Elizabeth, “Well, will you make a cake like that for Friday? Put eleven candles on it, all different colours-and put ‘A happy birthday for my darling Joan’ on it. Will there be enough room for all that, do you think?” “Oh yes,” said the woman. “I’ll decorate it with sugar flowers, and make it really beautiful, and it shall have two layers of thick cream inside.” “I’ll pay now,” said Elizabeth, “Oh, and will you please send it to Miss Joan Townsend, Whyteleafe School, on Friday morning, early?” “Any message inside, miss?” asked the baker’s wife, writing down the name and address.
“No,” said Elizabeth, She took the pound-note out of her purse, and was just giving it to the shop woman.
when Nora came into the shop. She smiled at Elizabeth.
Then she looked round the shop. “Are you alone?” she asked, “Surely you didn’t come down to the village by yourself?” “Oh no, Nora,” said Elizabeth, “I came with Helen and Belinda, They’re waiting for me at the ice-cream shop.” The little girl paid for the cake, and received ten shillings change. Nora stared at the money, and looked puzzled. Elizabeth waved good-bye and went out, She went to the book-shop and ordered the book she knew Joan wanted. It was a book all about birds and cost five shillings. Elizabeth asked the shopman to send it by post, and to put inside a little card that she gave him. On the card she had written: “With love, from Mother.” “Now Joan will think her mother has sent her a fine cake and a present!” thought Elizabeth, pleased to think of Joan’s surprise. “I’ll buy some birthday cards now.” She bought three nice ones. In one she wrote “With love, from Daddy,” in the second she wrote “With love, from Mother,” and in the last she wrote “With love, from Elizabeth,” and added a row of kisses. She bought stamps for them, and put them safely in her pocket, ready to post on Thursday.
Then she went to buy the handbag she had seen in the draper’s shop. She had four shillings left by that time, so she bought the red bag, paid for a red comb and a red handkerchief to put inside, and put the change into the little purse belonging to the bag! There was sixpence change, and Elizabeth thought it would be fun to put that in too.
Then she went to the ice-cream shop. Helen and Belinda were there, tired of waiting for her, “You have been a time, Elizabeth,” said. Helen. “Whatever have you been doing? You can’t possibly be so long spending only two shillings!” And then, for the first time, Elizabeth remembered that all money had to be put into the school money-box, and asked for! And she had spent a whole pound that afternoon, and hadn’t even put a penny into the box.
She frowned. Goodness, now what was she to do? How could she have forgotten?
“Well, perhaps it’s a good thing I did forget,” said Elizabeth to herself. “If I’d put the money into the big money-box, and asked for a pound to spend on somebody’s birthday, I’m sure Rita and William wouldn’t have given me so much. It is an awful lot to spend all at once-but I did so want to give Joan a fine birthday!” All the same, Elizabeth was rather worried about it. She had broken a rule-but she couldn’t mend the broken rule because she had spent all the money! It was no use saying anything about it. The thing was done. And anyway Joan would have the finest surprise of her life! But Elizabeth had a very nasty surprise on her way back to school with Helen and Belinda. Nora ran up to them and said, “Elizabeth! I want to speak to you for a minute. Helen, you and Belinda can go on by yourselves. Elizabeth will catch you up.” “What is it, Nora?” asked Elizabeth in surprise.
“Elizabeth, where did you get that money from that I saw you spending in the baker’s shop?” asked Nora.
“My uncle sent it to me,” said Elizabeth, her heart sinking when she knew that Nora had seen the money.
“Well, you knew the rule,” said Nora. “Why didn’t you put it into the money-box? You knew you could have out what you wanted, if you really needed it for something.” “I know, Nora,” said Elizabeth, in a small voice. “But I forgot all about that till I’d spent the money. Really, I did.” “Spent all the money!” cried Nora in horror, “What! A whole pound! Twenty shillings! Whatever did you spend it on?” Elizabeth didn’t answer, Nora grew angry. “Elizabeth! You must tell me! Whatever could you have spent a whole pound on in such a little time? It’s a real waste of money.” “It wasn’t,” said Elizabeth sulkily, “Please don’t ask me any more, Nora. I can’t tell you what I spent the money on. It’s a secret.” “You’re a very naughty girl,” said Nora, “You break a rule-and spend all that money-and then won’t tell me what you spent it on. Well-you can tell the next Meeting, if you won’t tell me!” “I shan’t tell them,” said Elizabeth. “It’s a secret-‘ and a secret I can’t possibly tell. Oh dear! I always seem to be getting into trouble, and this time I really didn’t mean to.” Nora would not listen to any more. She sent Elizabeth to catch up Helen and Belinda. Poor Elizabeth! She simply did not know what to do. She couldn’t tell her secret, because then she would have to own up that she was buying things for Joan, and pretending that they came from Joan’s mother. And the Meeting would be angry with her just when she was being good and enjoying herself! “Well-never mind-Joan will have a good birthday, anyhow,” said Elizabeth, thinking of the cake and the book. “How surprised she will be!” CHAPTER 18.