Rita hammered on the table. “Quiet!” she said.
Everyone was silent. Rita turned to Elizabeth. “Stand up, Elizabeth,” she said, “Please tell me what you spent the pound on-you can at least let us judge whether or not you spent the money well.” “I can’t tell you what I spent it on,” said Elizabeth, looking pleadingly at Rita, “Don’t ask me, Rita. It’s a secret-and not my own secret, really. As a matter of fact, I quite forgot that I ought to put my money into the box, and then ask for what I wanted. I really did forget.” “Do you think we would have allowed you to spend the money on what you bought?” asked Rita.
“I don’t know,” said Elizabeth, rather miserably. “All I know is that I wish I hadn’t spent it on what I did! I was quite wrong.” Rita felt sorry for Elizabeth, “Well,” she said, “you used the money wrongly and you know it-if you had only kept our rule, we should have known whether or not to let you have the money to spend as you did. Don’t you see what a good idea our money-box is, Elizabeth?” “Yes, I really do, Rita,” said Elizabeth, glad that Rita was speaking kindly to her.
“Well, now listen, Elizabeth,” said Rita, after talking with William for a while, “we will be as fair as we can be to you about this, but you must trust us and tell us what you wanted the money for, first. If we think it was for a very good purpose, we shall say no more about it, but ask you to remember the rule another time.” “That’s very fair of you, Rita,” said Elizabeth, almost in tears. “But I can’t tell you. I know now that I did something wrong with the money-but there’s somebody else mixed up in the secret, and I simply can’t say any more.” “Who is the other person in the secret?” asked Rita. “I can’t tell you that, either,” said poor Elizabeth, who had no wish to bring Joan in. After all, it wasn’t Joan’s fault at all, that this had happened.
“Have you told anybody about this secret?” asked Rita.
“Yes, one person,” said Elizabeth. “It’s a grown-up, Rita.” “What did the grown-up say when you told her?” asked William.
“She hasn’t said anything yet,” said Elizabeth. “I told her the secret in a letter, and she hasn’t answered my letter yet. I only wrote it yesterday.” William, Rita, and the monitors spoke together for a little while. Everyone was puzzled to know what to do. It was a very serious matter, and somehow it had to be dealt with.
“The Beauty and the Beast aren’t here tonight,” said Nora, looking towards the back of the room. “They are worried about Joan Townsend being ill. Only Miss Ranger and Mr. Johns are here. If the others were here we could ask them for advice again-but somehow I feel I’d like to settle it without asking Miss Ranger or Mr. Johns.” “I think I know what we’ll do,” said William at last. “We’ll leave the matter until Elizabeth has had an answer to her letter.” “Good,” said Rita. She hammered on the table. “Elizabeth,” she said, “we are going to leave the matter until you have had an answer to your letter. Will you please come to me and tell me when you have?” “Yes, Rita,” said Elizabeth gratefully. “I think the person I wrote to will be very, very angry with me, and I wish I could tell you all about it, but I can’t.” “Well, it seems to me as if Elizabeth is being punished quite enough without us saying anything more,” said William. “We’ll leave it for a day or two.
Then please go to Rita, Elizabeth, and tell her what answer you have received.” Elizabeth sat down, glad that things were not worse. She thought the children were very fair and just. She hadn’t even been punished! When the two shillings were given out to everyone~ Elizabeth put hers back into the box.
“I won’t have it this week,” she said. “I’ll do without it.” “Good girl.” said William. There was a nicer feeling in the room at once. Everyone felt that Elizabeth had tried to make up a bit for her mistake.
After the Meeting, Elizabeth went to ask how Joan was. The Matron came to the door of the San. and shook her head.
“She’s not any better,” she said. “She’s worrying about something, the doctor says-and she even says she doesn’t want to see her mother, though we have asked her if she would like us to send for her!” “Oh,” said Elizabeth, and ran away in dismay. Now Joan didn’t want to see her mother-and Elizabeth had written to ask her to come! “I always seem to do the wrong thing!” said Elizabeth to herself. “I wish I could go and tell Rita everything-then perhaps she could help me-but I can’t do that without giving Joan away. She would hate to think that anyone knew her cake didn’t come from her mother after all! Oh dear! Whatever is going to happen? I wish Mrs. Townsend would hurry up and write to me.” 1 ~5 CHAPTER 21.
Joan’s Mother arrives.
Two days later Joan was seriously ill, and the Matron and doctor were very worried indeed.
“We must send for her mother,” said Miss Belle at once.
“The child begs us not to send for her,” said Matron in a puzzled voice. “It is very strange. I hardly know whether it would be good for Joan to see her-she seems so much against having her mother sent for.” “Well,” said Miss Best, “the mother ought to come, for her own sake, if not for Joan’s. She would be very angry if we did not send for her. We can tell her that Joan is behaving rather queerly about her. It may be her illness that is making her think funny thoughts.” But Mrs. Townsend arrived before she was sent for! She had received Elizabeth’s queer letter, and had packed a bag, and taken a train to Whyteleafe the same day.
Elizabeth saw the taxi coming up through the archway of the school wall, but she did not know that Mrs. Townsend was inside it, She did not see her get out, pay the man, and ring the bell.
Mrs. Townsend was shown into the headmistresses’ drawing-room at once. Miss Belle and Miss Best were most astonished to see her.
“I’ve come about Joan,” said Mrs. Townsend. She was a small, sad-looking woman, beautifully dressed, and with large eyes just like Joan’s. “How is she?” “Not any better, I’m afraid,” answered Miss Belle. “But how did you know she ‘was ill?” she asked in surprise.
“I had a letter from a girl called Elizabeth Allen,” said Mrs. Townsend. “A very queer letter – about Joan’s birthday. Did she tell you anything about it?” “No,” said Miss Belle, even more surprised. “I know nothing about it. May’ we see the letter?” Mrs. Townsend gave the two mistresses Elizabeth’s smudgy letter. They read it in silence.
“So that is what Elizabeth wanted the money for!” said Miss Best, her lovely smile showing for a moment.
“Well! Children are always surprising-but Elizabeth is the most astonishing child we have ever had-so naughty and yet so good-so defiant, and yet so kindhearted and just!” “I understand now why Joan keeps saying that she doesn’t want you to be sent for, Mrs. Townsend,” said Miss Belle. “She is ashamed, poor child, because she thought you had sent her those presents-and now she finds you didn’t-and she is bewildered and hurt.” “I think perhaps I ought to explain a few things to you,” said Mrs. Townsend. “I must explain them to Joan too.” “Yes, please tell us anything that will help us with Joan,” said Miss Best.
“Well,” said Joan’s mother, “Joan had a twin, a boy called Michael. He was the finest, loveliest boy you ever saw, Miss Best. His father and I couldn’t help loving him more than we loved Joan, because we both wanted a boy, and we didn’t care much for girls. He was brave and bonny and always laughing-but Joan was always rather a coward, and beside Michael she seemed sulky and selfish~” “Don’t you think that might have been because you made such a fuss of the boy, and perhaps rather left Joan out?” asked Miss Belle. “She may have been jealous, and that does queer things to a child,” “Yes-you may be right,” said Mrs. Townsend. “Well-when they were three, both children fell i1l-~ and Michael died. And because we loved him so much, we both wished that-that . .
“That Joan had been taken and Michael had been left to you?” said Miss Best gently. “Yes, I understand, Mrs. Townsend-but you did a great wrong to poor Joan. You have never forgiven her for being the only child left. Does Joan know she had a twin?” “She soon forgot,” said Mrs. Townsend, “and we didn’t tell her as she grew older. I don’t think she knows even now that she ever had a brother.” “Well, Mrs. Townsend, I think you should tell Joan this,” said Miss Best firmly. “She loves you very much, and is miserable because she can’t understand why you don’t seem to love her.” “I do love her,” said Mrs. Townsend. “But somehow it is difficult to show it to Joan. When I got this queer little letter, telling me how somebody tried to buy Joan presents, pretending to be me, I felt dreadful, I felt I must come and see my poor little Joan at once.” “Come and see her now,” said Miss Belle. “Tell her what you have told us. Joan will understand, and once she is sure of your love, she will not mind how little you show it! But it shouldn’t be difficult to love a child like Joan-she is so gentle and kind.” “And what about Elizabeth?” asked Mrs. Townsend. “I must speak to her. I think she must be a very kind child, to try to make Joan happy.” “Go and see Joan first,” said Miss Best. So Mrs.