"Well, this here weren't exactly your fault."
"I'm bothered about my grandfather, too. I've written to him four times and I haven't heard a _word_."
"No," confessed Jeanne, "I didn't. I _couldn't_ write about it to Aunt Agatha--she despised him. And I heard James say that any bad news or _anything_ very sudden would--would bring on another one of those strokes. Of course they think I'm with daddy--I didn't think of that. I didn't _mean_ to deceive anybody."
"Well," said Old Captain, "I guess your idee of not startling your gran'-daddy was all right. But you'd better write your Aunt Agathy, some day, an' tell her about your father. There's no hurry. I'd _ruther_ you stayed right here."
"Then stay you do. But before real cold weather comes we gotta fix up some place ashore for you, where there's somebody to keep a good fire goin'. Maybe me and Barney can build on an addition behind this here car--say two good rooms with a door through from here. But there's no need to worry for a good while yet. We're cozy enough for the present and October's sure to be pleasant--allus is. About school, now. I guess you'd better start next Monday. Whatever damage there is, for books or anything else, I'll stand it. An' if there was music lessons, now--"
Jeanne made a face. Old Captain chuckled.
"Maybe," said he, "there wouldn't be time for that."
"I'm _sure_ there wouldn't," agreed Jeanne.
On Saturday, Jeanne went up town to buy food. But first she visited the five-and-ten-cent store to buy an egg-beater. Just outside, she came face to face with Roger Fairchild--and his mother.
Jeanne, an impish light in her black eyes (she was only sorry that she wasn't carrying one of Mrs. Schmidt's outrageous bouquets), stopped square in front of the stout boy and said:
As before, Roger turned several shades of crimson. Jeanne did not look almost fourteen, for she was still rather small for her years.
"Yes, I did," growled Roger. "Hurry on, Mother. I gotta get a haircut as soon as we've had that ice cream."
Jeanne explained the matter to Old Captain, who had heard about the accident to Roger.
"He's one of the kind of boys you can _tease_," said Jeanne. "I'm afraid I _like_ to tease, just a little. He looks like sort of a baby-boy, doesn't he?"