"Isn't it _funny_? If I was up there watching I'd see you moving like a speck! And in a moment you'd disappear around the corner. And now _I'm_ the speck and--I don't know when we reach the corner. But I'm--_going_, anyway!"
Then upon her happy meditations came a sudden, startling interruption in the shape of a small dog that leaped out from the dense undergrowth at the side of the road and hailed the automobile with a sharp bark.
"_Pepperpot!_" cried Jerry, springing to her feet.
The chauffeur had brought the car to a sudden stop to avoid hitting the dog. At the sound of Jerry's voice the little animal made a joyous leap into the car.
"He came on _ahead_--through the Divide! _Oh_--the darling," and Jerry hugged her pet proudly.
John Westley looked at Penelope Allan and she looked at him and the chauffeur looked at them both--all with the same question. In Jerry's mind, however, there was no doubt.
"He'll _have_ to go with us, Mr. John, because I know he'd just die of a broken heart if I--took him back!"
Then, startled by John Westley's hesitation, she added convincingly, "He's awfully good and never bothers anyone and keeps as still as can be when I tell him to and I'll--I'll----"
No one could have resisted the appeal in her voice.
"Very well, Jerry--Pepperpot shall go, too."
"Ten miles more... three miles more ... five blocks more," Mr. John had been saying at intervals as the big car rolled along, carrying Jerry nearer and nearer to her new home.
For the two days of the trip Jerry had scarcely spoken; indeed, more than once her breath had caught in her throat. Each moment brought something new, more wonderful than anything her fancy had ever pictured. She liked best the cities through which they passed, their life, the bustle and confusion, the hurrying throngs, the rushing automobiles, the gleaming railroad tracks like taut bands of silver, the smoke-screened factories with their belching stacks, the rows upon rows of houses, snuggling in friendly fashion close to one another.
John Westley had found himself fascinated in watching the eager alertness of her observation. He longed to know just what was passing back of those bright eyes; he tried to draw out some expression, but Jerry had turned to him an appealing look that said more plainly than words that she simply couldn't tell how wonderful everything seemed to her, so he had to content himself with watching the rapture reflected in her face and manner.