In her heart she hoped Peggy would say yes. For to Sarah"s eyes the clumsy umbrella was a very "genteel" one indeed, and she felt as if it would add distinction to their appearance.
Peggy, not looking at it from this point of view, hesitated.
"P"raps it would do to keep the sun off us," she said. "My parasol"s wored out, so I can"t take it. Mamma"s going to get me a new one."
Sarah ran back and fetched the umbrella.
When they got to the door at the top of the kitchen stairs, Peggy opened it and called down softly, "f.a.n.n.y, are you there? Can you hear me?" for she was not allowed to go down to the kitchen by herself.
But no one answered. f.a.n.n.y was busy washing in the back kitchen with both doors shut to keep in the steam, and the cook had gone out to the butcher"s.
"f.a.n.n.y," called Peggy again.
Then a voice came at last in return.
"Is it anything I can tell the cook when she comes in, please, miss?"
and a boy came forward out of the kitchen and stood at the foot of the steep stone stairs. "I"m the baker"s boy, and I met cook and she told me to wait; she"d be back with change to pay the book in a minute. There"s no one here."
Peggy turned to Sarah in distress.
"f.a.n.n.y must be out too," she said.
"Well, it"ll be all right if the boy "ull tell her, won"t it, missy?
"Tisn"t the cook," she went on, speaking to the boy herself, ""tis t"other one. Jest you tell her when she comes in that miss has gone out a little walk with me--Sarah Simpkins--she"ll know. I"ll take good care of missy."
"All right," said the boy, with no doubt that so it was, and thinking, if he thought at all, that Sarah Simpkins must be a little nurse-girl, or something of the kind about the house, though certainly a small specimen to be in service! He whistled as he turned away, and something in the cheerful sound of his whistle helped to satisfy Peggy that all _was_ right!
"He"s a nice boy," she said to Sarah. "He won"t forget, will he?"
"Not he," Sarah replied. "He"ll tell "em fast enough. And as like as not we"ll meet "em along the street as we go. Is Webb"s your butcher, missy--"tis just at the corner of Fernley Road?"
Peggy shook her head.
"I don"t know," she said, feeling rather ashamed of her ignorance; "but I"d like to meet f.a.n.n.y, so, pelease, let us go that way."
And off the two set, by the front door this time, quite easy in their minds though, as far as they knew, the baker"s boy was the only guardian of the house.
They trotted down the street in the sunshine; it was very bright and fine--the air, even there in the smoky town, felt this morning deliciously fresh and spring-like.
"How nice it is," said Peggy, drawing a deep breath; "it"s just like summer. I"d like to go a quite long walk, wouldn"t you, Sarah?"
Light Smiley looked about her approvingly.
"Yes," she said, "I does enjoy a real fine day. And in the country it must be right-down fust-rate."
"Oh, the country!" said Peggy; "oh dear, how I do wish we could go as far as the country!"
"Well," said Sarah, "if we walk fast we might come within sight of it.
There"s nice trees and gardings up Fernley Road, and that"s a sort of country, isn"t it, missy?"
They were at the corner of the road by this time, but there was no sign of f.a.n.n.y or cook. "Webb"s" shop stood a little way down the other side, but as far as they could see it was empty.
"P"raps your folk don"t deal there," said Sarah, to which Peggy had nothing to say, and they stood looking about them in an uncertain kind of way.
"We may as well go on a bit," said Sarah at last, "that there boy"s sure to tell."
Peggy had no objection, and they set off along Fernley Road at a pretty brisk pace.
They had not very far to go before, as Sarah said, the road grew less town-like; the houses had little gardens round them, some of which were prettily kept, and after a while they came to a field or two, not yet built upon, though great placards stuck up on posts told that they were waiting to be sold for that purpose. They were very towny sort of fields certainly, still the bright spring sunshine made the best of them as of everything else this morning, and the two children looked at them with pleasure.
"There"s nicer fields still, a bit farther on," said Sarah. "I"ve been along this "ere road several times. It goes on and on right into the country."
"I know," said Peggy, "it goes on into the country of the mountings.
But, Sarah," she said, stopping short, and looking rather distressed, "I don"t think we see them any plainer than from the nursery window, and the white cottage doesn"t look even as plain. Are you sure we"re going the right way?"
"We couldn"t go wrong," answered Sarah, "there"s no other way. But we"ve come no distance yet, missy, and you see there"s ups and downs in the road that comes between us and the "ills somehow. I suppose at the window we could see straight-forward-like, and then we was "igher up."
"Yes, that must be it," said Peggy; "but I would like to go far enough to see a _little_ plainer, Sarah, wouldn"t you? I"ve got the red shoes in my pocket, you know, and when we come to a place where we can see very nice and clear I"ll take them out and let them see too."
"Lor"," said Sarah, "you _are_ funny, missy."
But she smiled so good-naturedly that Peggy did not mind.
After a bit they came to a place where another road crossed the one they were on. This other road was planted with trees along one side, and the shade they cast looked cool and tempting.
"I wish we could go along that way," said Peggy, "but it would be the wrong way. It doesn"t go on to the mountings."
Sarah did not answer for a minute. She was trying to spell out some letters that were painted up on the corner of a wall, which enclosed the garden of a house standing in the road they were looking down.
""B, R, A,"" she began, ""B, R, A, C, K:" it"s it, just look, missy.
Bain"t that Brackenshire as large as life? "Brackenshire Road." It must be this way," and she looked quite delighted.
"But how can it be?" objected Peggy. "This road _doesn"t_ go to the hills, Sarah. They"re straight in front."
"But maybe it slopes round again after a bit," said Sarah. "Lots of roads does that way, and runs the same way really, though you wouldn"t think so at the start. It stands to reason, when it"s got the name painted up, it must lead Brackenshire way;" and then suddenly, as a man with a basket on his arm appeared coming out of one of the houses, she darted up to him.
"Please, mister, does this road lead to Brackenshire?" she asked.
The man did not look very good-natured.
"Lead to where?" he said, gruffly.
"To Brackenshire--it"s painted up on the wall, but we want to be sure."
"If it"s painted up on the wall, what"s the sense of askin" me?" he said. "If you go far enough no doubt you"ll get there. There"s more"n one road to Brackenshire."
Sarah was quite satisfied.
"You see," she said to Peggy, running back to her, "it"s all right. If we go along this "ere road a bit, I "specs it"ll turn again and then we"ll see the "ills straight in front."