"Oh," breathed Peace, a look of great relief pa.s.sing over her face, "I thought sure you"d gone to sleep and I wouldn"t get my lilacs after all."
"You little goosie! I don"t go to sleep that easily. Sing the chorus again for me, and then Hicks shall cut all the flowers you can carry."
"He better begin now, then, "cause the chorus ain"t long and it sounds "sif Elspeth was calling me. I"ve been out of sight from the parsonage quite a spell and likely she"s getting anxious. Besides, Glen may be awake and wanting me."
"Very well," she laughed. "Hicks shall begin right away. See, there he comes with his basket and scissors. Now sing."
So Peace repeated the sprightly chorus with a vim, and was rewarded with such a huge bouquet of the fragrant blossoms that she was almost hidden from sight as she stood clasping them tightly in her arms, and exclaiming in rapture, "All for me? Oh, dear Lilac Lady, I didn"t "xpect that many! You better have Aunt Pen put some of these in the house for you."
"No, I don"t want them in my house!" exclaimed the girl fiercely. "They are all for you--and Saint Elspeth."
"Oh, she"ll love you for sending them. Can I bring her over to see you?
Her and Saint John?"
"No, I don"t care to meet them. Saint John has already called, but--I sent him away again."
"Then--I s"pose--you won"t care to have me call again either."
This beautiful garden seemed like the Promised Land to Peace"s childish eyes, and the thought of never being allowed to enter it again was dreadful.
"Oh, yes, _do_ come again! You _must_ come again! Come every day. No, not every day, some days I couldn"t see you if you came. I will hang a white cloth on the lilac bushes--see,--on the other side, where you can see it from the parsonage, and you will come then, won"t you?"
"Yes, if Elspeth doesn"t need me and Glen is asleep. He likes flowers, too, even if he is just a baby, and he never tears them to pieces."
"I"ll have Hicks cut you some tulips--"
"You better not today. I"ll get them next time I come. These are all I can carry now, and they are a lot too many for our little parsonage. But I"m awful glad you gave me such a big bunch, "cause there are ever so many of the church people sick, and Elspeth will be so pleased to have me _distribit_ bouquets amongst "em. Some of "em it will be like slinging coals of fire at their heads, too. There"s old Deacon Hopper for one. He doesn"t like Saint John and calls him a meddlesome monkey of a minister. Now he"s sick, I"ll take him a bunch of lilacs and tell him the meddlesome monkey"s minister has sent him some flowers and hopes he soon gets onto his feet again.
"Mittie Cole is another that needs some fire on her head. She pushed me into the gutter three times the day I tried to adopt the runaway twins, and we"d have had a grand scrimmage if Saint John hadn"t happened along to stop it. But she"s got lung fever now, and there was days the doctor said she wouldn"t live. I reckon she doesn"t feel much like fighting any more, but likely she"ll enjoy the smell of these lovely lilacs. She seemed awful glad to see me the day I carried her some chicken broth.
"The Foster baby is sick, and Grandma Deane, and little Freddie James, and Mrs. Hoover, and Dan"l Fielding. You see that"s quite a bunch, and it will take a big lot of flowers to go around. I"ll tell "em all that you sent "em--"
"No, indeed!" There was real alarm in her voice. "Because I did not send them. I gave them to you."
"But if you hadn"t given them to me, I couldn"t share "em with other folks, so it"s really you who is to blame. You--you don"t care if I give some away, do you?"
"Certainly not, dear. You may give them all away if it will make you any happier."
"Oh, it does! I just love to see sick faces smile when someone brings in flowers to smell or nice things to eat. Miss Edith sometimes takes us to the hospital with bouquets to _distribit_, and my! how glad the patients are to get them. They say it is almost as good as a breath of real, genuine air. I"m going with Saint Elspeth tomorrow afternoon--"
"Then you must come over here and get some more lilacs. Hicks will cut all you can carry."
"Oh, do you mean it? You darling Lilac Lady--that"s what I mean to call you always, "cause you give away so many lilacs to make other folks happy. I"ll bring the biggest basket I can find. There is Elspeth calling again. I must hurry home."
"You haven"t told me your name yet. I forgot to ask it before, but if I am to be your Lilac Lady, I must know what to call you, too."
"Peace--Peace Greenfield. Good-bye. I"ll be here tomorrow just the minute dinner is over."
The blue eyes followed her longingly as she danced away through the fresh clover and disappeared beyond the heavy gates. Then the lame girl turned in her chair,--almost against her will, it seemed--and looked up at the fragrant purple plumes nodding above her head. "Peace," she murmured. "How odd! "The peace which pa.s.seth understanding.""
CHAPTER VIII
A PICNIC IN THE ENCHANTED GARDEN
After that Peace came often to the handsome stone house, half hidden from the road by its thick hedges and giant trees. Almost daily the white cloth fluttered its summons from the lilac bushes, and Elizabeth, having heard the sad story of the young girl mistress, rejoiced that the tumble-haired, merry-hearted little romp could bring even a gleam of sunshine into that darkened life.
At first it was the great, beautiful gardens which lured the child through the iron gates, for she could not understand the different moods of the imperious young invalid, and secretly stood somewhat in awe of her. But gradually the natural childish vivacity and quaint philosophy of the smaller maid tore down the barriers behind which the older girl had so long screened herself, and Peace found to her great amazement that the white-faced invalid, who could never leave her chair again, was a wonderful story-teller and a perfect witch at inventing new games and planning delightful surprises to make each visit a real event for this guest. So the calls grew more and more frequent and the chance acquaintance blossomed into a deep, tender friendship.
Of course, Peace did not realize how much sweetness and sunshine she was bringing into the garden with her, but in her ignorance supposed that the many visits were all for her own happiness. How could she know that her lively prattle was making the weary days bearable for the frail sufferer? And had anyone tried to tell her what an important part she was playing in that life drama, she would not have believed it. Perhaps it was the very unconsciousness of her power which made her such a beautiful comrade for the aching heart imprisoned in the garden. At any rate, Peace not only made friends with the lonely Lilac Lady, but she also captivated gentle Aunt Pen and the adoring Hicks, who met her with beaming faces whenever she entered the garden, and sighed when the brief hours were over. But none of them would listen to her bringing Elspeth or the minister, much to her bewilderment.
"It isn"t because _I_ don"t want them," explained Aunt Pen one day when Peace had pleaded with her and had been grieved at her refusal. "Your Lilac Lady isn"t ready to receive other callers yet. You can"t understand now, dearie. G.o.d grant you may _never_ understand. She shut herself up four years ago when she found out that she would never get well enough to walk again, and you are the first person she has ever seen since that time, except her own household and the physician.
Perhaps you are the opening wedge, child. Oh, I trust it may be so!"
Peace did not understand what an opening wedge was, but it did not sound very appetizing, and she had grave doubts as to whether she had better continue her visits under such conditions. But when she went to Elizabeth with the story, that wise little woman answered her by singing:
""Slightest actions often Meet the sorest needs, For the world wants daily, Little kindly deeds; Oh, what care and sorrow You may help remove, With your songs and courage, Sympathy and love.""
Peace was comforted and went back to the shady garden with a deeper desire to brighten the long, dreary, aimless days of the helpless invalid. She said no more about introducing her beloved minister"s family, but in secret she still mourned because the lame girl so steadfastly refused to welcome her dearest friends.
So the days flew swiftly by and the month of May was gone. Summer was early that year, and the first day of June dawned sultry and still over the sweltering city. It was a half-holiday at the Chestnut School, so Peace returned home at noon, hot, perspiring, but radiant at the thought of no more lessons till the morrow. She came a round-about way in order to pa.s.s the great gates of the stone mansion, hoping to catch a glimpse of the well-known chair under the lilac bushes; but the lawn was deserted, and she was disappointed, for she had counted much on spending these unexpected leisure hours in the cool garden with the lame girl.
To add to her woe, she found Elizabeth lying on the couch in the darkened study, suffering from a nerve-racking headache, and the preacher, looking very droll togged out in his little wife"s kitchen-ap.r.o.n, was flying about serving up the scorched, unseasoned dinner for the forlorn family. He was too much concerned over the illness of the mistress and the unfinished condition of his next Sunday"s sermon to sample his own cooking, and as Glen fell asleep over his bowl of bread and milk, Peace was left entirely to her own devices when the meal was ended.
It was too hot to romp, it was too hot to read, and there was no one to play with. She swung idly in the hammock until the very motion was maddening. She prowled through the grove behind the church, she dug industriously in the small flower garden under the east window, she did everything she could think of to make the time pa.s.s quickly, but at length threw herself once more into the hammock with a discouraged sigh.
"School might better have kept all day. It is horrid to stay home with nothing to do that"s int"resting. I"ve watched all the afternoon for the Lilac Lady"s table-cloth and haven"t had a peek of it yet. But there--I don"t s"pose she"d know there was only one session today, so she ain"t apt to hang it out until time for school to let out, like she usu"ly does. Guess I"ll just walk over in that d"rection and see if she ain"t under the trees yet. It"s been two days since I"ve seen a glimpse of her. Hicks says she"s been dreadful bad again. P"raps I better take her some flowers this time--and there is that little strawberry pie Elspeth made for my very own. I might take her some sandwiches, too,--yes, I"ll do it!"
She tiptoed softly into the house, so as not to disturb the two slumberers, and went in search of the minister in order to lay her plan before him; but he, too, had fallen asleep and lay sprawled full length by the open window, beside his half-written ma.n.u.script.
"If that ain"t just the way!" spluttered Peace under her breath. "I never did go to tell anyone nice plans but they went to sleep or were too busy to be disturbed. Well, I"ll do it anyway. I know they won"t care a single speck. I"ll ask "em when I get home and they are awake."
Back to the kitchen she stole, and into the tiny pantry, where for the next few minutes she industriously cut and b.u.t.tered bread, made sandwiches, sliced cake and packed lunch enough for a dozen in the picnic hamper which she found hanging on a nail in the shed. With this on her arm, she returned to the little garden under the window and dug up her choicest flowers, stacked them in an old shoe-box with plenty of black dirt, as she had often seen Hicks do, and departed with her luggage for the stone house across the corner.
She paused at the heavy gates, wondering for the first time whether or not she would be welcome at this time, when no signal had fluttered from the lilac bushes, but at sight of the motionless figure under the largest oak, her doubts vanished, and, boldly opening the gate, she marched up the gravel path and across the lawn toward the familiar chair, bearing the lunch-basket on one arm and a huge box of cheerful-faced pansies on the other.
Hearing the click of the latch and the sound of steps on the walk, the lame girl frowned impatiently, and without opening her eyes, said peevishly, "If you have any errand here, go on to the house. I won"t be bothered."
"Oh, I"m sorry," cried Peace in mournful tones. "I brought a picnic with me, but--"
The big blue eyes flashed wide in surprise, and their owner demanded sharply, "Why did you come this time of day? I have not sent for you."
"I didn"t say you had. I came "cause I thought you"d be glad to see me, but if you ain"t, I"ll go straight home again and eat my picnic all alone, and plant my flowers in my garden again. You don"t have to have them if you don"t want "em."
She whirled on her heel and stamped angrily across the gra.s.s toward the gate, too hurt to keep the tears from her eyes, and too proud to let her companion see how deeply wounded she was.