CHAPTER XVII
WHEN POLLYANNA CAME
As the train neared Beldingsville, Pollyanna watched her auntanxiously. All day Mrs. Chilton had been growing more and morerestless, more and more gloomy; and Pollyanna was fearful of the timewhen the familiar home station should be reached.
As Pollyanna looked at her aunt, her heart ached. She was thinkingthat she would not have believed it possible that any one could havechanged and aged so greatly in six short months. Mrs. Chilton's eyeswere lusterless, her cheeks pallid and shrunken, and her foreheadcrossed and recrossed by fretful lines. Her mouth drooped at thecorners, and her hair was combed tightly back in the unbecomingfashion that had been hers when Pollyanna first had seen her, yearsbefore. All the softness and sweetness that seemed to have come to herwith her marriage had dropped from her like a cloak, leaving uppermostthe old hardness and sourness that had been hers when she was MissPolly Harrington, unloved, and unloving.
"Pollyanna!" Mrs. Chilton's voice was incisive.
Pollyanna started guiltily. She had an uncomfortable feeling that heraunt might have read her thoughts.
"Yes, auntie."
"Where is that black bag--the little one?"
"Right here."
"Well, I wish you'd get out my black veil. We're nearly there."
"But it's so hot and thick, auntie!"
"Pollyanna, I asked for that black veil. If you'd please learn to dowhat I ask without arguing about it, it would be a great deal easierfor me. I want that veil. Do you suppose I'm going to give allBeldingsville a chance to see how I 'take it'?"
"Oh, auntie, they'd never be there in THAT spirit," protestedPollyanna, hurriedly rummaging in the black bag for the much-wantedveil. "Besides, there won't be anybody there, anyway, to meet us. Wedidn't tell any one we were coming, you know."
"Yes, I know. We didn't TELL any one to meet us. But we instructedMrs. Durgin to have the rooms aired and the key under the mat forto-day. Do you suppose Mary Durgin has kept that information toherself? Not much! Half the town knows we're coming to-day, and adozen or more will 'happen around' the station about train time. Iknow them! They want to see what Polly Harrington POOR looks like.They--"
"Oh, auntie, auntie," begged Pollyanna, with tears in her eyes.
"If I wasn't so alone. If--the doctor were only here, and--" Shestopped speaking and turned away her head. Her mouth workedconvulsively. "Where is--that veil?" she choked huskily.
"Yes, dear. Here it is--right here," comforted Pollyanna, whose onlyaim now, plainly, was to get the veil into her aunt's hands with allhaste. "And here we are now almost there. Oh, auntie, I do wish you'dhad Old Tom or Timothy meet us!"
"And ride home in state, as if we could AFFORD to keep such horses andcarriages? And when we know we shall have to sell them to-morrow? No,I thank you, Pollyanna. I prefer to use the public carriage, underthose circumstances."
"I know, but--" The train came to a jolting, jarring stop, and only afluttering sigh finished Pollyanna's sentence.
As the two women stepped to the platform, Mrs. Chilton, in her blackveil, looked neither to the right nor the left. Pollyanna, however,was nodding and smiling tearfully in half a dozen directions beforeshe had taken twice as many steps. Then, suddenly, she found herselflooking into a familiar, yet strangely unfamiliar face.
"Why, it isn't--it IS--Jimmy!" she beamed, reaching forth a cordialhand. "That is, I suppose I should say 'MR. PENDLETON,'" she correctedherself with a shy smile that said plainly: "Now that you've grown sotall and fine!"
"I'd like to see you try it," challenged the youth, with a veryJimmy-like tilt to his chin. He turned then to speak to Mrs. Chilton;but that lady, with her head half averted, was hurrying on a little inadvance.
He turned back to Pollyanna, his eyes troubled and sympathetic.
"If you'd please come this way--both of you," he urged hurriedly."Timothy is here with the carriage."
"Oh, how good of him," cried Pollyanna, but with an anxious glance atthe somber veiled figure ahead. Timidly she touched her aunt's arm."Auntie, dear, Timothy's here. He's come with the carriage. He's overthis side. And--this is Jimmy Bean, auntie. You remember Jimmy Bean!"
In her nervousness and embarrassment Pollyanna did not notice that shehad given the young man the old name of his boyhood. Mrs. Chilton,however, evidently did notice it. With palpable reluctance she turnedand inclined her head ever so slightly.
"Mr.--Pendleton is very kind, I am sure; but--I am sorry that he orTimothy took quite so much trouble," she said frigidly.
"No trouble--no trouble at all, I assure you," laughed the young man,trying to hide his embarrassment. "Now if you'll just let me have yourchecks, so I can see to your baggage."
"Thank you," began Mrs. Chilton, "but I am very sure we can--"
But Pollyanna, with a relieved little "thank you!" had already passedover the checks; and dignity demanded that Mrs. Chilton say no more.
The drive home was a silent one. Timothy, vaguely hurt at thereception he had met with at the hands of his former mistress, sat upin front stiff and straight, with tense lips. Mrs. Chilton, after aweary "Well, well, child, just as you please; I suppose we shall haveto ride home in it now!" had subsided into stern gloom. Pollyanna,however, was neither stern, nor tense, nor gloomy. With eager, thoughtearful eyes she greeted each loved landmark as they came to it. Onlyonce did she speak, and that was to say:
"Isn't Jimmy fine? How he has improved! And hasn't he the nicest eyesand smile?"
She waited hopefully, but as there was no reply to this, she contentedherself with a cheerful: "Well, I think he has, anyhow."
Timothy had been both too aggrieved and too afraid to tell Mrs.Chilton what to expect at home; so the wide-flung doors andflower-adorned rooms with Nancy courtesying on the porch were acomplete surprise to Mrs. Chilton and Pollyanna.
"Why, Nancy, how perfectly lovely!" cried Pollyanna, springing lightlyto the ground. "Auntie, here's Nancy to welcome us. And only see howcharming she's made everything look!"
Pollyanna's voice was determinedly cheerful, though it shook audibly.This home-coming without the dear doctor whom she had loved so wellwas not easy for her; and if hard for her, she knew something of whatit must be for her aunt. She knew, too, that the one thing her auntwas dreading was a breakdown before Nancy, than which nothing could beworse in her eyes. Behind the heavy black veil the eyes were brimmingand the lips were trembling, Pollyanna knew. She knew, too, that tohide these facts her aunt would probably seize the first opportunityfor faultfinding, and make her anger a cloak to hide the fact that herheart was breaking. Pollyanna was not surprised, therefore, to hearher aunt's few cold words of greeting to Nancy followed by a sharp:"Of course all this was very kind, Nancy; but, really, I would havemuch preferred that you had not done it."
All the joy fled from, Nancy's face. She looked hurt and frightened.
"Oh, but Miss Polly--I mean, Mis' Chilton," she entreated; "it seemedas if I couldn't let you--"
"There, there, never mind, Nancy," interrupted Mrs. Chilton. "I--Idon't want to talk about it." And, with her head proudly high, sheswept out of the room. A minute later they heard the door of herbedroom shut up-stairs.
Nancy turned in dismay.
"Oh, Miss Pollyanna, what is it? What have I done? I thought she'dLIKE it. I meant it all right!"
"Of course you did," wept Pollyanna, fumbling in her bag for herhandkerchief. "And 'twas lovely to have you do it, too,--just lovely."
"But SHE didn't like it."
"Yes, she did. But she didn't want to show she liked it. She wasafraid if she did she'd show--other things, and--Oh, Nancy, Nancy, I'mso glad just to c-cry!" And Pollyanna was sobbing on Nancy's shoulder.
"There, there, dear; so she shall, so she shall," soothed Nancy,patting the heaving shoulders with one hand, and trying, with theother, to make the corner of her apron serve as a handkerchief to wipeher own tears away.
"You see, I mustn't--cry--before--HER," faltered Pollyanna; "and itWAS hard-
-coming here--the first time, you know, and all. And I KNEWhow she was feeling."
"Of course, of course, poor lamb," crooned Nancy. "And to think thefirst thing _I_ should have done was somethin' ter vex her, and--"
"Oh, but she wasn't vexed at that," corrected Pollyanna, agitatedly."It's just her way, Nancy. You see, she doesn't like to show how badlyshe feels about--about the doctor. And she's so afraid she WILL showit that she--she just takes anything for an excuse to--to talk about.She does it to me, too, just the same. So I know all about it. See?"
"Oh, yes, I see, I do, I do." Nancy's lips snapped together a littleseverely, and her sympathetic pats, for the minute, were even moreloving, if possible. "Poor lamb! I'm glad I come, anyhow, for yoursake."
"Yes, so am I," breathed Pollyanna, gently drawing herself away andwiping her eyes. "There, I feel better. And I do thank you ever somuch, Nancy, and I appreciate it. Now don't let us keep you when it'stime for you to go."
"Ho! I'm thinkin' I'll stay for a spell," sniffed Nancy.
"Stay! Why, Nancy, I thought you were married. Aren't you Timothy'swife?"
"Sure! But he won't mind--for you. He'd WANT me to stay--for you."
"Oh, but, Nancy, we couldn't let you," demurred Pollyanna. "We can'thave anybody--now, you know. I'm going to do the work. Until we knowjust how things are, we shall live very economically, Aunt Pollysays."
"Ho! as if I'd take money from--" began Nancy, in bridling wrath; butat the expression on the other's face she stopped, and let her wordsdwindle off in a mumbling protest, as she hurried from the room tolook after her creamed chicken on the stove.
Not until supper was over, and everything put in order, did Mrs.Timothy Durgin consent to drive away with her husband; then she wentwith evident reluctance, and with many pleadings to be allowed to come"just ter help out a bit" at any time.
After Nancy had gone, Pollyanna came into the living-room where Mrs.Chilton was sitting alone, her hand over her eyes.
"Well, dearie, shall I light up?" suggested Pollyanna, brightly.
"Oh, I suppose so."
"Wasn't Nancy a dear to fix us all up so nice?"
No answer.
"Where in the world she found all these flowers I can't imagine. Shehas them in every room down here, and in both bedrooms, too."
Still no answer.
Pollyanna gave a half-stifled sigh and threw a wistful glance into heraunt's averted face. After a moment she began again hopefully.
"I saw Old Tom in the garden. Poor man, his rheumatism is worse thanever. He was bent nearly double. He inquired very particularly foryou, and--"
Mrs. Chilton turned with a sharp interruption.
"Pollyanna, what are we going to do?"
"Do? Why, the best we can, of course, dearie."
Mrs. Chilton gave an impatient gesture.
"Come, come, Pollyanna, do be serious for once. You'll find it isserious, fast enough. WHAT are we going to DO? As you know, my incomehas almost entirely stopped. Of course, some of the things are worthsomething, I suppose; but Mr. Hart says very few of them will payanything at present. We have something in the bank, and a littlecoming in, of course. And we have this house. But of what earthly useis the house? We can't eat it, or wear it. It's too big for us, theway we shall have to live; and we couldn't sell it for half what it'sreally worth, unless we HAPPENED to find just the person that wantedit."
"Sell it! Oh, auntie, you wouldn't--this beautiful house full oflovely things!"
"I may have to, Pollyanna. We have to eat--unfortunately."
"I know it; and I'm always SO hungry," mourned Pollyanna, with arueful laugh. "Still, I suppose I ought to be glad my appetite is sogood."
"Very likely. You'd find something to be glad about, of course. Butwhat shall we do, child? I do wish you'd be serious for a minute."
A quick change came to Pollyanna's face.
"I am serious, Aunt Polly. I've been thinking. I--I wish I could earnsome money."
"Oh, child, child, to think of my ever living to hear you say that!"moaned the woman; "--a daughter of the Harringtons having to earn herbread!"
"Oh, but that isn't the way to look at it," laughed Pollyanna. "Youought to be glad if a daughter of the Harringtons is SMART enough toearn her bread! That isn't any disgrace, Aunt Polly."
"Perhaps not; but it isn't very pleasant to one's pride, after theposition we've always occupied in Beldingsville, Pollyanna."
Pollyanna did not seem to have heard. Her eyes were musingly fixed onspace.
"If only I had some talent! If only I could do something better thananybody else in the world," she sighed at last. "I can sing a little,play a little, embroider a little, and darn a little; but I can't doany of them well--not well enough to be paid for it.
"I think I'd like best to cook," she resumed, after a minute'ssilence, "and keep house. You know I loved that in Germany winters,when Gretchen used to bother us so much by not coming when we wantedher. But I don't exactly want to go into other people's kitchens to doit."
"As if I'd let you! Pollyanna!" shuddered Mrs. Chilton again.
"And of course, to just work in our own kitchen here doesn't bring inanything," bemoaned Pollyanna, "--not any money, I mean. And it'smoney we need."
"It most emphatically is," sighed Aunt Polly.
There was a long silence, broken at last by Pollyanna.
"To think that after all you've done for me, auntie--to think thatnow, if I only could, I'd have such a splendid chance to help! Andyet--I can't do it. Oh, why wasn't I born with something that's worthmoney?"
"There, there, child, don't, don't! Of course, if the doctor--" Thewords choked into silence.
Pollyanna looked up quickly, and sprang to her feet.
"Dear, dear, this will never do!" she exclaimed, with a completechange of manner. "Don't you fret, auntie. What'll you wager that Idon't develop the most marvelous talent going, one of these days?Besides, _I_ think it's real exciting--all this. There's so muchuncertainty in it. There's a lot of fun in wanting things--and thenwatching for them to come. Just living along and KNOWING you're goingto have everything you want is so--so humdrum, you know," shefinished, with a gay little laugh.
Mrs. Chilton, however, did not laugh. She only sighed and said:
"Dear me, Pollyanna, what a child you are!"