Margaret commented when he returned to the back parlor. Somehow, the girl had gotten under his skin. He couldn’t help thinking about her out on the streets. Any number of terrible things might have happened to her and her brother. A shudder ran up his spine. He shook himself back to the present and turned to his mother. “Do you suppose she’s mad, Mother?” “Mad. No. I’ve known the girl since she was born. She’s a wonderful girl. She took care of her father for a year during his illness. She missed her second season and now her third, poor thing. I am sure there is truth in what she says. I have met her uncle. The man is abhorrent in every way, though it is hard to believe he would do the boy harm.” “Hmm… She must believe it, to hide in my shrubbery in order to escape him. It’s quite cold outside and to run with a small child at night is dangerous. She was lucky not to be seen by the night watch, or worse, accosted. It was a desperate move.” “In the shrubbery, really!
