Cedar Woman (163 page)

Tu
r
n
i
n
g
t
o
fly
into
the
f
ami
ly
r
o
o
m
,
M
ary
felt
Pe
t
er’s
h
an
d clutchi
n
g
at
h
e
r
ar
m
.
S
p
i
n
ni
n
g
t
o
w
a
rd hi
m
,
she
st
a
r
ted
t
o
s
h
o
u
t:

“
Let
m
e
go!”
when
she
noticed
that,
what
she
h
a
d
thought
w
a
s alarm
and con
c
ern wa
s
,
in fac
t
, its exact
opposite.

Pe
t
er
was
t
r
yi
ng de
s
p
erately not
t
o
b
reak
i
n
t
o
e
x
p
lo
s
i
v
e
l
au
g
h
t
er. Clutching
his
sides,
he
b
e
nt
and
m
o
an
e
d
.
Cover
i
ng
his
face,
gulping,

tears
c
o
urs
i
ng
d
ow
n
his
c
h
e
e
ks,
Pet
e
r
aga
i
n
po
i
nted
to
t
h
e
fa
m
ily
roo
m
.

M
ary
sto
o
d
b
ef
o
re
h
e
r
h
u
sb
an
d
,
h
e
r
l
o
ok
puzzl
e
d
.
A
t
entati
v
e
s
m
ile beg
a
n
to
c
r
ea
s
e
her
fa
c
e.
Sl
o
wl
y
,
co
m
p
letely con
f
us
e
d
,
M
ary enter
e
d
t
h
e r
o
o
m
.

L
o
gan
lift
e
d his
he
a
d
a
nd
l
o
o
k
ed
up
on
t
h
e
l
ake.
T
o
day it o
f
fer
e
d no co
n
so
l
at
io
n.
He
h
a
d
be
e
n ba
d
.
He had d
i
sre
s
pected
o
n
e
o
f
h
i
s best frie
n
d
s
,
a
n
d he
di
dn
’t
kn
o
w
h
o
w to
m
ake
it
up to h
e
r.

Wh
a
t
w
a
s I
t
h
i
n
king?
he
m
o
aned
inwardly.
Wh
a
t
w
a
s I THIN
K
ING?

Banishi
n
g
him
to
t
h
e
ba
c
k
d
eck,
his
gr
and
p
ar
e
n
ts
o
r
der
e
d
him
to stay
pu
t
u
n
til
th
ey
called
h
i
m
i
n
.
T
h
ey
m
u
st
b
e
v
ery,
v
ery
angry
with

hi
m
,
because
t
h
ey
wouldn’t
l
o
ok
him
in
the
eye.
Wh
e
n
ev
er
he
tried
to get
t
h
em
to
look
at
hi
m
,
t
h
ey
wou
l
d
t
u
r
n
awa
y
.
U
n
ci
k
ept
clutchi
n
g

Tu
nk
asila,
t
u
rni
n
g
i
n
to
h
i
m
,
her s
h
o
u
l
d
ers
sha
k
in
g
.

Is
s
h
e cry
i
ng?
he
wonder
e
d
i
n
alar
m
!

L
o
gan
h
a
d
n
ev
er
se
e
n
his
u
n
c
i
cr
y
.
He
a
d
h
a
ng
i
n
g
,
he
w
e
nt
o
u
t on
t
o t
h
e
d
eck
and
sat
o
n t
h
e
b
o
tt
o
m ste
p
.
His
m
o
rtificati
o
n was c
o
m
p
lete.

Had
L
og
a
n
b
e
en
m
o
re
a
w
ar
e
,
he
w
o
uld
h
a
ve
hea
r
d
t
h
e
c
losi
n
g
o
f win
d
ows
a
n
d
s
hu
tting
of
d
o
ors,
b
u
t
h
e
was
t
o
o
d
eep
in
h
i
s
s
h
a
m
e
to
ta
k
e

notice.

I
c
a
n no
l
on
g
er
w
a
lk
t
h
is
earth
with
h
o
n
or
, he
g
r
i
eve
d
.
T
h
e
g
ran
d
f
a
t
h
ers k
no
w
m
y
d
is
g
race. Ate! Are y
o
u
a
s
h
am
e
d
o
f
m
e too?