Authors: Gertrude Warner
Mystery Ranch (2 page)
“I could guess that,” laughed the young man.
He lifted the bags down. He took both of them in one hand and his own heavy one in the other. The girls looked around the station platform for Maggie.
“Thank you for carrying the bags,” said Violet. “It was very kind of you.”
“Not at all,” said the stranger, politely.
A voice behind them asked, “Are you Miss Alden?”
“Miss Alden?” said Jessie, turning around. “Oh, yes, I’m Jessie Alden. And this is Violet. Are you Maggie?”
“Yes, I’m Maggie. I’m very glad to see you.”
“I don’t know,” said Maggie. “Who was he?”
“I had never seen him before,” said Jessie. “He was very polite, anyway.”
“Not many people get off here,” said Maggie. “I wonder why he came to Centerville.”
“Well, as Benny would say, ‘A Mystery Man,’” said Violet, smiling.
Maggie led the way around the station to a very thin black horse which stood in front of an old wagon.
“Get in,” Maggie said. “There is only one seat, but we can all sit on it.”
Maggie took the reins. The old horse raised his head and walked slowly down the road.
“He’ll walk all the way home,” said Maggie. “He’s not like the horses we used to have. We had riding horses and a herd of cattle, and we raised wheat. It was a fine ranch in the old days. But now your aunt can’t run the ranch any more. Did you know she is in bed?”
“Yes, Grandfather told us.”
“Did he tell you that she doesn’t want to eat, and she won’t let me eat, either?”
“Yes. That seems terrible!” said Violet.
The horse stopped at the back door of an old brown house. The girls got out of the wagon. Maggie opened the back door and let them into the kitchen.
“Your Aunt Jane is in
there,”
Maggie said. “Put your bags down. I’ll go into her room and tell her.”
“The girls are here,” Maggie said to someone out of sight.
The two sisters went quietly into the bedroom. They saw a tiny woman half sitting up in a big, high bed. She was very thin, and she did not smile, even when she saw the two girls.
“So you’re James Alden’s grandchildren!” a sharp voice said.
Jessie went nearer the bed. “He is very worried about you, Aunt Jane,” she said.
“Worried? Pooh!” said the little old lady. But she couldn’t help liking that friendly voice saying “Aunt Jane.” No one had talked so kindly to her in years.
She raised her head and asked, “What’s the matter with the other girl? Can’t she talk?”
“Yes,” said Violet, smiling. “I shall talk so much you’ll be tired of hearing me.”
Miss Alden said nothing. But she found herself thinking, “I’ll never be tired of hearing that soft voice.”
“I’ll put them in the big bedroom,” Maggie said. “Is that all right?”
“Put them anywhere,” said Aunt Jane. She turned her face to the wall.
Maggie went out and nodded at the girls to come, too.
“Ever see anyone as cross as that?” she asked.
“No,” said Jessie. “We feel sorry for her.”
Maggie led the way upstairs.
They went into a big room with many windows and a big high bed.
“What is really the matter with Aunt Jane?” asked Violet. “Is she very sick?”
Maggie looked at the little girl. “Well,” she said, “I don’t think there’s a thing the matter with her.”
“But why does she stay in bed, then?”
“She isn’t strong enough to get up now,” Maggie answered. “There’s nothing for her to live for. So she doesn’t care about living. I suppose that’s why she won’t eat.”
“Well, we are going to eat,” said Jessie.
“I’m hungry now,” said Violet.
“Let’s go down to the kitchen, then,” said Jessie.
As they went downstairs, Maggie said kindly, “You girls make yourselves right at home.”
When they came to the kitchen, Maggie took one look out the window. She saw the horse still standing by the back door.
“Mercy! I forgot the horse!” she cried. And she rushed out of the door, leaving the girls alone.
It was then that Violet turned to look at her aunt’s door. It was shut.
“Look, Jessie,” she whispered. “Aunt Jane must have shut that door. It means that she can get out of bed if she really wants to.”
L
et’s not wait for Maggie,” Jessie said, in her businesslike way. “Let’s get dinner.”
Soon, Violet was busy beating eggs in a bowl. Jessie put butter in a big pan and set it on the stove. The girls put pieces of dry bread in the eggs and milk, and Jessie began to brown them in the pan.
“My, that smells good!” cried Maggie, coming into the kitchen.
“She
going to eat this?”
“No,” said Jessie. “I’m just going to give her something to drink. But we’ll eat first.”
Violet had found a pretty blue cloth and some white flowers. She had set three places with fine old blue plates. A knife and fork were at each place, and a glass of milk.
“All ready!” Jessie said, with a smile. “Come on, Maggie, and sit down. I hope you’ll have enough to eat tonight.”
“It’s the most I have had for two weeks, anyway,” said Maggie. “You are a good cook for a young girl.”
They did not hear a sound from the bedroom. At last, even Maggie couldn’t eat any more.
“Now for Aunt Jane,” said Violet, getting up. She opened the lunch box and took out an orange.
“I could drink that myself!” Violet said, watching Jessie mix the orange juice with a beaten
egg.
Jessie knocked gently on the bedroom door.
“Well, come in!” said Aunt Jane. “Don’t stand there knocking!”
Her voice was cross, but Jessie thought she had been lying there waiting for something to happen. She put the glass on the table. Then she went over to the bed, and bent over the tiny little lady.
“Aunt Jane, this is delicious,” she said. “Violet and I made it just for you.”
Jessie went on, “Now I’m going to lift you up higher in the bed, so you can drink better.”
To the old lady’s surprise, Jessie lifted her in her strong arms as if she were a child. Then she took the glass and sat down by the bed.
“Drink it slowly,” she said. “As Benny would say, ‘Don’t rush it.’”
“Who is this Benny?”
“Well,” began Jessie. “Benny is—” she stopped. “It’s so hard to tell you about our brother Benny.”
Violet came in, folding up the blue tablecloth. She acted as if she had always lived there.
She said, “Benny is the funniest boy you ever saw, Aunt Jane, and he is good, too. He can always make people laugh. He loves our dog, Watch. Benny and Watch almost talk to each other. Benny always looks for Watch if things go wrong.”
Jessie noticed that her aunt was drinking the egg and orange; and not very slowly, either. She seemed to be very hungry.
“Who else is in your family?” asked Aunt Jane.
“Well, there’s Henry,” said Jessie. “He’s our oldest brother. He is very clever, and very kind and thoughtful. He can make Benny mind, too, without being cross.”
“If your brothers are like you, I’d like to see them, too. Take the glass now, and go. I’m tired.”
Jessie bent down again and lowered the little lady from her high pillows.
“Call Maggie now,” said Aunt Jane.
The girls went out quietly and called Maggie. They finished washing the dishes. Then they waited in the front room for Maggie.
“You see how she is,” said the tired woman. “First she wants me, and then she doesn’t. I think she is finally settled for the night. You might as well go to bed, too.”
“A fine idea,” said Jessie. “Where do you sleep?”
“In this room off the kitchen,” said Maggie. “If you want anything in the night, you can come down.”
“Thanks, Maggie,” said Jessie. “We won’t feel so strange here, knowing that.”
“Well, thank you both,” she answered. “It’s wonderful to have someone nice to talk to.”
The girls went up to their big room. They climbed into bed and talked awhile.
“How beautiful the stars are!” Violet said. “They seem so near.”
“I have never seen stars so bright before,” said Jessie. “It’s because there are no other lights at all.”
Just as they were going to sleep, Jessie laughed and said, “Violet, where do you suppose that young man went? The one on the train.”
“I can’t think,” answered Violet. “He just disappeared in the air!”
“A Mystery Man really,” said Jessie.
And so they fell asleep.
S
am, the neighbor, woke the girls the next morning, bringing the milk. The girls could hear Maggie in the kitchen, “Shh, Shh! Sam Weeks! You’ll wake those girls.”
“I want to wake them,” said Sam. “I want to see them.” He began to whistle.
The girls laughed while they washed their faces in the big wash bowl in their room. They dressed quickly. They wanted to see Sam, too.
“Well, well!” he said, as they came into the kitchen. “I hear you came to see your Aunt Jane. Are you planning to stay here all summer?”
“Sam!” cried Maggie. “How do they know?”
“We really don’t know how long we’ll stay,” said Jessie. “We don’t know how long Aunt Jane will want us.”
“I’m worried about you,” Sam said. “I’m afraid you won’t get enough food. Maggie had to eat at our house when she got real hungry.”
“Well,” answered Jessie, dropping some eggs into hot water, “We can buy food. Grandfather gave me some money.”
“I hope your aunt will let you eat it after you get it,” said Sam. He turned to go.
He stopped at the door and turned to Maggie.
“A stranger got off the train last night,” he said.
“Yes, we know!” cried both girls.
“That’s right, you would know,” said Sam.
“We call him our Mystery Man,” said Jessie.
“He’s a mystery, all right,” said Sam. “I noticed him because not very many people get off that fast train.”
Sam watched the three people sit down at the pretty table. He turned and walked quickly out the kitchen door.
Jessie smiled as she poured hot milk on a piece of toast.
“A little salt,” she laughed, “and Aunt Jane’s breakfast is ready.”
She carried the plate into Aunt Jane’s bedroom.
“More food, I suppose,” said Aunt Jane.