CHAPTER IX
THE EXPERIMENT
Billie Bradley awoke next morning with the same curious weight upon herspirit. Her mental depression was augmented by bodily discomfort thathad grown no less overnight.
Every muscle in her body was strained and there were big, black bruiseson her arms and legs, some of them as big as the palm of her hand.
“You _will_ go picking goldenrod!” gibed Laura with sympatheticinterest, watching Billie’s painful effort to dress herself. “Next timeyou feel in the humor to visit Goldenrod Point----”
“I’ll run the other way,” said Billie, with a grimace. “Bother! Iwanted to get out on the courts for practice to-day.”
“From the look of those arms and legs, it will be many a day before youcan swing a wicked racket, Billie,” observed Vi. “Here, I’ll help youwith that stocking. Give me a chance to show what an excellent lady’smaid I’d make.”
Between them, they managed to get Billie dressed in time for breakfast.It was not until the bell rang and there was a general exodus into thecorridors from the dormitory that Laura broached the subject that wasuppermost in the minds of them all.
“How about this lion cub from Arizona----”
“Oklahoma,” Billie corrected, a trifle frigidly.
“Well, Oklahoma, then. You aren’t really going to wish her on thecrowd, are you, Billie? If you insist, the girls will take her up foryour sake, but there will be trouble. I feel it in my bones.”
“I have no intention of wishing her on anyone,” retorted Billie coldly.“The girl saved my life and I am going to help her to be happy here atThree Towers Hall, if such a thing is possible. You girls may do as youlike.”
Vi put an arm about Billie’s shoulders.
“Don’t be sore, Billie. If I can’t share your enthusiasm for this wildgirl from the West, I am quite willing to admit that you are probablyright and I’m wrong. Anyway, perhaps it’s worth giving it a whirl.”
With such tepid support, Billie was forced to be content.
On the way to the breakfast hall they passed Amanda Peabody and ElizaDilks. The latter called to Billie and reminded her jeeringly not toforget that she had a date with Debsy at ten o’clock that morning.
Billie flushed and pressed her lips tight together to prevent a sharpretort.
“Some people never get enough,” she said in a low voice to Laura and Vias they entered the dining hall. “So far we have beaten Amanda and herShadow at every game they have ever tried to play with us, and stillthey come around looking for more trouble.”
Across the length of the hall, Billie’s eyes sought and found EdinaTooker. A look flashed between the two girls that was observed by morethan one curious pair of eyes in that room.
Billie’s look seemed to say:
“Hold on! Have courage. I am going to fulfill my promise.”
While Edina, still a figure of fun in her outrageous clothes, seemed torespond:
“I’m depending on you. Don’t fail me. You’re my only hope.”
That was the beginning of a period of acute discomfort for BillieBradley.
It began with Miss Debbs’ decision to give Billie two demerits, insteadof one. Billie could never quite understand the reason, except thatMiss Debbs was thorough in everything she undertook, including hermethods of discipline.
Billie knew that the punishment was too severe, totally out ofproportion to her fault. For a time she even considered taking hergrievance to Miss Walters, the white-haired, gracious head of ThreeTowers Hall, adored by the girls and universally respected for her finesense of justice.
Billie finally decided against this, however, accepting the unjustpunishment with mental reservations and the determination to earn nomore demerits during the remainder of the fall term.
To add to Billie’s discomfort, Edina took to following her about likea humble and adoring shadow. Unpleasant Edina could be, and oftenwas--snappish and curt, even downright rude--but never so to Billie.Her outspoken devotion was embarrassing; yet, in her secret heart,Billie could not but be gratified by it.
Edina was known among the girls as “Billie’s little lamb,” or “Billie’slion cub.”
If Billie was sensitive to the only partially disguised amusement thatfollowed them wherever they went, Edina was even more so.
She noticed, even before Billie did, that subtle drawing off of theother girls, even from their adored Billie. Edina spoke of this oneday, in her clumsy, blundering way.
“You’re gettin’ yourself in a heap of trouble, tryin’ to be nice tome. I seem to make trouble for every one I--like. I’d best go back toOklahoma to Paw and Maw and leave you in peace.”
“Nonsense!” said Billie, eying her protégé sharply. “You aren’t gettingcold feet at this late date, are you?”
Edina shook her head.
“No, I’m willin’ to stick. The girls ain’t been so mean since you’vebeen nice to me. I’m gettin’ some book learnin’, too,” the round faceshone suddenly with eagerness. “I don’t do so bad in my classes.”
“You are doing splendidly,” Billie encouraged her. “I was speakingto Miss Arbuckle about you yesterday, and she said that if all herstudents were as eager to learn as you, her task would be much easier.She was as pleased as punch with you, Edina.”
The girl’s face beamed with a sudden radiant happiness.
“That sort of makes up for all the rest,” she said eagerly.
Edina in this mood was very attractive to Billie. She eyed her withsympathetic interest for a moment, then said curiously:
“You’ve something on your mind, Edina. Out with it!”
“I was thinkin’ about you,” returned the girl hesitantly, stammeringand flushing as she spoke. “The girls you go around with don’t like me.Oh, it don’t take a microscope to see that,” with sudden bitterness,as Billie made a negative gesture. “And because you’re nice to methey--they are sort of drawing off from you, too.”
Billie was startled. In a vague way she had noticed some such thingherself. Was her friendship for Edina Tooker imperiling her popularity?
When she did not speak, Edina continued:
“You’ve been the most popular girl up here. It didn’t take amicroscope for me to see that neither--either. There’s no use yoursp’ilin’--spoilin’--all that for me. I’d best go back to Oklahoma, likeI said.”
Billie roused herself. She laughed and her mouth compressed itself intoa rather fierce straight line. This was Billie Bradley’s “fightingface.”
“I think you are wrong, Edina. I’m pretty sure you’re wrong. But ifthere’s a chance in the world that you’re right--then I want to knowit. Don’t you see? I’d simply have to be sure!”
Edina was watching her with a half-fearful eagerness.
“Then you mean----”
“I mean we will go ahead with our plans just as we planned them!” saidBillie. She jumped to her feet with swift decision. “I have alreadyspoken to Miss Walters about a shopping tour to Fleetsburg.” Fleetsburgwas the next town to Molata, a fairly cosmopolitan place with severallarge stores and a theater. “Some of the girls want to go to a matinéeand Miss Arbuckle is to chaperone them. We are to go in the school busand may have the whole day to spend as we like. We will buy clothesand other pretties till we’re weary. You and I, Edina Tooker, are goingto have a very large time!”
Edina caught her breath. The wistful longing in her round, red face waspitiful to Billie. She caught Billie’s hand and squeezed it hard.
“You’re awful good to me. Seems like I never thought anybody could beso good.”
“No thanks, please!” cried Billie gaily. “Anyway, my work will bringits own reward. When we return to Three Towers Hall to-morrow you aregoing to be everybody’s ideal of what a perfect, modern schoolgirlshould be!”
Edina’s gratitude, her eager anticipation, warmed Billie’s heart. Shecarried her mood of elation to bed with her and woke with it in themorning.
“To-day is going to be one of the
most interesting I have ever livedthrough,” she thought. “The look on the girls’ faces when they see mynew edition of Edina will be worth all the trouble. Only,” her faceclouded, “I wish Laura and Vi could share the fun with me.”
Billie Bradley and the School Mystery; Or, The Girl From Oklahoma Page 9
