CHAPTER XVIII
What seemed to be a streak of pink through the room was in reality Zoiebolting for the bed.
While Zoie hastened to snuggle comfortably under the covers, Aggie triedwithout avail to get Jimmy started on his errand.
Getting no response from Aggie, Alfred, bearing one infant in his arms,came in search of her. Apparently he was having difficulty with theunfastening of baby's collar.
"Aggie," he called sharply, "how on earth do you get this fool pin out?"
"Take him back, Alfred," answered Aggie impatiently; "I'll be there in aminute."
But Alfred had apparently made up his mind that he was not a success asa nurse.
"You'd better take him now, Aggie," he decided, as he offered the smallperson to the reluctant Aggie. "I'll stay here and talk to Jimmy."
"Oh, but Jimmy was just going out," answered Aggie; then she turned toher obdurate spouse with mock sweetness, "Weren't you, dear?" she asked.
"Yes," affirmed Zoie, with a threatening glance toward Jimmy. "He wasgoing, just now."
Still Jimmy remained rooted to the spot.
"Out?" questioned Alfred. "What for?"
"Just for a little air," explained Aggie blandly.
"Yes," growled Jimmy, "another little heir."
"Air?" repeated Alfred in surprise. "He had air a while ago with myson. He is going to stay here and tell me the news. Sit down, Jimmy,"he commanded, and to the intense annoyance of Aggie and Zoie, Jimmy sankresignedly on the couch.
Alfred was about to seat himself beside his friend, when the 'phone rangviolently. Being nearest to the instrument, Alfred reached it first andZoie and Aggie awaited the consequences in dread. What they heard didnot reassure them nor Jimmy.
"Still down there?" exclaimed Alfred into the 'phone.
Jimmy began to wriggle with a vague uneasiness.
"Well," continued Alfred at the 'phone, "that woman has the wrongnumber." Then with a peremptory "Wait a minute," he turned to Zoie, "Thehall boy says that woman who called a while ago is still down stairs andshe won't go away until she has seen you, Zoie. She has some kind of anidiotic idea that you know where her baby is."
"How absurd," sneered Zoie.
"How silly," added Aggie.
"How foolish," grunted Jimmy.
"Well," decided Alfred, "I'd better go down stairs and see what'sthe matter with her," and he turned toward the door to carry out hisintention.
"Alfred!" called Zoie sharply. She was half out of bed in her anxiety."You'll do no such thing. 'Phone down to the boy to send her away. She'scrazy."
"Oh," said Alfred, "then she's been here before? Who is she?"
"Who is she?" answered Zoie, trying to gain time for a new inspiration."Why, she's--she's----" her face lit up with satisfaction--the idea hadarrived. "She's the nurse," she concluded emphatically.
"The nurse?" repeated Alfred, a bit confused.
"Yes," answered Zoie, pretending to be annoyed with his dull memory."She's the one I told you about, the one I had to discharge."
"Oh," said Alfred, with the relief of sudden comprehension; "the crazyone?"
Aggie and Zoie nodded their heads and smiled at him tolerantly, thenZoie continued to elaborate. "You see," she said, "the poor creature wasso insane about little Jimmy that I couldn't go near the child."
"What!" exclaimed Alfred in a mighty rage. "I'll soon tell the boy whatto do with her," he declared, and he rushed to the 'phone. Barely hadAlfred taken the receiver from the hook when the outer door was heardto bang. Before he could speak a distracted young woman, whose excitablemanner bespoke her foreign origin, swept through the door without seeinghim and hurled herself at the unsuspecting Zoie. The woman's black hairwas dishevelled, and her large shawl had fallen from her shoulders. ToJimmy, who was crouching behind an armchair, she seemed a giantess.
"My baby!" cried the frenzied mother, with what was unmistakably anItalian accent. "Where is he?" There was no answer; her eyes soughtthe cradle. "Ah!" she shrieked, then upon finding the cradle empty, sheredoubled her lamentations and again she bore down upon the terrifiedZoie.
"You," she cried, "you know where my baby is!"
For answer, Zoie sank back amongst her pillows and drew the bed coverscompletely over her head. Alfred approached the bed to protect his youngwife; the Italian woman wheeled about and perceived a small child in hisarms. She threw herself upon him.
"I knew it," she cried; "I knew it!"
Managing to disengage himself from what he considered a mad woman, andelevating one elbow between her and the child, Alfred prevented themother from snatching the small creature from his arms.
"Calm yourself, madam," he commanded with a superior air. "We are verysorry for you, of course, but we can't have you coming here and going onlike this. He's OUR baby and----"
"He's NOT your baby!" cried the infuriated mother; "he's MY baby.Give him to me. Give him to me," and with that she sprang upon theuncomfortable Alfred like a tigress. Throwing her whole weight on hisuplifted elbow, she managed to pull down his arm until she could lookinto the face of the washerwoman's promising young offspring. The airwas rent by a scream that made each individual hair of Jimmy's headstand up in its own defence. He could feel a sickly sensation at the topof his short thick neck.
"He's NOT my baby," wailed the now demented mother, little dreaming thatthe infant for which she was searching was now reposing comfortably on asoft pillow in the adjoining room.
As for Alfred, all of this was merely confirmation of Zoie's statementthat this poor soul was crazy, and he was tempted to dismiss her withworthy forbearance.
"I am glad, madam," he said, "that you are coming to your senses."
Now, all would have gone well and the bewildered mother would no doubthave left the room convinced of her mistake, had not Jimmy's nerves gotthe better of his judgment. Having slipped cautiously from his positionbehind the armchair he was tiptoeing toward the door, and was flatteringhimself on his escape, when suddenly, as his forward foot cautiouslytouched the threshold, he heard the cry of the captor in his wake, andbefore he could possibly command the action of his other foot, he felthimself being forcibly drawn backward by what appeared to be his tootenacious coat-tails.
"If only they would tear," thought Jimmy, but thanks to the excellenceof the tailor that Aggie had selected for him, they did NOT "tear."
Not until she had anchored Jimmy safely to the centre of the rug did theirate mother pour out the full venom of her resentment toward him. Fromthe mixture of English and Italian that followed, it was apparent thatshe was accusing Jimmy of having stolen her baby.
"Take me to him," she demanded tragically; "my baby--take me to him!"
Jimmy appealed to Aggie and Zoie. Their faces were as blank as his own.He glanced at Alfred.
"Humour her," whispered Alfred, much elated by the evidence of hisown self-control as compared to Jimmy's utter demoralisation under theapparently same circumstances.
Still Jimmy did not budge.
Alfred was becoming vexed; he pointed first to his own forehead, thento that of Jimmy's hysterical captor. He even illustrated his meaningby making a rotary motion with his forefinger, intended to remind Jimmythat the woman was a lunatic.
Still Jimmy only stared at him and all the while the woman was becomingmore and more emphatic in her declaration that Jimmy knew where her babywas.
"Sure, Jimmy," said Alfred, out of all patience with Jimmy's stupidityand tiring of the strain of the woman's presence. "You know where herbaby is."
"Ah!" cried the mother, and she towered over Jimmy with a wild light inher eyes. "Take me to him," she demanded; "take me to him."
Jimmy rolled his large eyes first toward Aggie, then toward Zoie and atlast toward Alfred. There was no mercy to be found anywhere.
"Take her to him, Jimmy," commanded a concert of voices; and pursued bya bundle of waving colours and a medley of discordant sounds, Jimmy shotfrom the room.
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