"
That was what Eileen did. At noon the next day her eyes were
bright with nervousness. Her cheeks alternately paled with fear
and flooded red with anxiety. She had dressed herself carefully,
laid out her hat and gloves and a heavy coat in case the night
should be chilly. Once she stood looking at the dainty, brightly
colored dresses hanging in her wardrobe A flash of regret passed
over her face.
"Tawdry little cheap things and makeshifts," she said. "If Linda
feels that she has been so terribly defrauded, she can help
herself now!"
By twelve o'clock she found herself standing at the window,
straining her eyes down Lilac Valley. She was not looking at its
helpful hills, at its appealing curves, at its brilliant colors.
She was watching the roadway. When Katy rang to call her to
lunch, she told her to put the things away; she was expecting
people who would take her out to lunch presently. In the past
years she had occasionally written to her uncle. Several times
when he had had business in Los Angeles she had met him at his
hotel and dined with him. She reasoned that he would come
straight to the house and get her, and then they would go to one
of the big hotels for lunch before they started.
"I shan't feel like myself," said Eileen, "until we are well on
the way to San Francisco."
At one o'clock she was walking the floor. At two she was almost
frantic. At half past she almost wished that she had had the
good sense to have some lunch, since she was very hungry and
under tense nerve strain.
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