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aff3888
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You aren't worried about tomorrow, are you?" "What do you think?" He propped himself up on his elbows and studied my face. "You told me last spring it was the easiest thing in the whole wide world. You could hardly wait to jump. Why, even when you got sick you worried you'd die without having a chance to do it." "I must have been a raving lunatic," I muttered."
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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e22b7a4
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What on earth prompted you to bother Grandfather?" "I just wanted to get away from you," I mumbled. "I didn't know he was in there." I tried to keep my voice from shaking but it quavered anyway. Great-grandfather had frightened me half to death. "From the look on his face, you scared the wits out of him," Dad said. "I wonder who the devil he thought you were." I shuddered. "Someone he didn't like very much, that's for sure."
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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49469e3
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I was tempted to run down to the kitchen, but the memory of Dad's words stopped me. "Fearful, nervous, insecure"--wasn't that what he'd told Aunt Blythe? She'd already seen me behave like a baby once today. I didn't want to give a repeat performance."
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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c362cf6
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Be careful," Aunt Blythe said. "The floor's riddled with dry rot." Forgetting her own warning, she plunged ahead, opening trunks and boxes, poking and pawing through things, reminiscing."
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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cfe8b79
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Theo," Aunt Blythe said. "According to Father, he was a no-good rascal, but just look at that angelic little face. He couldn't have been all bad." "I guess Great-grandfather didn't like him either." "No, indeed." Aunt Blythe laughed. "If anything, Father disliked Theo even more than Hannah. The feeling was mutual, I'm afraid. I haven't seen either one of them since their mother died. Lord, that was more than fifty years ago." I looked close..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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9fcb5c7
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I think Hannah had two brothers. Yes, I'm sure she did. Theo and, and--this boy." I shook my head. "If he's Hannah's brother, why isn't he in any of the other pictures?" Aunt Blythe didn't answer right away. In the silence, rain pattered against the windows and dripped through holes in the roof. The wind crept in through cracks and stirred the folds of a long white dress hanging from the rafters. Finally, my aunt raised her eyes from the ph..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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08aefd5
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Aunt Blythe went inside to check on Great-grandfather, but I sat on the front steps and watched the sun sink behind the trees across the highway. A little chill crept across my skin. Summer was almost over. Soon my parents would return and I'd go back to Chicago. There would be no more midnight meetings in the attic. No croquet games with Hannah, no boxing lessons from John, no fights with Edward.
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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b0b8195
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Holding my breath, I lay as still as death and listened to Hannah walk toward the bed. She leaned over me and whispered Andrew's name, my name, touching my skin with soft, warm fingers. She was no dream, no ghost. "Mama," she cried, "Mama, come quick!" A door opened, and footsteps raced toward me. "His fever's gone, Mama. He's still alive." Hannah's voice shook and she burst into tears. "Praise be," a woman whispered. "Open your eyes, Andre..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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e90c47a
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For a moment, I thought I heard laughter, the click of one croquet ball striking another, a dog barking. I stared at the empty yard, trying hard to see what Great-grandfather saw, but nothing shifted, nothing changed. If the Tylers were playing croquet, they were visible to him and him alone. The only dog in sight was Binky. Running across the lawn to meet him, I took the stick he carried and threw it as hard as I could. It sailed across th..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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3092c98
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Papa cut his business trip short when he heard how ill you were. He'll be home on the afternoon train. Won't he be happy to see you looking so well!" Hannah came running up the stairs. "Dr. Fulton's on his way, Mama." "He's in for a surprise, isn't he?" Mrs. Tyler smiled at me. "Dr. Fulton didn't think you'd live till morning, Andrew. The very idea--Hannah told him it would take more than diphtheria to kill you."
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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57869c2
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As Mrs. Armiger drew near, the fountain clerk put my sundae in front of me. "Here you are," he said. "I made this one especially for you, Andrew. Plenty of chocolate sauce and whipped cream--just the way you like it." Glad Andrew and I had at least one thing in common, I scooped up a big spoonful of ice cream. My mouth was watering for chocolate, but before I had a chance to taste it, Mrs. Armiger pounced on me. "How wonderful to see you up..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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cc785c9
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Catching my eye in the mirror, Mrs. Armiger said, "Your mother tells me you've forgotten how to play the parlor organ, Andrew." I began to apologize, but Mrs. Armiger hushed me. "It's all right, dear. I understand." She paused to adjust her hat. "In the fall, we shall begin your lessons again. We'll get along famously this time, won't we?" Not daring to meet Theo's eyes, I said, "Yes, ma'am." Mrs. Armiger smiled at Mama. "I can't believe he..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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d68e3a5
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After a while, Hannah said, "I heard Papa and Mama talking last night. Mama told Papa she thinks John Larkin is fond of me." To my annoyance, a little smile danced across her face. "I'm fond of John too," she admitted, "but Papa--" Hannah bit her lip and frowned. "Papa said a girl with my notions will never find a husband. He told Mama I'd end up an old-maid suffragette. Those were his very words, Andrew." Forgetting everything except makin..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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3d9109c
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I trudged home by myself, worrying about the trestle. What was I supposed to do there? If Andrew had dreamed it up, it was sure to be terrible. Maybe I'd have to lie down between the rails and let the train run over me. Boys did that in stories, but I wasn't sure it worked in real life. It seemed to me you'd be gouged to death by things hanging from the bottoms of boxcars. I thought a little longer. Maybe it had something to do with explosi..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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2d95cb0
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That night, I startled Andrew by striding right up to him in the attic and shoving my face close to his. For once, I was too angry to be scared of him. "You didn't tell me Papa beat you!" Andrew raised his eyebrows. "Do you mean to say you finally earned a whipping?" "It's not funny--he hit me with his belt!" "Oh, horsefeathers. If Papa thought you deserved it, you probably did." Andrew studied my face. "I hope you didn't cry." "Of course I..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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4e23cd0
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It must be a shock to see us so old," Hannah said. "I'm afraid I couldn't climb a tree or shoot a marble if my life depended on it. Neither could Andrew, but I doubt he'll admit it." "If I put my mind to it," Andrew said, "I could beat Drew with one hand tied behind my back. He was never any match for me." Hannah raised her eyebrows. "It seems to me he outplayed you once." "Pshaw. What's one game?" If Aunt Blythe hadn't come back just then,..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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29bf291
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When Dad pulled up in front of the house, the three of us sat still for a moment and stared at the gloomy pile of bricks my great-aunt called home. Up close, it looked even worse than it had from a distance. Ivy clung to the walls, spreading over windows and doors. A wisteria vine heavy with bunches of purple blossoms twisted around the porch columns. Paint peeled, loose shutters banged in the wind, slates from the roof littered the overgro..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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4d448f9
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I told you before--you mustn't let Edward scare you. He's a bully and a coward. What would Frank Merriwell do if he were you?" Frank Merriwell--I was thoroughly sick of hearing that name."
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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64a4f6b
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To keep from crying in front of everyone, I ran down the hall, opened the first door I saw, and dashed inside. Too late I realized the room was already occupied. An old man in a wheelchair sat beside a window. Of all the places I might have gone, I'd chosen Great-grandfather's sanctuary.
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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1662623
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I told you before--you mustn't let Edward scare you. He's a bully and a coward. What would Frank Merriwell do if he were you?" Frank Merriwell--I was thoroughly sick of hearing that name. "I don't care what some dumb guy in a story would do. I'm not going to fight Edward." "Fight me then." Hannah raised her fists and danced around on her bare feet, bouncing, ducking, and swinging at the air around my head. "Pretend I'm Edward!" I ducked a p..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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da23f92
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You'll never be the heavyweight champion of the world," he said, "but you should be able to duck anything Edward throws at you." Theo wanted his turn, but John said it was too hot for more lessons. He looked up into the tree where Hannah sat swinging her feet, and smiled. "Maybe your sister will come down from her perch and offer us a nice cold glass of lemonade." Hannah gave her hand to John and allowed him to help her. "Not that I need yo..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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a671e4f
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Brandishing a green mallet, Hannah grinned at John. "We'll take sides. You and me against Andrew and Theo." Hannah went first. Theo and I watched her knock her ball through the first two wickets and aim for the third. She missed and stepped back to let Theo take his turn. I leaned on my mallet and waited. It had taken me a while to understand the game, but once I learned the rules, I'd become a pretty good strategist. As soon as I had the o..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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908cab5
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Our voices sounded small in the noisy darkness. We called her name again and again. We waved our flashlights in hope that she'd see their bobbing light. We were hoarse from calling. And desperate when she didn't answer. The faint trail gave out, and we began circling back to the house without realizing it until we saw the lights in the windows. "We need to call the police," Dad said. "We don't know the land the way they do. We'll get lost o..
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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7f7f6cd
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But who will I say you are? How will I explain you? People don't just appear out of nowhere." "Lord A'mighty," Andrew exclaimed. "Have you no brains? We're as alike as two peas in a pod. All we need to do is switch places."
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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7db68f2
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While Papa talked about his day in court, I relived my fight with Edward. What a lousy, stinking, ungrateful coward he was. Hateful. Underhanded. Sly and dishonest. A tattle-tale. What branch of the family tree had produced a rotten apple like him?
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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807ec80
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Here, there, everywhere
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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7435883
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I wanted to leap up and defend her, perhaps throw my arms around her and protect her, but I just sat there like a nincompoop.
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Mary Downing Hahn |
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f64360b
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as if I cared about something as useless as long division,
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Mary Downing Hahn |