Diana of Orchard Slope by Libbie Hawker

Author:Libbie Hawker [Hawker, Libbie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Running Rabbit Press

Mrs. Barry Makes Amends

Diana slept so soundly that even the loud morning trills of the robins, perched in the apple tree just outside her window, couldn’t wake her. Nor could the bright, forcefully white light of a sun-soaked winter morning. Consumed by exhaustion, she slept nearly till the afternoon, and only wakened when her stomach, unbreakfasted and surly, rumbled her into action. She lay quietly under her covers for a long time despite her hunger, listening to the gleeful twittering of the birds, who rejoiced in the clear skies and the warmth of the fleeting winter sun. The late-morning light made Diana’s lace curtains glow like beams of glory. It was such a pretty morning, such a cheerful day… and all the more because Minnie May was safe, and Anne and Diana were unquestionably good friends again.

Gradually, Diana became aware of another sound, growing louder and louder until the birdsong could no longer mask it. It was the crunch and clop of a horse’s hooves in the hard snow, and the hiss of a sleigh’s runners. She rolled out of her bed and peeked through the curtains to the yard below. Dr. White had returned, driving his remarkably smart sleigh, pulled by a big black horse, all the way from Spencervale. No doubt he had come to check on Minnie May’s progress.

Diana was eager to hear what he had to say, but there was not enough time to dress and neaten up her hair, which looked like a rat’s nest after her long sleep. She could listen from the top of the stairs, though, without being seen… and that was exactly what she did, creeping in her stocking feet down as far as the first landing, where she knew she would not be seen from the rooms below.

Mrs. Barry gave Dr. White an effusive welcome. Diana, satisfied that Minnie May was past the point of danger, had gone up to bed before her parents returned from Charlottetown, but she supposed Mary Joe had informed them of the long, terrible night and of the part Anne Shirley had played. Diana leaned as far as she dared over the rail to listen.

“Please, Dr. White, sit down,” Mrs. Barry said from the parlor.

“How has your littlest girl fared through the night?” the doctor said.

“Very well. Her breathing sounds fine, just fine. Oh, Doctor, I am such a fool. The French girl tried to warn me that Minnie May had the croup, but I didn’t believe it.”

“Now, now, Mrs. Barry. You mustn’t blame yourself. These attacks can come on quite suddenly.”

“But oh, I never should have gone off and left my children with one of them so sick! I’m only grateful that Diana had the presence of mind to run to the Cuthberts’ for help.”

There was a pause, and then Dr. White said wonderingly, “That little redheaded girl they have over at the Cuthberts’ is as smart as they make ’em. I tell you she saved that baby’s life, for it would have been too late by the time I got here.

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