"We don't want to pry
into your private affairs," she went on, "but we would like to help you.
And please don't disappear so mysteriously again. You are the girl who
fell out of the branches of a tree; aren't you?"
"Yes," and she smiled faintly, "I am Carrie Norton. I knew you as soon
as I saw you all again. Oh, please don't think harshly of me, but I have
been so worried I did not know what I was doing. I have always regretted
repaying your kindness so shabbily, but really----"
"Now don't worry a bit about that!" broke in Mollie. "Just rest
yourself, and when you feel able, tell us all you wish to, and we'll do
all we can for you. Do you feel better?"
"Oh, yes, much. I am not given to fainting. It was just fright that made
me call out when I heard the noise you made, and then I went over--all
got black before me. Oh, I am feeling stronger every minute."
She proved it by getting up, and the girls helped her arrange her dress,
dusting it for her, and aiding her in coiling up her heavy hair.
"What lovely braids you have," observed Grace.
"Do you think so? They have made trouble enough for me."
"I suppose so much hair must be inconvenient in warm weather, but most
of us would be willing to put up with it," spoke Amy.
"I didn't mean it that way. I will tell you soon. But I ought to be
going."
"Then come with us," invited Betty.
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