A Hero at Heart

Chapter 6

It wasn't long before the last warm days were over and the rainy cold of autumn set in. On the wettest days, Susan was driven to school in her father's buggy, and Emma had to walk all alone. Mother didn't have time to drive Emiline to school, but she made sure that her daughter was bundled up and had an umbrella to keep her dry. Emma didn't mind walking to school in the cold.Alone, in the quiet of morning, she had plenty of time to imagine and wonder.

The balding trees gave the country lane a dark, frightful look. Today, Emiline felt mysterious and even slightly scared. She had just picked up a new book about detectives and merciless rogues, and now she couldn't help but feel as though shadowy crooks and kidnappers were lurking behind every bush.

Once inside the safe, warm schoolhouse, everything became boring and common. Miss Weed droned on about writing and science while Emma drifted in and out of her own thoughts. That morning, the children were quieter than usual. The gloominess of the rainy day had made all of them still and dull. Even Peter seemed calmer and less mischievous. He had been a nuisance all week, but today he studied hard and didn't talk much.

Lunch time couldn't have come too soon for Emma. Now that Susan didn't walk with her in the mornings, she missed her company. As soon as Miss Weed told the children they could go outside, the girls grabbed their lunch pails and hurried out together to chat. Usually, Susan and Emma sat under the trees all by themselves, but it was too wet and muddy to walk out into the tall grass. So they joined the other children and sat on the stairs.

Emiline looked into her lunch pail with a gloomy face. Inside, Mother had packed her a "make-do" sort of meal. There was a dab of last night's dinner, a piece of buttered bread, and a handful of dried apples. Emma hated "make-do" lunches. Last night's dinner never tasted as good when it was cold. And somehow, the dried apples just didn't look tasty. Besides, "making do" made Emiline's family seem poor, and that was embarrassing.

"Molly, I'll trade my lunch for yours," Emma said, tapping the girl in front of her on the shoulder. With a bright smile, she tried to make her lunch look tempting.

"Well, what've you got?" Molly asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Roast beef!" Emiline replied eagerly, "and a piece of Mother's buttered bread!" She tried to talk up the fatty, cold meat and crumbly piece of bread, but Molly didn't seem impressed. Even so, Emma's offer reminded the other children that they could trade the foods they didn't like and have a tastefully different lunch. Soon, sandwiches, cookies, and pieces of fruit were being passed up and down the stairs. But somehow, no one wanted Emiline's lunch.

"I have dried apples!" she offered loudly. No one was interested.

"I think trading is silly," Susan said smugly, arranging her lunch on her knees.

Emiline looked at her friend's perfect meal and licked her lips. She remembered how delicious the apple muffin had been. This food must taste just as amazing. Susan had come with a beautiful chicken-salad sandwich, a jar of milk, and two caramels.

"Where did you get the candy?" Emma asked excitedly. "Did your mother make it?"

Susan gave her a strange look. "Of course Mother didn't make them," she answered. Emiline blushed. No, of course Susan's mother hadn't made the candy. Rich women didn't have to make treats when they wanted them. "Mother orders them specially," Susan carried on. "We get a box of candies every month, and she always surprises me with a different kind. Last week, they were hazelnut truffles. But they weren't as good as some truffles I've eaten. The chocolate was much too bitter."