The Treasure of Netherstrand

Chapter 17

A light touch on the ivory keys made the piano sing several ascending notes. It was a monotonous tune which Gracie had to play. Up and down, her fingers danced, playing a well-practiced lesson which she almost knew by heart. Suddenly, a clamor of discordant notes rang rudely through the air.

"Enna, stop that!" Gracie cried as her cousin hammered the keys. Enna giggled and grinned mischievously.

"Why?" she asked tauntingly. "I'm only having some fun!" With Gracie's own doll in her hand she pounded the delicate figurine up and down against the keys to make a ruckus.

"Because, you are ruining everything!" Grace exclaimed. "You have spoiled my piano lesson, and you are going to break my doll! Oh, do stop, Enna! Please!" She made a snatching motion toward the dear little doll which her mother had given her. But Enna dodged and ran out of reach. The naughty child giggled and stuck out her tongue in defiance.

"She is my dolly now!" she sneered. "You don't play with dolls. Remember?"

Grace drew in a deep breath that shook with suppressed emotions. "That doesn't matter. She is still mine. She was a gift from Mamma and I don't want you to break her!"

"I'll break her if I wish to!" Enna shouted, stamping her little foot. "She is mine now. See?" With an insolent look, she threw the doll down on the ground as hard as she could. Grace gave a cry of dismay as she heard the porcelain face crack.

Enna gave a start. Whether she had really meant to break the doll or not, she had truly done it. The girl's face flushed crimson with shame. Then she scrambled to defend herself. "There!" she shrieked. "It serves her right! I never liked her anyway. Stupid doll!"

Grace's heart shattered. Day after day, she endured her cousin's awful behavior. But how could she stand it another minute? "Enna, you're wicked!" she cried. "How dare you break my doll! It was mine and you know it! You horrible, horrible girl!"

The sound of footsteps gave both of the children a start. Turning whiter than ever, Gracie looked up at her aunt, Amelia.

"Grace, what on earth has gotten into you?" Mrs. Carlyle gasped. "Did I actually hear you raise your voice? And to MY little daughter? Explain yourself, child!"

Gracie burst into a fit of sobs. "Auntie, she broke it! She broke my doll on purpose!" she wept. "Just look at my poor dolly!" The girl rose from her piano bench and sought to lift her injured doll from the floor, but Enna snatched it up first and then ran to her mother's arms.

"She's lying, Mummy! She's lying! It was an accident!" the little girl bawled. "Grace is mean and horrid!"

Mrs. Carlyle pressed the child to her heart and ran her fingers through Enna's perfect, blonde curls. "There, there love! Do not cry so! Tell me just what happened," she said gently. Enna wept all the harder just to prove how badly she had been wronged. She squealed out a lying story of accidental woes and painted Grace as a perfect villainess.

"She knocked Dolly right out of my hands!" she cried. "And now Dolly is broken! I loved my dolly, Mummy! I want a new one! NOW!"

Gracie stood, livid. The blood kept rushing to her cheeks and then fading away as her heart ached with sorrow. She could see on Amelia's face that the woman believed every lie.

"Grace, this is unacceptable," Mrs. Carlyle stated coldly. "What possessed you to do such a thing to my little darling? I have tried very hard to turn you into a well-behaved young woman; yet, you fight Enna tooth and nail for a ridiculous toy! I am so ashamed! What will Arthur think when he comes and sees that you are such a bad-tempered, ill-mannered child?"

The last words hurt Gracie's heart more than anything else could. What was a broken doll compared to the awful thought of disappointing her idolized brother? But what could she do to defend herself? She hid her face in her hands, with tears falling through her fingers, and listened as Amelia went on.