Jessica Trent: Her Life On A Ranch Part 24

"It's he! It certainly is he! Oh! Now I can tell him how sorry both mother and I were that the 'boys' behaved so rudely. And he's a lawyer. He's on the same business we are, if his is the other side. I must stop him--quick!"

This might have been an easy thing to do, under Scruff's present rate of speed; but, unfortunately, the tall man stepped into a hack, waiting beside the plaza for stray pa.s.sengers, and giving an order was driven rapidly away.

For a long time Jessica kept that carriage in sight; then it turned a corner into an avenue, where were hundreds more just like it, it seemed to her, and she lost it among the many.

Even yet she pressed on determined. "In a city--it's just one city, even if it is a big one--I shall find him if I keep on. I must. Go, Scruff! The band is after you. Go! Go!"

The overtaxed burro had already "gone" to his fullest ability. He could do no more, although his mistress whispered "sugar," "sweet cake"

and other tempting words. His excited pace dropped to the slowest of walks, his breath came hardly, and finally he leaned himself against a post and rested. When he had done so for some moments, Jessica turned him about and looked backward, expecting to see Ephraim close behind.

But he was nowhere in sight; and in a flash of horror the girl realized that she was lost.

CHAPTER XV

A NEW FRIEND FOR THE OLD

"Lost! I'm lost! Right here in this great city full of folks. It seemed so easy to find Mr. Hale and it was so hard. There are so many streets--which one is right? There are so many people--oh! if they'd stop going by for just one minute, till I could think."

The pa.s.sing crowd that had so interested now terrified her. Among all the changing faces not one she knew, not one that more than glanced her way, and was gone on, indifferent. The memory of a time in her early childhood when she had strayed into the canyon and became bewildered flashed through her mind. Was she to suffer again the misery of that dreadful day? But the day had ended in a father's rescuing arms, and now----

"I remember he told me then that if ever I were lost again I was to keep perfectly still for a time and think over all the things I'd seen by the way. After awhile I might feel sure enough to go slowly back and guide myself by them. But I can't think here. It's so noisy and thick with men and women. And I'm getting so hungry. Ephraim said we would have the best dinner his friend could give us. If he'd told me that friend's name or where he lived. Well, I'll mind my father in one thing; I'll keep still. Then if Ephraim should happen to come this way he'd find me sooner. But--he won't. Something has happened, or he'd never let me out of sight. If I didn't know the bigness of a city he did and would have taken care."

So she dismounted and led Scruff back beside the telegraph post, against which the weary animal calmly leaned his shoulder and went to sleep.

Jessica threw her arm over the burro's neck and, standing so, scanned every pa.s.sing pedestrian and peered into every whirling vehicle.

Something of her first terror left her. She was foolish to think anything harmful could have happened to "Forty-niner" so quickly after she had run away from him. She wished she had called and explained to him, but she had had no time if she would catch up to that gray-coated gentleman. After all they were still in the same city and all she needed was patience.

"That's what I have so little of, too. Maybe this is a lesson to me.

Mother says impatient people always find life harder than the quiet kind. I wonder what she's doing now! and oh! I'm glad she can't see me. She'd suffer more than I do. It's queer how that man, in a fancy coat, with so many bra.s.s b.u.t.tons, keeps looking at me. He's walked by this place on one side the street or the other ever so many times. I wonder if he owns this post. Maybe it's his and he doesn't like us to stand here, yet is too polite to say so. Come, Scruff, let's walk a little further along. Then he can see we don't mean to hurt his post."

Scruff reluctantly roused and moved a pace or two, then went to sleep again. The shadow of a building that had sheltered them from the hot suns.h.i.+ne pa.s.sed gradually and left them exposed to the full glare from the sky. Both Jessica and the burro were used to heat, however, and did not greatly suffer from it. But this motionless waiting became almost intolerable to active Lady Jess, and the sharpness of her hunger changed into faintness. The sidewalks seemed to be rising up to strike her and her head felt queer; so she pulled the hot Tam from her curls, leaned her cheek against Scruff's neck, and, to clear her dizzy vision, closed her eyes. Then for a long time knew no more.

A young man sat down to smoke his after-dinner cigar before the window of a clubhouse across the way. Idly observant of the comparatively few persons pa.s.sing at that hour, his artist eye was caught by the scarlet gleam of Jessica's cap, fallen against the curbstone.

"h.e.l.lo! That child has been in that spot for two hours, I think. She was there before I went to dinner and must be dead tired. But she and the burro are picturesque--I'll sketch them."

He whipped out notebook and pencil and by a few skillful lines reproduced the pair opposite. But as he glanced toward them, now and then, during this operation, he became convinced that something was amiss with his subject.

"Poor little thing! If she's waiting for anybody she keeps the baby too long. I'm going over and speak to her. If she's hungry I'll send her a sandwich."

At his touch on her shoulder Jessica roused. Her sleep had refreshed her, though she was still somewhat confused.

"Oh! Ephraim! How long you've been! Why--it isn't Ephraim!"

"No, little girl, I'm not Ephraim, but I'm a friend. I'm afraid you will be ill standing so long in the hot sun. Are you waiting for anybody?"

The voice was kind and Jessica was glad to speak to any one. She told her story at once in a few words. The young man's face grew grave as he listened, still he spoke encouragingly.

"It's quite easy for strangers in a big place to get separated.

Suppose, since you haven't had your dinner, as I guess, that you go with me and have some. Wait, I'll just speak to that policeman, yonder, and ask him to have a lookout for your Ephraim, while we're in the restaurant. There's a good place halfway down the block, and from its window you can watch the burro for yourself. I'll tie him, shan't I?"

"He's very tired. I don't think he'll need any tying. He's never tied at Sobrante."

"Sobrante? Are you from Sobrante? Why, I've heard of that ranch, myself."

"Have you? That makes it seem as if I knew you."

The stranger smiled and beckoned to the policeman, who proved to be the bra.s.s-b.u.t.toned individual that had taken so much apparent interest in Jessica, but had not spoken to her of his own accord. He came forward promptly now and the young man related to him what Lady Jess had said.

Then asked:

"What would I better do about it? I thought of taking her to the restaurant over there and getting her some dinner."

"No. She'd better go to the station-house with me. The matron'll look after her and I'll have the donkey put in stable. I'll tell the officer who's coming on this beat now to keep an eye out for a countryman with a stiff-legged horse; is it, girl?"

"Yes. A bay horse, with a blazed face. The horse's name is Stiffleg and the master's, Ephraim Marsh."

The officer made the entry in his book, then took hold of Scruff's bridle and led the way stationward. Jessica looked appealingly into the young man's face and he smiled, then grasped her hand.

"Don't fear, child, that I'll desert you till I find your old guardian. There's nothing frightful about a station-house, except to criminals," he said, kindly.

However, Jessica knew nothing of such inst.i.tutions and therefore had no fear of them. With the exception of Antonio's "crossness" she had met with nothing but love and kindness all her life, and she looked for nothing else. She was already happy again at finding two persons ready to talk with her and help her; and her pretty face grew more and more charming to the artist's view as she skipped along beside him toward the police headquarters, as this station chanced to be.

"You see, little girl, that when a child is lost in a city the first thing the friends think of is--the station-house. All stray persons are taken and messages are sent to it from every part of the town all the time. That Ephraim will remember that, if he's ever been here before, and he'll be finding you long before night. Till then you'll be safe and cared for."

Jessica did feel a moment's hesitation when she had to part with Scruff, but soon laughed at her own dismay.

"I felt as I must take him inside this building with me, for fear he'd be lonesome, too. But, of course, I know better. Why, what a nice, big place this is!"

By far the largest building she had ever entered, but her new acquaintances smiled at her delight over it.

"Not all who come here think it so fine," said the young man. "Eh, officer?"

"No, no. No, indeed, sir. Now, this way, please. I'll just enter the case at the desk and call up the matron. She'll tend to the girl all right. You needn't bother any more."

"Oh! are you going?" asked Jessica, her face drooping.

"Not yet. No law against my having a meal with this young lady, is there, officer?"

"If it isn't at the public charge, sir," answered the policeman.

"Oh! I've money to pay for my own dinner. See?" cried Lady Jess, producing the fat wallet Ephraim had given her and which she pulled from within her blouse, where she had worn it, suspended by a string.

"Whew! child! All that? Put it up, quick. Put it up, I say."

Instinctively she obeyed and hid the purse again, but her face expressed her surprise, and the young man answered its unspoken question.