“Then I won’t unharness,” he said calmly. He hung the robe over the line that was stretched to hang robes over and Lucinda gasped for wind with which to inflate further conversation. 

 “She says what nobody expects is goin’ to happen,” she panted as soon as she could. 

 “What nobody expects is always happenin’ where he’s concerned,” said Joshua. 

 “I s’pose he’s in some new row,” said Lucinda. 

 “I’m sure he is,” said Joshua, “an’ if you don’t go back to her pretty quick you won’t be no better off.” 

 Lucinda turned away and returned to the house. She found Aunt Mary still staring at the letters with the same concentrated fury as before. 

 “Well, is Joshua a’comin’ to the door?” she asked when she saw her maid before her. 

 “You didn’t say for him to come to the door,” Lucinda howled, “you said for him to stay harnessed.” 

 Aunt Mary appeared on the verge of ignition. 

 “Lucinda,” she said, “every week I live under the same roof with you your brains strike me ’s some shrunk from the week before. What in Heaven’s name should I want Joshua to stay harnessed in the barn for? I want him to go for Mr. Stebbins an’ I want him to understand ’t if Mr. Stebbins can’t come he’s got to come just the same’s if he could anyhow. I may seem quiet to you, Lucinda, but if I do, it only shows all over again how little you know. This is a awful day an’ if you knew how awful you’d be half way back to the barn right now. I ain’t triflin’—I’m meanin’ every word. Every syllable. Every letter.” 

 Lucinda fled out into the open again. Her footprints of the time before were little oblong ponds now and she laid out a new course parallel to their splashes. She found Joshua sponging the dasher. 

 “She wants you to go straight out again.” 

 Joshua flung the sponge into the pail. 

 “Then I’ll go straight out again,” he said, moving toward the horse’s head. 

 “You’re to bring Mr. Stebbins whether he can come or not.” 

 Prev. P 47/184 next