Involuntarily Zora‚Äôs hand crept out protectingly and lay a moment over the white jewelled fingers. Then quickly recovering herself, she started hastily to withdraw it, but the woman‚Äôs fingers closed around the darker ones, and Mrs. ¬ÝVanderpool‚Äôs eyes became dim.
“I need you, Zora,” she said; and then, seeing the half-formed question, “Yes, and you need me; we need each other. In the world lies opportunity, and I will help you.”
Zora rose abruptly, and Mrs. ¬ÝVanderpool feared, with a tightening of heart, that she had lost this strangely alluring girl.
“I will come tomorrow,” said Zora.
As Mrs. ¬ÝVanderpool went in to lunch, reaction and lingering doubts came trouping back. To replace the daintiest of trained experts with the most baffling semi-barbarian, well!
“Have you hired a maid?” asked Helen.
‚ÄúI‚Äôve engaged Zora,‚Äù laughed Mrs. ¬ÝVanderpool, lightly; ‚Äúand now I‚Äôm wondering whether I have a jewel or‚ÅÝ‚Äîa white elephant.‚Äù
“Probably neither,” remarked Harry Cresswell, drily; but he avoided the lady’s inquiring eyes.
Next morning Zora came easily into Mrs. ¬ÝVanderpool‚Äôs life. There was little she knew of her duties, but little, too, that she could not learn with a deftness and divination almost startling. Her quietness, her quickness, her young strength, were like a soothing balm to the tired woman of fashion, and within a week she had sunk back contentedly into Zora‚Äôs strong arms.
“It’s a jewel,” she decided.