“I don’t want to take your raincoat,” Nancy protested. “What will you wear?”
“Oh, I have an old coat hanging here on a nail. I’ll use that. Anyway, the rain won’t hurt my dress.”
Under protest, Nancy donned the raincoat and put on a pair of rubber boots which were several sizes too large for her. She made such a grotesque picture that the two girls could not help but laugh. Then they closed the barn doors.
“Now!” Allie directed. “Let’s make a dash for it!”
Hand in hand they splashed through the mud toward the farmhouse. As they ran, a vivid flash of lightning momentarily illuminated the sky and caused the girls to cringe. The rain pelted down steadily, and the atmosphere was much colder than it had been ten minutes before.
“If it gets any colder we’ll have hail,” Allie chattered, as the two girls reached the shelter of the porch.
Dropping their muddy boots outside, Allie flung open the door, and they entered a warm kitchen.
As the door closed behind them, an older girl who was bending over the kitchen range turned toward them in surprise.
“Grace, I’ve brought you a visitor,” Allie said quickly. “Miss Drew, I want you to meet my sister. She’s the mainstay of our little family.”
Grace Horner cordially acknowledged the introduction and greeted Nancy with a warm smile. She was tall and slender, as was her sister, with dark hair and thoughtful brown eyes. Nancy judged that she was at least four years older than Allie. Her face was rather serious, and it was evident that responsibility had fallen upon her shoulders at an early age.