nothing in the house to eat. Nancy discovered the money jar, but an investigation revealed that it contained less than five dollars.
“It’s probably every cent poor Abigail has in the world,” she thought.
Nancy did not take any money from the jar but quietly slipped out the back door. Hurrying to the roadster which she had left at the roadside, she drove to the nearest store and ordered nearly ten dollars worth of groceries. She wished that she might take a doctor back with her, but she realized that Abigail was set in her ways and would not accept the service since she could not pay for it.
Before she returned to the cottage, Nancy stopped at the drug store and purchased bandages and liniments. She carried the supplies into the house and quickly set about making Abigail more comfortable. She bathed the swollen ankle and bound it neatly with the clean bandage.
“It feels better already,” Abigail told her gratefully. “I dunno what I’d of done if you hadn’t come when you did.”
As soon as she had attended to the woman’s immediate needs, Nancy built a fire in the kitchen range and put on the teakettle. While she was waiting for the water to boil, she raised the drawn shades and permitted the warm sunshine to flood into the room. While she did this she told Abigail Rowen something about herself.
After the tea had steeped she poured Abigail a cup and urged her to eat the nourishing meal she had prepared. She was gratified to observe that almost immediately the old woman became more cheerful and seemed to gain strength. She sat up on the couch and appeared eager to talk with Nancy.
“There ain’t many folks that are willing to help an old woman. If Josiah Crowley had lived things would have been different,” she declared.