“Well, Elise,” she said, forlornly, “you might as well go to your room, and get your hat off.  Come on, I’ll go with you,—­and I may think of something else to do about Baby.  For the present I seem to be at my wits’ end.”

Of course, in the meantime the nurse and the other servants had searched the house and grounds,—­but there was really no chance of finding Fleurette that way.

It was all too certain that Azalea had taken her away somewhere.  And it might be all right,—­it might be that Azalea had merely taken the child out for a walk.  She had been known to do this,—­but never before without Patty’s sanction.  Of late, though, Patty had objected to it because she feared that Azalea might not return quickly enough.  Twice she had been gone for two or three hours, and though the baby seemed all right, Patty didn’t approve of the performance.

“That’s it,” she summed up, after telling Elise of this; “you see, I haven’t approved of such long absences and so Zaly just walked off.  Of course, she sent Winnie down for the food, in order to get a chance to put on Baby’s things, and depart unseen.”

“But she told the nurse you ordered the food prepared.”

“Yes.  I may as well own up, Elise, that Azalea is not strictly truthful.”

“Why do you have her around?  I think she’s horrid!”

“Well, you see, I got her here.  To be sure, she is Little Billee’s cousin,—­that is, second or third cousin,—­once or twice removed—­”

“I wish she was removed from here,—­once, twice and all the time!” declared Elise.  “Bill had no business to inflict her on you!”

“He didn’t.  He fairly begged me not to invite her here.  But I insisted on it.  You see, we neither of us had any idea of what she was like.  Bill hadn’t seen her since she was a baby, and she was different then!”

“I s’pose so!  Well, having found out how ‘different’ she is now, why don’t you send her home?”

“Oh, I can’t.  And, to tell you the truth, Elise, I want to help the girl.  She’s ignorant and inexperienced, but she has a sort of native quickness and wit, and I feel sure if I could teach her for a while, she could learn to be one of us,—­and in time become a fine woman.”

“Oh, you philanthropist!  And meantime she has run off with your baby!”

“The baby carriage is gone, Mrs. Farnsworth,” said Winnie, appearing suddenly.  “So I expect Miss Thorpe took baby in that.”

“Yes, probably,” said Patty, despairingly.  “Oh, Elise, this suspense is driving me crazy!  If I knew that Zaly had her,—­and if I knew nothing had happened, I’d feel so relieved.  But suppose she did break Fleurette’s little arm or leg—­”

“Or back!” put in Elise; “you must not let her pitch the baby around!  It’s criminal!”

“But you don’t know how deft she is.  Why, she’s almost a contortionist herself.  She can turn handsprings and—­”