New Horizons (21 page)

“Is there anything else we can do?” the officer asked.

Mr. Dunnigan lowered his voice and tried to speak confidentially to the man. “I'm not sure what will happen at the college because of this accident. If it's left up to Mandie's grandmother, I'd say quite a bit will happen. That granddaughter is the apple of her eye.”

“Of course we will enforce the law. We will do whatever is required of us,” the officer said.

“Yes, I would insist that you do so,” Mr. Dunnigan agreed.

Suddenly there was a pounding on the front door. Everyone jumped up as Mr. Dunnigan hurried to open it. Celia was right behind him.

As the door swung open, John Shaw and Uncle Ned appeared.

“What has happened?” John Shaw demanded.

“Come in, come in.” Mr. Dunnigan motioned for the two men to enter, then closed the door behind them.

Everyone was quickly introduced while John Shaw and Uncle Ned looked around the room. “Where is Amanda?” John Shaw demanded.

“She's in the hospital,” Mr. Dunnigan replied. “Please have seats for one minute while I explain.”

As fast as he could speak, Mr. Dunnigan told them the story about what had happened yesterday morning.

John Shaw and Uncle Ned quickly stood and said, “Where is this hospital located?”

Mr. Donovan spoke as he reached for his hat from the hall tree. “Come with me. I will take you,” he told the two men.

“Please let me go, too,” Celia said.

“No, you stay here, Celia, because Mrs. Taft is on her way here right now,” John Shaw said. “We will return shortly and let you know how things are.” Without waiting for a reply, John Shaw quickly followed Mr. Donovan and Uncle Ned out the front door.

Everyone returned to the table to finish their coffee after the men left.

It wasn't long before Grace returned from the college, and Mary Lou insisted that they bring her up-to-date on their news
before Grace could tell them what had happened at the college. “I'm so glad Mrs. Taft is coming,” Grace said. “We may need her to straighten out that college. I talked to several officers, and no one seemed interested in doing anything about what happened. All those girls were in chapel this morning, but I didn't see the girl who was driving the motorcar—and the motorcar was nowhere to be seen. She must not be a student.”

When Mr. Donovan brought John Shaw and Uncle Ned back from the hospital, Mrs. Taft was with them. She had come in on the train and gone straight to the hospital.

“Oh, do come in, Mrs. Taft,” Mrs. Dunnigan greeted her at the door.

Mrs. Taft didn't answer but went straight to a vacant chair at the dining room table and sat down. She was clearly upset and at a loss for words. Mrs. Dunnigan silently put cups of fresh coffee in front of her and John Shaw and Uncle Ned. No one seemed to want to talk.

Celia finally got the nerve to speak. “Mrs. Taft, how is Mandie? Please tell me the truth.” Her eyes clouded with tears.

Mrs. Taft took a deep breath, drank a big swallow of the coffee, and finally replied with tears in her eyes. “Oh, Celia, she is still unconscious, and they can't seem to get her back. I went over all the tests they have done and the only thing they found was a broken wrist—her left one.”

“Oh no,” Celia moaned.

“The doctors have set it, but I imagine it will be a while before
she can use it to write. But that is the least of our concerns,” Mrs. Taft explained.

“Have you been to the college, Mrs. Taft?” Grace asked.

Mrs. Taft looked at her, evidently wondering who she was.

“I'm sorry. I'm Grace Wilson and I am in some classes with Mandie,” Grace explained.

Mrs. Taft's face softened into recognition. “Oh, you are Grace Wilson. I have heard your name before. And to answer your question, no, I have not been to the college, but rest assured as soon as I can get my energy back I'll be taking that place apart.”

The three girls looked at each other and discreetly smiled.

“Please tell me exactly what happened, Celia. You were with Mandie at the time of the accident, were you not?”

“Yes, ma'am, I was,” Celia replied.

But before she could continue, Mary Lou quickly interrupted. “And thanks to Celia, the horse and carriage was brought under control.”

Mrs. Taft gave Celia a pleased smile, causing Celia to blush. “I only grabbed the reins when Mr. Ryland fell out,” she said, then continued, “Mrs. Taft, those girls who neglected to help after the accident are the same girls who have been so rude with Mandie and me. I don't know who the girl was driving the motorcar—I had never seen her or the motorcar before. She had her motorcar taking up several parking spaces, and when Mandie told her to move, she rammed the motorcar into our carriage—and then the horse went wild. Mr. Ryland fell out when the carriage hit a rock
wall and Mandie got knocked out in the carriage somehow when the horse went running wild.”

“Then you managed to get the horse to stop,” Mrs. Taft concluded. “Did any of those girls at the college offer to help?”

“No, ma'am,” she said, glancing at Mary Lou, who nodded for her to tell the whole story. “They started laughing and making fun of Mandie and you, saying Mandie caused it all by being so snooty and rich, as they called it.”

“Mrs. Taft,” Mary Lou spoke up, “Grace and I were standing there waiting for Mandie to pick me up and we saw and heard everything. Those girls acted like heathens.”

“I wonder why they are so hostile toward Mandie,” Mrs. Taft said.

“They said terrible things about you, too,” Mary Lou reminded her. “Like you are so high and mighty and all that kind of stuff.”

“Oh dear, where did they get that idea?” Mrs. Taft wondered aloud.

John Shaw finally spoke. “Sounds like jealousy to me.”

Mrs. Taft looked at him. “Jealousy?”

“Yes, you see, since you are Mandie's grandmother and you are so wealthy, she can have anything she wants,” he explained.

“But I don't give her everything she wants,” Mrs. Taft protested. “Only what I think she should have.”

John Shaw grinned and said, “Which is
more
than she ever wants.”

“Now, John, I want her to be happy and comfortable in life,” Mrs. Taft insisted.

Uncle Ned had not said a word, but now he spoke. “Papoose give lots to Cherokee people. People love her. Why white people so mean?” He looked very sad.

“Jealousy,” John Shaw repeated. “They can't stand for her to have more than they do.”

There was a rapid knock on the front door, and everyone came to attention. Mr. Dunnigan hurried to open it, and since the front door was visible from the dining room, they could see it was an employee from the hospital.

“Good day, sir. Dr. Zeager sent me to tell you that Miss Amanda Shaw is awake and talking now.”

Shouts of joy and thanks came from everyone in the dining room.

“Come in,” Mr. Dunnigan told the man.

“I'm sorry, sir, but I have to return to the hospital for other duties,” the man said. “Dr. Zeager wanted you to know that you may bring Miss Shaw home any time you get ready. Good day, sir.” The man quickly left.

Mr. Dunnigan closed the front door and came back to the dining room to find John Shaw and Uncle Ned already standing. “If you would please take us over there, Mr. Donovan, we will bring her here,” Mr. Shaw requested.

“Yes, sir,” Mr. Donovan agreed.

By the time Mrs. Dunnigan put pillows and a coverlet on the sofa in the parlor, they were back. Mandie was insisting she could walk, but John Shaw insisted he carry her into the house and deposit her on the settee.

Everyone was talking at once. Mandie had tears in her eyes and reached for her grandmother's hand. “You came,” she said in a shaky voice.

“Of course I came. After all, you were my only granddaughter for fifteen years. You are still my special one, dear, and will always be.”

“And you are special, too, Grandmother,” Mandie answered. Glancing around the room she said, “Now, can somebody please tell me what happened? I wake up suddenly and find myself in a hospital with no one around that I even know!”

“Do you not remember any of it?” Celia asked.

Mandie shook her head, but as Mary Lou, Celia, and Grace repeated the events, Mandie began to remember them. “You stopped the horse from running away! Oh,” Mandie said to Celia, “you are over your fright of horses.”

Celia grinned and said, “But I'd rather for it to have happened some other way.”

“Will poor Mr. Ryland be all right?” Mandie asked.

“Oh yes, I checked on him,” Grace answered. “The doctor said he was very lucky. I suppose he'll be wanting you to get another carriage so he can go back to work, even with a broken arm.”

Mandie glanced at her grandmother. “Mr. Ryland is a wonderful man, Grandmother,” she said. “Do you think we could get another carriage for him to use during the summer while we are home on vacation?”

“Of course, dear, I'll see about it tomorrow,” Mrs. Taft said. “I'll also check and see if his family needs anything in the
meantime while he isn't working.” She straightened up in her chair and suddenly changed her tone of voice. “I will also be checking to see what can be done about those uncivilized girls at the college.”

Mandie looked directly at Uncle Ned and said, “I thought we were supposed to do good for evil.”

Uncle Ned smiled, nodded his head, and said, “Papoose learning to think first.”

Mrs. Taft said firmly, “Amanda, we cannot let something like this happen and not do anything about it. If we let it go there may be more incidents, maybe more serious. I just want to discuss this matter with the college president.”

“Yes, ma'am,” Mandie meekly agreed. “But I believe the girls will get even worse if we report them.”

“Well, if they do, I can guarantee they will be expelled,” Mrs. Taft said. She looked across the room at Mr. Donovan and asked, “Would it be possible for you to drive us to the carriage factory, Mr. Ryland's home, and the college tomorrow?”

“Of course, I am at your service, Mrs. Taft,” Mr. Donovan assured her. “Where shall I pick you up and when?”

Mrs. Dunnigan immediately said, “Mrs. Taft, we insist you and Mr. Shaw and Uncle Ned stay here with us while you are in town. We have plenty of bedrooms.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Dunnigan, I accept your offer with many thanks,” Mrs. Taft replied.

“So do I,” John Shaw said. Looking at Uncle Ned he asked, “You too?”

Uncle Ned nodded and said, “Must stay a day or two to see if Papoose get in more trouble.” He smiled at Mandie.

Mrs. Dunnigan had the girls help her get the rooms ready while Mr. Donovan went to the depot to get Mrs. Taft's luggage, then to the law enforcement's stables, where John Shaw and Uncle Ned had left their baggage with their horses.

The next morning Mrs. Taft's first stop was at the college. Mandie dreaded facing those girls who were so rude after the accident. Luckily, Mrs. Taft had timed their visit to see the president while everyone was in chapel.

“Come along, Amanda,” Mrs. Taft said as she went straight to the door marked
President
. She tapped on the frosted glass pane, then opened the door. The name on the door was Miss Clara Trellain.

Mandie had never seen the president of the school, and when she looked into the room, she saw a younger woman with golden light-brown hair. The woman smiled as she stood up when the ladies came into the room.

“Welcome, Mrs. Taft,” the woman greeted her as she offered her hand. Then she looked at Mandie and said, “I'm so sorry I have not had the pleasure of meeting you, Miss Shaw. Since you have not been living in the dormitory, we don't see much of you.”

Mandie nodded her head.

“Please sit down,” the woman said, indicating chairs and a small settee in the room.

As soon as they were seated, Mrs. Taft started right into her
complaint concerning the girls who had neglected to help after the accident. Mandie was irritated to notice that the woman smiled during the whole story. So she evidently thought it was nothing to worry about.

When Mrs. Taft finished, she said, “I want something done about these girls immediately. I will not stand for this.”

“Yes, I know, Mrs. Taft, but something has already been done about it,” Miss Trellain said. “You see, all the girls came in to see me yesterday afternoon and we had quite a conversation regarding this. They were all so very apologetic and wanted to know what they should do. I told them nothing short of a sincere apology to Miss Shaw would be acceptable. They are waiting to see her, but since we didn't know when she would come home from the hospital, the girls have been waiting in the dormitory. So if you both would come with me, we will go up there and give them an opportunity to express their regrets.”

Mrs. Taft rose and followed her as she said, “They had better have sincere regrets.”

Mandie hated facing the girls with her grandmother. She had no idea what Mrs. Taft might say or do and worried it might make matters worse, but she followed the two ladies anyway.

When they walked into the sitting room of the dormitory, a crowd of girls greeted them with “Hello, Mandie” and “We're glad you're back.” Then one by one the girls said that they were sorry for what happened and for saying such mean things. They admitted to her that they were jealous and threatened by her because of the amazing opportunities she has had in her life so far.

Mandie didn't know exactly what to do, so she just said, “Your apologies are accepted,” and turned and hastily left the room. She ran down the huge marble staircase and was surprised when the girls followed her.

When she got to the bottom of the stairs she stopped and said, “All right, you are forgiven. Just please stop following me.”

Mandie turned and ran up to the road where Mr. Donovan was waiting with his carriage. She jumped into the seat and waited for her grandmother to catch up with her.