IX
The story of Queen Teresa appeared in the _Gazette_. It seemed to splashall over the front page. There was the picture of Tessie in her blackfrock at the aluminum, there was a cut of a tropical island overgrownwith gigantic palm trees, and in the corner was the drawing of Tessiewith a crown on her head and seated in a big carved chair under a hugepalm tree, receiving the homage of a throng of people in queercostumes--or in no costumes at all.
"We'll cut this out and keep it, Tessie," Granny said, proud that theGilfoolys occupied so much of the front page of Waloo's most importantnewspaper. "Maybe some day you'll like to read it again."
Granny read it any number of times and obtained much information fromthe article on the Sunshine Islands, for the reporter had borrowedTessie's library books in which none of the Gilfoolys had had time tolook.
"I don't know how I'm going to like this kingdom of yours, Tessie."Granny looked over her glasses at the young queen, who was trying on anew frock before the full-length mirror in their suite at the WalooHotel. "Raw fish they eat, and their gravy's made out of sea water andlemon juice and cocoanut milk. Sounds like a mess to me! And the bestpeople don't seem to eat chicken. They eat pork. I don't know how I'mgoing to like it."
Tessie turned away from the long mirror which had reflected a charminglittle creature in a smart frock of blue taffeta, and hugged hergrandmother. Much she cared about gravy. But there was stillconsiderable awe in her voice as she cried, "Granny! can you believe it?Isn't it too wonderful?" Her voice shook with the wonder of it. Herwhole body trembled as she pressed close to Granny.
"There, there!" Granny patted her cheek. "It's all true enough. You'veonly got to look at Ka-kee-ta and smell that cocoanut oil he pours overhis head to know it's true. It makes me more nervous to have him alwaysstanding at the front door with his meat ax than it does to be alonewith that Tear of God. Protector, indeed! I guess Johnny could protectus all we need protecting. Or Joe Cary! I didn't feel right, Tessie, togo off and leave Joe Cary alone in the old house, but he wouldn't comewith us and there wasn't room for Ka-kee-ta there, and so there wasn'tanything else to do. And that's another thing that makes me wonder aboutthis new job of yours, Tessie. What kind of a country is it where thequeen has to have a man with a meat ax to protect her?"
Tessie laughed and hugged her grandmother again. "Silly old dear!" shesaid lovingly. "Mr. Douglas explained it all to me. There isn't anynecessity now, Granny, or at least he doesn't think there is. It's justa custom. Once upon a time it was necessary, Mr. Douglas said, for theking to have a bodyguard to protect him from his enemies, but now it'sprobably just a custom. Anyway, I haven't any enemies," she finishedtriumphantly.
"Gracious, I should hope not! And I hope to goodness Mr. Douglas knowswhat he's talking about and it is only a custom," grumbled Granny. "Itdon't sound good to me, but I'm old-fashioned and maybe it's all right.It certainly did make folks stare when we walked into the Evergreen withKa-kee-ta walking behind us with his meat ax. I guess everybody in thestore knew you was somebody with Mr. Kingley and his son and all theclerks a-hanging around!" She laughed happily as she recalled thepleasant experience. "And that lady they called the advertising--whatwas she doing here last night, Tessie?"
"She came to help me look over my mail." Tessie sighed as she rememberedher mail. "I never could have done it alone, Granny."
"You poor child!" sympathized Granny, as she too visualized Tessie'smail, which had been brought to her in a huge clothes-basket.
The publication in the _Gazette_ of the romantic story of the queen whowas found in the basement of the Evergreen, had been the signal for anarmy to take to typewriters and pens, at least it seemed as if it musthave taken an army to write the enormous number of letters which hadbeen addressed to Queen Teresa, or to Miss Teresa Gilfooly, Queen, or toHer Majesty, Miss Gilfooly.
There were seventy-three proposals of marriage from men who stated thatthey were willing to be kings, and that they were strong and fearlessand would help Queen Teresa govern her kingdom. There were innumerableletters from automobile dealers, florists, dressmakers, shoemakers,milliners, jewelers, stationers, real estate dealers, railroad andsteamship agents, caterers, architects, house decorators, dancingteachers. Indeed every one who was in business in Waloo wasted no timein calling Queen Teresa's attention to the fact and to the knowledgethat he was eager to serve her, and the sooner the better.
There were letters from philanthropic organizations asking the queen'spatronage for orphanages and old peoples' homes. There were letters fromgirls who wanted to be singers or dancers, and from boys who wanted tobe painters or poets and who asked for loans from the royal treasury.There were letters from people who wanted mortgages raised and doctorspaid or victrolas bought.
And here came a boy with another basket filled with mail. It was tooprovoking. If Tessie read half of them she would have time for nothingelse. And after the first basketful, the reading of the letters was astupid task. You can understand why Tessie looked at them in horror anddespair.
"You'll have to get a secretary," grinned Mr. Bill, who had broughtTessie a huge bunch of violets, "or throw them out. They aren't worthreading. Throw them out!"
"I can't do that," frowned Tessie, her nose buried in the violets. "Itwouldn't be right. There might be something in one of them, you know,something I should know about." Tessie showed every symptom of takingher royal duties seriously. "Mr. Marvin said Mr. Douglas could help me.Perhaps----"
"Bert!" interrupted Mr. Bill quickly. "Bert couldn't help you in thissort of a job." Mr. Bill was quite sure that Bert would be worse thanuseless. "You want to have a woman. Miss Lee helped you yesterday,didn't she? I expect Dad would let you have her again. You know her andyou like her?" Tessie nodded, and her face brightened. She would like tohave Norah Lee help her. Norah was not a stranger. "Just chuck thestuff away and let Miss Lee look after it and come with me for a spinaround the lakes. You'll be sick if you stay cooped up here all day.Come on! Just the two of us!" he coaxed.
Tessie hesitated, and you know what happens when people hesitate. Sheallowed Mr. Bill to push the big basket full of letters under the tableand ran to put on her hat. Just outside the door stood Ka-kee-ta, anobject of terror to the hotel staff and of pride to the hotel guests. Hedrew himself up as Tessie came out with Mr. Bill and raising his ax tohis shoulder fell in behind them. Mr. Bill stopped.
"The queen won't need you, Ka-kee-ta," he said carelessly. "I'll lookafter her."
"Yes, Ka-kee-ta, you can take a rest," smiled Tessie.
"Glad to be rid of him for awhile?" grinned Mr. Bill, as he followedTessie into the elevator. "Hello!" as they shot down and passed anothercage shooting up. "There is our friend Douglas going up to see you."
"Oh!" And as the elevator stopped at the office floor Tessie hesitated."Perhaps I should go back? Perhaps he has come to tell me that thespecial representative has come from the islands? Perhaps----"
"That's enough of perhapses." Mr. Bill dared to put his hand on her arm.When he was with Tessie he frequently forgot that she was a queen andthat he was only a floorwalker in the Evergreen. "What do you care? Itwon't hurt your special representative to wait for you. You have had towait for him. Come on! I dare you!"
Again Tessie hesitated, and then she laughed softly and walked down thecorridor with Mr. Bill. All around her she heard whispers. "That's QueenTeresa! She used to sell face cream at the Evergreen and now she's Queenof the Sunshine Islands!" It was exciting if it was not altogethertruthful.
When they reached the curb where Mr. Bill's car was parked, and Tessiewas settled on the front seat, there at her side, his hand on the door,was Ka-kee-ta, ax and all.
"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Tessie. "Couldn't a queen ever go anywhere with agentleman friend?" She looked at Mr. Bill for an answer to her unutteredquestion.
Mr. Bill frowned at the royal bodyguard. "Look here, Ka-kee-ta," he saidsharply, "didn't I tell you that I would take care of the queen?"
Much Ka-kee-ta cared what Mr.
Bill had said. He arranged himself in agraceful loop on the running board, close to Tessie's elbow, and therewas every indication that he meant to stay there as long as Tessieremained in the car.
"Oh, dear!" Tessie was almost in tears. What a lot queens did have toendure!
"Here!" Mr. Bill threw open the door of the tonneau. "If you will insiston going where you're not wanted, sit there!" And he waved his handtoward the rear seat.
With a look that measured the distance between the front seat and theback, Ka-kee-ta stepped into the car and settled himself with a grunt.He held his ax straight before him. He did look so silly that he madeTessie feel silly, too. She wanted to cry.
"Comfy?" Mr. Bill asked tenderly, as he put his finger on theself-starter.
She stopped wanting to cry because she discovered that she wanted tosmile. "Awfully comfy! But I do hate to be tagged around by 'that' allthe time!" And she frowned as she jerked her head back to indicate thewatchful bodyguard.
"We'll forget all about him. And about queens, too, shall we?" As hebent to hear her answer, he all but ran into a car which had racedtoward them.
With a snarl Ka-kee-ta was on his feet, his ax suspended over Mr. Bill'shead.
"Ka-kee-ta!" Tessie grasped his arm and held it with all of her might.
"What's the matter?" demanded Mr. Bill with a deep breath. "That was aclose shave. Looked as if that machine was deliberately trying to runus down. But we're all right, aren't we?" He saw that Tessie was allright. "Sit down, old friend!" he said to Ka-kee-ta, "and watch your ax.I'd kill myself before I'd let anything happen to your queen. I meanthat!" he told Tessie in a husky voice.
"You're awfully kind," murmured Tessie, her heart beating so fast and soloud that she was sure Mr. Bill must hear it.
"I wish you weren't a queen!" Mr. Bill exclaimed impulsively.
"Why?" Tessie's eyes widened.
"Why? Do you like to have Ka-kee-ta trailing you all the time?" He gaveher just one reason why she might wish she were not a queen.
"No, but I like to be a queen," she answered truthfully.
"I suppose a girl would," in disgust. "We could have a lot more fun ifyou were just a--just a--"
"Nobody!" Tessie finished the sentence for him. "But when I was anobody, Mr. Bill, you never saw me! You never knew I was on earth untilI was a queen!"
"That isn't fair!" stammered Mr. Bill, when he was confronted with thetruth. "That isn't fair!"
"It's true, isn't it?" demanded Tessie triumphantly. "I should say I amglad I'm a queen!"
"So I would know you are on earth?" asked Mr. Bill softly, and quiteforgetting the gulf which is supposed to yawn between queens andfloorwalkers.
But Tessie would not admit that that was the reason she was glad to be aqueen. No girl would.
"The idea!" she said instead, and sat up straighter and refused toexchange tender glances with him. "Is this a good car?" she asked in amost matter-of-fact voice. "I have to buy a car, and I don't know whichis a good one."
"I do!" exclaimed Mr. Bill emphatically. "And I'll help you buy a car.I'll help you do anything!" And he might have dared to put his hand onthe royal fingers, they were so soft and white as they rested on herknee beside him, but a snarl from the rear made him realize thatKa-kee-ta's eyes were watchful. "I wish we could lose him," he grumbled.
"So do I," agreed Tessie heartily.
But Ka-kee-ta snarled louder and jumped to his feet and stared at a carwhich had come so close to them that it had almost scraped their fender.He waved his ax wildly.
"The shark!" he shouted. "The shark!"
Mr. Bill stopped his car dead. "What do you mean?" he demanded. "What doyou mean?"
"The shark!" squealed Ka-kee-ta with another flourish of his ax.
"That's what the man we found on the porch said!" exclaimed Tessieanxiously. "What do you suppose he means?" And when Mr. Bill could nottell her she turned to Ka-kee-ta. "What do you mean, Ka-kee-ta?"
The car which had all but scraped their fender, turned a corner and wasout of sight.
"The shark," mumbled Ka-kee-ta, and dropped back in his place.
"Well, I'll be darned!" muttered Mr. Bill, as he started his engine."What did he mean? He couldn't see any shark, could he? What did hemean?"
But Ka-kee-ta refused to tell them why he had jumped up and shouted. Hesulked and fiddled with his ax, and at last they left him alone.
"There are so many things I don't understand," sighed Tessie. "I--Idon't know what I would do if I didn't have you to help me. Sometimes Iwish the police hadn't been so quick about letting that other man go. Itmust mean something when two black men talk about a shark, mustn't it?"She turned a troubled face to Mr. Bill.
"They sound and look to me more like a fraternity initiation thananything else," said puzzled Mr. Bill. "Perhaps they don't mean what wemean when we say 'shark.' Perhaps 'shark' is the Sunshine Island wordfor hello!"
"Oh!" Tessie looked up at him with eyes full of wonder and admiration."I do think you are the most wonderful man in the world! No one elsewould ever have thought of that!"
"Oh, I don't know," Mr. Bill murmured modestly. "But it might be true,you know."
"I'm sure it's true!" exclaimed Tessie eagerly.