CHAPTER XVII
A Storm-cloud
Rona woke up next morning without even a headache, in Miss Lodge'sopinion "justifying the prompt measures taken", but according to thegirls, "showing there had been nothing the matter with her to make sucha fuss about". Breakfast proceeded as usual, and afterwards came theshort interval before nine-o'clock school. Now on this day thecontributions to the Art exhibition were to be packed up and dispatchedby a special carrier, and Stephanie, as a budding metalworker, ranupstairs to the studio to take one last peep at her exhibit. She flewdown again with white face and burning eyes.
"Girls!" she cried shakily. "Girls! Somebody's taken my pendant! It'sgone!"
"Why, nonsense, Stephie; it can't be gone! It was there all right lastnight."
"It's not there now. Ulyth's has been put in its place, and mine'svanished. Come and see."
There was an instant stampede for the studio.
"It's probably on the bench," said Doris. "Some people are such badlookers. I expect we shall find it directly."
"You can't find a thing that isn't there," retorted Stephanie withwarmth.
Doris considered herself an excellent looker, and, in company with adozen others, she searched the studio. Willing hands turned everythingover, hunted under tables, on shelves, and among shavings, but not asign of the pendant could they find.
"Are you sure this one isn't yours?" asked Ruth, coming back to theexhibits.
"Certain! I know my own work. This is Ulyth's; and there's the mistakeshe made that disqualified it."
"Yours was put back last night?"
"I saw it safe myself, after Rona'd been juggling with it. Where isRona? I believe she's at the bottom of this."
"She's in the garden."
"Then she must be fetched."
"What's the matter? What are you making a bother about?" cried Rona, asan excited detachment of girls stopped her game of tennis and asked hera dozen questions at once. "What have I done with Stephanie's pendant?Why, I've done nothing with it, of course."
"But you must have hidden it somewhere."
"It's a mean trick to play on her."
"You and Steph are always at daggers drawn."
"Do go and put it back."
"I can't think what you're talking about!" flared Rona. "I've not evenbeen inside the studio. If a joke's being played on Stephanie, it'ssomebody else who's doing it, not me. For goodness' sake let me get onwith my game. Come, Winnie, it's your serve."
The girls retired, whispering to one another. They were not at allsatisfied. The news of the loss spread rapidly over the school, and hadsoon reached the ears of the authorities. Miss Lodge, who heard it froma monitress, at once sought Miss Bowes' study. A few moments later shewent in a hurry to summon Miss Teddington, and a rash junior whoventured within earshot was sent away with a scolding. Miss Bowes lookedgrave as she walked into the hall for call-over. She took the names asusual, then, instead of dismissing the forms, she paused impressively.
"I have something to say to you, girls," she began in a strained voice."A most unpleasant thing has happened this morning. The pendant made byStephanie Radford, which was to have been sent to the Elwyn BayExhibition, has disappeared, and Ulyth Stanton's pendant has beensubstituted for it. It is, I suppose, a practical joke on the part ofone of you. Now I highly disapprove of this foolish form of jesting; itis neither clever nor funny, and is often very unkind. I beg whoever hasdone this thing to come forward at once and replace the pendant. Sheneed have no fear, for she will not be punished or even scolded, thoughshe must give me her word never to repeat such a prank."
Miss Bowes stopped, and looked expectantly at the rows of intent eyesfixed upon her. Nobody spoke and nobody moved. There was dead silencein the hall. The Principal flushed with annoyance.
"Girls, must I appeal to your honour? Is that necessary at TheWoodlands? Have I actually one among you so lacking in moral couragethat she dare not own up? I repeat that she will meet with no reproof.Nothing more will be said about the matter."
Still no reply. Each girl looked at her neighbour, but not even awhisper was to be heard.
"Girls, I am exceedingly pained. Such a thing has never happened herebefore. For the sake of the school, I make one last appeal to you. Willnobody speak? Then I shall be obliged to ask each of you in turn whatshe knows."
It was a dreary business putting the same question to forty-eight girls,receiving one after another forty-eight decided negatives. Miss Bowessighed wearily as it came to an end, and turned to Miss Teddington, whohad sat on the platform silent but frowning during the ordeal.
"We cannot let it rest here."
"Certainly not!" snapped Miss Teddington firmly. "The matter must besifted to the bottom."
The two Principals conferred for a moment in whispers, then Miss Bowesannounced:
"Girls, this affair must be very carefully inquired into. I hoped it wasonly a practical joke, but a circumstance came to my knowledge lastnight which, I fear, may lend a more sinister aspect to it than eitherMiss Teddington or I had imagined. I am most deeply disappointed thatthe code of honour which we have always upheld at The Woodlands seemsby some of you to have been broken. I shall have more to say to youlater on. In the meantime you may go to your classrooms."
Very solemnly the girls turned to march in their separate forms from thehall; but as IV B filed through the door there was a sudden outcry, ahustling, a rush of other girls, and an excited, aghast crowd.
"It's here! It's here, Miss Bowes!" shouted Doris Deane. "Rona Mitchellhad it! It fell from her blouse pocket when she pulled out herhandkerchief."
"It's Rona!"
"We saw it fall!"
"She had it all the time!"
"Oh, the sneak!"
"Silence!" thundered Miss Bowes, ringing her bell.
In the midst of the sudden hush the Principal walked down the hall andtook the pendant from Doris's hand.
"What have you to say for yourself, Rona Mitchell?"
Rona was standing staring as if a ghost had suddenly risen up andconfronted her. Her vermilion colour had faded, and left her face deadlywhite.
"Rona, do you hear me?"
Rona shivered slightly, glanced desperately at Miss Bowes, then cast hereyes on the floor. She did not attempt to reply.
"I give you one more chance, Rona."
"Oh, Rona," interrupted Ulyth, who was weeping hot tears of dismay,"remember the Camp-fire! For the sake of the school, Rona!"
She drew back, choking with emotion, as Miss Bowes waved her aside.
Rona gazed for a moment full at Ulyth--a long, long, searching gaze, asif she would read Ulyth's very soul in her eyes. Then the colour floodedback, a full tide of crimson, over brow and neck.
"Yes--for the sake of the school!" she repeated unsteadily, and,bursting into tears, hid her burning face in her hands.
Miss Teddington hastily dismissed the other girls, and, coming to theassistance of her partner, asked many questions. It was absolutelyuseless, for Rona would not answer a single word.
"Go to your bedroom," said the irate Principal at last. "This mattercannot be allowed to pass. If you had owned up at once nothing wouldhave been said, but such duplicity and obstinacy are unpardonable. Untilyou make a full confession you must not mix with the rest of the school.We should be sorry to have to send you back to New Zealand, but girlswith no sense of honour cannot remain at The Woodlands."
Still sobbing hysterically, Rona was policed upstairs by Miss Teddingtonand locked into her bedroom. An hour or two of solitude might bring herto her senses, thought the mistress, and break the stubborn spirit whichseemed at present to possess her. A wide experience of girls had provedthat solitary confinement soon quelled insubordination, and bydinner-time the culprit would probably volunteer some explanation.
Both Principals were greatly upset by the occurrence. Hitherto thelittle world at The Woodlands had jogged on without any more desperatehappenings than the breaking of silence rules or the omission ofpract
ising. Never in all its annals had they been obliged to deal with acase of such serious import.
Ulyth, with the rest of V B, was obliged to march off to her form-room.The inquiry had delayed the morning's work, and Miss Harding began togive out books without a moment's further waste of time. Ulyth satstaring at the problem set her, without in the least taking in itsdetails. She could not apply her mind to the calculation of cubiccontents while Rona was crying her heart out upstairs. What did it, whatcould it, all mean? Had her room-mate only been intending to play apractical joke on Stephanie? If so, why had she not at once admitted thefact? Nobody would have thought much the worse of her for it, as suchjokes had been rather the rage of late among the juniors. It seemed sounlike Rona to conceal it; lack of candour had not been her faulthitherto. She was generally proud of the silly tricks she was fond ofplaying, and anxious to boast about them. She could not have beendeterred by dread of the Principals' displeasure. Only yesterday she hadmarched into the study, to report herself for talking, with a sangfroidthat was the admiration of her form; and had come out again smiling,with the comment that both the Rainbow and Teddie were "as decent asanything if one owned up straight". No, there must be another and a muchgraver explanation.
A chain of circumstances flashed through Ulyth's mind, each unfortunatelink fitting only too well. The evidence seemed almost overwhelming.Rona had been present at the meeting by the stream when Tootie incitedthe juniors to some secret act of rebellion against the school rules.What this act was the occurrence in the garden had plainly shown. ThatRona had been implicated seemed a matter of certainty. Her brooch hadbeen in the possession of the cake-vendor, and she had chocolates in herbedroom, the acquisition of which she had refused to explain. Did sheintend to keep the pendant and exchange it for confectionery? Herpocket-money, as Ulyth knew, was exhausted, and she had hardly any ofthe trinkets that most girls wear.
"Ulyth Stanton, you are not attending to your work. Give me your answerto Problem 46."
Ulyth started guiltily. Her page was still a blank, and she had noanswer to produce. She murmured a lame excuse, and Miss Harding glaredat her witheringly. Thrusting her preoccupation resolutely aside, shemade an effort to concentrate her thoughts upon the subject in hand.
The morning passed slowly on. To Ulyth each successive class seemedinterminable. At recreation, the girls, in small clumps, discussed theone topic of the hour.
"I'm not surprised. I'd think anything of Rona Mitchell," saidStephanie. "What else could you expect of a girl from the backwoods?"
"But she was so much improved," urged Addie, who had rather a weaknessfor the Cuckoo.
"Only a veneer. She relapsed directly she got the chance, you see."
"But why should she take your pendant?"
"I can't pretend to explain her motive, but take it she did--stealing, Ishould call it. But we're too polite at The Woodlands to use such astrong word."
"What'll be done to her?"
"Pack her back to New Zealand, I hope--and a good riddance. I alwayssaid she wasn't a suitable girl to come to this school. She hasn't thetraditions of a lady. You might as well try to make a silk purse out ofa sow's ear as to get such a girl to realize the meaning of _noblesseoblige_. It's birth that counts, after all, when it comes to the test."
"There I think you're wrong, Stephie," put in Lizzie quietly. "Gentlebirth is all very well if it involves preserving a code of honour, butin itself it's no hall-mark of character. Some of the humblest andpoorest people have been the stanchest on a question of right, whenthose above them in station have failed utterly. A charwoman can havequite as high standards as a duchess, and often lives up to them muchbetter."
"Oh, you're a Radical!"
"I want fair play all round, and I must say that Rona has been verystraight and square so far. Nobody has ever accused her of sneaking."
"No; the bear cub was unpolished, but not a vicious little beastie,"agreed Addie.
"And it had grown wonderfully tame of late," added Christine.
Rona did not appear at the dinner-table; she had been removed from herown bedroom to a small spare room on another landing. She still refusedto answer any question put to her. Her silence seemed unaccountable, andthe Principals could only consider it as a display of temper.
"She was annoyed at being caught red-handed with the pendant in herpossession, and she won't give in and acknowledge her wrongdoing," saidMiss Teddington to Miss Bowes.
"From a strong hint Cook gave me last night I fear there is somethingmore behind it all," returned her partner. "I shall question every girlin the school separately until I get at the truth."
Beginning with the monitresses, Miss Bowes summoned each pupil in turnto her study and subjected her to a very strict catechism. From theSixth she gained no information. They formed a clique amongstthemselves, and knew little of the doings of the younger girls. V A werelikewise absorbed in their own interests, and only classed Rona as oneamong many juniors. It was now the turn of V B, and Miss Bowes sent forUlyth a trifle more hopefully. She, at least, would have an intimateknowledge of her room-mate.
"Have you ever known Rona mixed up in any deceit before? What is hergeneral report among her form-mates?" asked the Principal.
"Very square. She used to annoy me dreadfully when first she came byturning over all my things, but she soon stopped when I told her howhorrid it was. She never dreamt of taking anything. It was the merestcuriosity; she hadn't been taught differently at home."
"Have you found her eating sweets or cakes in her bedroom lately?"
Ulyth hesitated and blushed.
"Ah! I see you have! You must tell me, Ulyth. Keep nothing back."
Very unwilling to betray her friend, Ulyth admitted the fact thatchocolate had been pressed upon her one evening.
"Did Rona explain where she got it?"
"No, she wouldn't tell me anything."
Miss Bowes looked thoughtful.
"I put you upon your honour, Ulyth, to answer this question perfectlyfrankly. Have you any reason to suspect that some of the juniors havesurreptitiously been buying cakes and sweets?"
Thus asked point-blank, Ulyth was obliged to relate what she hadoverheard; and Miss Bowes, determined to get at the root of thebusiness, cross-questioned her closely, until she had dragged from herreluctant pupil the account of the occurrence in the garden and theconversation with the travelling hawker-woman.
"This is more serious even than I had feared," groaned Miss Bowes. "Ithought I could have trusted my girls."
"I think most of them were ashamed of it," ventured Ulyth.
"It is just possible that Rona refuses to speak because she will notinvolve her schoolfellows."
"Oh yes, yes!" cried Ulyth, clutching at any straw to excuse herroom-mate's conduct. "That's quite likely. Or, Miss Bowes, I've beenthinking that perhaps it was a queer kind of loyalty to me. You knowRona's very fond of me, and she was quite absurdly angry becauseStephanie's pendant was to go to the exhibition and not mine. She mayhave changed them, hoping it wouldn't be noticed and that mine would bepacked up, and perhaps she intended to put Stephanie's back in thestudio when the parcel had safely gone. Rona does such impulsivethings."
Miss Bowes shook her head sadly.
"I wish I could think so. Unfortunately the other circumstances lendsuspicion to a graver motive."