"What is it, Allyn?" she asked gravely.
For an instant his lips quivered. Then he said briefly,--
"I'm expelled, Teddy."
"Allyn!"
"Yes, I know."
"Not really?"
She read confirmation in his eyes.
"What for?" she demanded.
"For insulting Mr. Mitchell."
"What did you say?"
"I told him what I thought of him, and he didn't like it."
Theodora frowned at the tone of boyish bravado.
"Allyn," she said steadily; "tell me, what you have done."
"I told him he was a great deacon," the boy said hotly; "and I'm glad I
did it, too. He ought to know what we think of him. He goes to church
every Sunday, with a long face on him; and, all the rest of the week, he
bullies the fellows."
"At least, you think he does," Theodora amended.
"He does," Allyn returned fiercely. "He is a coward, too, and never goes
for our crowd; but takes boys like Jamie Lyman, stupid, shabby little
milksops that don't dare stand up to him. It isn't their fault that they
are dunces, and he ought to know it. I told him so."
Theodora looked perplexed.
"Sit down, Allyn," she said. "I want to talk this over quietly. Does
papa know?"
"No; it's only just now, and I came straight to you. I thought perhaps
you would help me tell him. I'm sorry, Ted, honestly sorry; but there
wasn't anything else to do."
Up to this moment, Theodora had been trying to hold on to the threads of
her interrupted chapter.
Pages:
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44