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her feet. "I'll make some strong coffee," she said. "That will help. Can you manage her alone?" |
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"I think so. I'll call if I need you. Thank you, Miss Linda." |
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"I hope we won't both have cause to curse me soon for giving in," Linda muttered as she walked into the kitchen. |
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Her eyes, drawn immediately to the table, flinched away, flashed back, and then bulged. There was nothing on the table! The box of candy was gone! |
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"Gertrude!" Linda rushed back to the maid's room, barely restraining herself from screaming. "The candy is gone!" |
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"Gone?" Gertrude thrust Gert into Linda's arms and took off, almost running. |
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In the ten or fifteen minutes the maid was away, Linda felt as if she had aged years. The only reason she did not ignore everything Gertrude had said and call the police was that Gert seemed to be improving steadily. Although her head still lolled sometimes, often she held it upright and she didn't seem to lean as heavily on Linda or stagger so much. |
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Gertrude returned, her face hard, her lips compressed into a tight line. "It's all right, Miss Linda," she said stiffly. "It's best you forget the whole thing. Don't mention it to madam. She knows . . ." For a moment her face crumpled, as if she were about to cry, but she did not. ''Madam took the box." Her voice shook, but she cleared her throat and went on more steadily, |
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