“Thank you, Ned,” Dorothy managed to reply, and, but for his haste to make arrangements for her comfort, the youth would have seen tears in his cousin’s eyes, and noticed that her hands trembled as Nat helped her out of the machine to the station platform.
“I think, after all, it will be better for you to go straight on to North Birchland,” she said, trying to make her voice sound easy and natural, but conscious that her tones were rather unsteady. She was now putting into operation the second part of her plan. “It might be risky to attempt to pick me up in Rochester. I might miss you or you might miss me, whereas if we both follow out our route separately we will be sure to get to the Cedars in safety and without any delay.”
“Well, since you have decided to desert us, and travel by train, leaving the poor old Fire Bird to struggle along as best it can without a lady passenger, perhaps it will be best,” Nat agreed, in a dazed sort of way. He seemed for a time quite unlike Nat White—quite different from the youth who was always ready to take up the weak end of an argument and carry it to the strongest point of conclusion. Here he was letting his favorite cousin start away alone on a train to a strange big city, when she had been entrusted to his care.
“Here you are, Doro,” called Ned, coming from the depot where he had hurried as soon as the auto stopped. “Take this,” and he thrust some bills into her hands, as well as her tickets. “And do, above everything else, be careful. I’ve seen the porter, and tipped him so he will look after you. Now, you’d better get in and we’ll leave you, as we want to make good time. Good-bye,” and he stooped to kiss the pale-faced girl who was now too overcome with emotion to trust her own voice.
Nat put his arm affectionately around her and he, too, gave her a farewell kiss. They walked with her to the waiting train, and then the porter, in his blue uniform, adorned with numerous brass buttons, helped her aboard the car “Seneca.”
Dorothy had traveled in parlor cars before but had never ridden in a sleeper, which was the style of coach she now found herself in. The train was a through one from the west and, as the regular parlor cars were full Ned had to get a ticket in the sleeper which, by day, is much the same as a parlor car.