“A filling-station man saw me and yelled for Mr. Clayhorn to stop,” explained Veve.
“Fortunately, I am a slow driver,” added Mr. Clayhorn. “Otherwise, I am afraid the little girl might have been thrown from her sled and seriously injured.”
Although Veve had not been hurt, she looked rather the worse for her adventure. The fast sled ride had not been any fun.
Ice had slashed into her face and her snowsuit was caked with mud and slush. She was all worn out too, from clinging so tightly to the bouncing sled.
“Thanks for bringing me home, Mr. Clayhorn,” she told him gratefully. “I never, never want to take another ride like that one.”
“I hope you never do,” he replied. “Next time you might not be so lucky.”
While the grownups talked, Connie helped Veve remove her sled from the luggage compartment of the gray sedan. One of the runners was bent where it had struck a stone in the road.
She was showing the place to Connie when her mother called: “Come, Veve! You must have a hot bath and climb right into bed. We’ll talk about this escapade later!”
“That means I’ll catch it!” Veve whispered to Connie. She was so tired, though, that she didn’t mind being put to bed.
After Mr. Clayhorn had driven away, Connie and her parents went into their own home.
The instant they opened the door, they knew something was wrong. Heavy black smoke filled the rooms.
“Oh, Mother!” cried Connie. “Is the house on fire?”
Mrs. Williams ran directly to the kitchen. She jerked a double-boiler from the stove. The bottom pan was black on the inside and smoke billowed from it in a great cloud.
“The chocolate pudding!” gasped Connie’s mother. “I went off and left the gas turned low. All the water boiled away.”
Connie helped her open windows to clear out the smoke. After a while it was not so heavy.
“I can’t recall ever having done such a careless thing before,” sighed Mrs. Williams. “I guess I was so worried about Veve I didn’t think what I was doing. The pan is ruined.”
“Yes, dear, but it doesn’t matter. The important thing is that Veve is home safely.”
Now that the excitement was over, Mrs. Williams sat down by the kitchen table and drew a deep breath. After she had rested a moment, she told Connie how proud she was of her for not having hitched a ride on the gray car, and also for having called help so quickly.