“Oh, let's make them think old Santa just had
a spill of toys from his old sleigh!” said Lucia,
as happy as Betty, looking into the gayly decked
windows, or descending into the store
basements where the toys were displayed.

Betty had “always” intended to go back to
see what was the result with the “Sevillas,”
but there was so much to do at school with
lessons and tests and other duties and at home
in preparation for the holidays that she had
not “had a minute” to spare, it seemed. Her
father was unusually busy, too; and when she
spoke to him about the coincidence of the names
and referred to the odd parenthesis in Ramon
Balinsky's letter, he had only said that it
“might be well to look into it.”

The crimson car was pretty well filled with
packages when Lucia had finished her shopping,
for why should they wait to have things
delivered when they wanted to see them right
away? And Lucia sent the car home, telling
Betty that her mother might want it and that
there was no use in keeping Horace waiting
around while they had lunch down town.

Betty assured Lucia that any arrangement
was satisfactory to her, as they entered a pretty
tea room and lingered over their lunch, ordered
by Lucia after consultation with Betty. Chicken

[[104]]

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