CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
Polly knelt beside Scarlet’s side, dipping a cloth continuously into a bucket of cold water, wringing it out, and running it over her forehead and cheeks. Polly's heart was breaking. This poor child was burning up with fever. Several times in the last hours, she had awakened, screaming for Caitlin. Polly had tried to reassure her that she would be back soon, but Scarlet seem inconsolable.
Ruth, too, seemed on edge. She wouldn't leave Scarlet’s side, and she spent most of the time whining, laying her chin on her chest, and snarling at anyone other than Polly, Sam or Lily who came close. Ruth was acting as if it were her own child on the bed.
Polly felt increasingly worried as she tended to Scarlet’s sores. There were huge welts all over her face, now oozing pus. Ever
