XIV.
On the front porch, with her hand shielding her eyes from the sunset, her mother stood and looked out for her.
"I was watching for you, Dorinda. You must have got caught in the storm."
"Just at the beginning. I stopped at Five Oaks."
"Was anybody there?"
"Nobody but the old doctor. Jemima was off."
"Did he say when he expected Jason?"
"Yes, he told me he might come back this evening."
Once, long ago, she had heard a ventriloquist at a circus, and her voice was like the voice that had come out of the chair, the table, or the wax doll. As she stepped on the porch, her mother examined her closely. "Well, you're as white as a sheet. Go up and take off your wet things as quick as you can, and bring 'em down to the fire. Supper'll be ready in a minute."
Dorinda tried to smile when
