5 Rose and Lily

5 ROSE AND LILY Jack and Annie staggered into the house. They were both shaking. Their shoes and stockings were gone. Their wet clothes were torn. "You poor children!" cried the woman. "I was waiting for my husband to arrive. I saw you clinging to that tree! Come sit in my parlor. Don't worry about the furniture. Rest! Dry out! You're safe now!" "Thanks… thanks," stammered Annie. "Yeah, thanks," breathed Jack. He and Annie followed the woman from the entrance into a lovely sitting room. They sat down on a sofa and tried to catch their breath.

"I'll get you some towels and blankets," the woman said. As she hurried from the parlor, the wind howled and rattled the door. Rain pounded the windows. Jack thought the hurricane sounded like a monster trying to break into the house. He remembered the giant waves attacking the pier, tearing apart the bathhouses. "I still have our necklace," Annie said, panting. "Good, good," said Jack. He had his knapsack, too. He looked inside. The Texas book was ruined. Before he could tell Annie, the woman came back, carrying towels and two quilts. She handed the towels to them, and Jack dried his hands and face and hair. Then the woman wrapped one quilt around Jack and one around Annie. "My name is Rose," the woman said, sitting down. "You must tell me who you

are." "I'm Annie, and he's my brother, Jack," said Annie. "We're visiting from Pennsylvania." "We just escaped from the waterfront," said Jack. "The waves got super high," said Annie. "So where are your mother and father?" said Rose. "They're—they're—" Jack didn't know what to say. "They're at the Tremont House Hotel," Annie said quickly. "I know they're safe." "Oh, but they must be so worried about you!" said Rose. "I wish they knew you were safe and sound with me." A baby started crying upstairs. "That's my daughter. I'll be right back," said Rose. She hurried up the stairs. "Rose is so nice," Annie said. "And she's really strong—she pulled us both in."

"Right," said Jack. He was relieved to be in Rose's nice house, but he was worried about the others still out in the storm. "We have to help more people," he said. "I know," said Annie. "We'll just rest here for a minute… and figure out what to do." Rose came into the room with a baby in her arms. "Lily, meet Jack and Annie!" she said. Lily looked like she was about a year old. "Hi, Lily," said Jack and Annie together. Lily stared at them with huge brown eyes. She had dark curly hair and rosy cheeks. "She's so cute," said Annie. "The howling wind scared her," said Rose as she sat down with the baby. "So, what did you see out there?" "Huge waves," said Jack with a sigh. "They covered everything. The streets got flooded fast. Everyone was trying to escape." "Oh, my," said Rose. "My husband, Lucas,

should never have go to work this morning. I told him." "Where does he work?" asked Annie. "At a music store that's just off the boardwalk," said Rose. "I've been expecting him to arrive home any minute." Rose stood up and walked to the window and looked out. "The water's getting

higher," she murmured. "Lucas better hurry." Jack felt bad for her. He remembered the waves destroying the boardwalk. The wind shrieked. Thunder rumbled. Lily let out a wail. "There, there, baby, don't cry," said Rose, gently rocking Lily in her arms. "Think of this as a big adventure!" A gust of wind shook the house. Lily kept crying. "Hush, baby, hush. Papa will be home soon," said Rose. She started singing to Lily: Hush, little baby, don't say a word. Papa's going to buy you a mockingbird. If that mockingbird don't sing, Papa's going to buy you a diamond ring. Lily stopped crying and looked at Rose. "Pa-pa…," she whimpered. "He's not here now, darling. But he'll be