23 Susan Sowerby Saves the Day

CHAPTER 23 Susan Sowerby Saves the Day The children had agreed that Mrs. Sowerby could share their secret. Dickon told his mother how Colin and Mary were getting plumper and rosier every day. But there was a problem: the servants at the manor couldn't find out that Colin was regaining his health. "He and Miss Mary have to do some playacting," Dickon said with a grin. "Mr. Colin complains as usual and acts helpless,

and Miss Mary treats him like he's a weak, pitiful thing. When they get to the garden, they burst out laughing." Mrs. Sowerby nodded. "Good healthy laughter's better than pills any day." Dickon said, "They're both so hungry now that they keep asking for more food. But if they ask for too much, the servants and the doctor get curious. The doctor said that he'd write to Mr. Craven about it, which scared Colin. Colin wants to surprise Mr. Craven when he comes back." "Maybe I can help," Mrs. Sowerby said. She offered some fresh milk, extra bread, and currant buns for Dickon to take to the garden. The next morning, Dickon surprised his friends with two tin pails: one filled with rich, creamy milk and the other containing fresh buns wrapped in a checkered napkin.

The children were grateful for the delicious food and ate hungrily. Colin remarked, "Mrs. Sowerby must have the magic in her, too, that makes her think of ways to do nice things." Now staying inside on rainy days made Colin bored and restless. One dreary day, Mary invited Colin to explore the mysterious old house with its hundred rooms that nobody went into. "A hundred..." Colin said dreamily. "That's as mysterious as a locked garden!" They both laughed. They played in the room with the little ivory elephants and explored rooms Mary hadn't seen, new hallways, staircases, pictures, and strange old things. Back in Colin's room, they ate every bite of lunch. Mary also noticed something odd in his room: the curtain no longer covered the

picture of his mother above the fireplace. Colin noticed and said, "I like to see her now. One night I woke up and saw moonlight shining on the curtain—it was like magic filled the room. I opened the curtain, and it was as though she was laughing because she was glad to see me standing up." Mary looked at the picture and said, "You look so much like her now—like her ghost made into a boy." "If I look like her, then maybe my father will be fond of me," he said hopefully.