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CHAPTER XXIII THE SECRET—CONCLUSION
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It was some moments before either girl was able to speak after that first burst of emotion and surprise. But Dorothy was too happy to remain long in tears—even tears of joy that for the moment had overcome her.
 
Tavia was pale, and her eyes were red from much weeping. Her unhappy plight1 was apparent at a glance, and this was incentive2 enough to cause Dorothy to again clasp her in her arms and hug her tighter than ever. She had forgotten her own physical weakness now that she had found Tavia, and she felt that she must hasten to get her dear friend into a state of mind that might help her to forget the sad experiences she had passed through.
 
“Tavia! Tavia, dear,” whispered Dorothy, as the girl fell again to weeping, “do look up and forget it all—for my sake, do. I have searched so long for you, but now I have found you. Come with me and we’ll be just the same as we always were.”
 
[232]
“Oh, how can I?” cried the miserable3 girl. “Who will look at me now? How can I ever face the folks again? Oh, Dorothy, let me go away forever! I can not bear the disgrace!” and she moaned pitifully in her bitter anguish5.
 
“But, Tavia, you really meant nothing wrong,” said Dorothy taking the trembling hands in her own which were scarcely less agitated6.
 
“No, I never meant to do wrong,” spoke7 Tavia, lifting her head with her old, proud bearing. “I broke my promise to you—I listened to that girl in Rochester—she gave me a letter to a theatrical8 manager in Buffalo9. I only wanted to make a name for myself—to gratify my ambition—I wanted to earn money to get back to school—you know we had no more—”
 
“You poor darling!” whispered Dorothy. “Was that it? Don’t worry so. No one will ever know. I have not told even Nat, and we will keep it a secret between us forever. Do come with me, dear,” as Tavia appeared to look brighter. “I must get to North Birchland to-night—Oh, if you ever knew the time I had getting away from the boys!” And she went on hurriedly for several minutes.
 
[233]
“And did you come all the way alone, Dorothy Dale? You have saved me in spite of myself!” declared Tavia, almost tragically10. “Yes, I will go back. I can look them all in the face, for I only tried to work and I did not mean to deceive any one longer than would be necessary for me to get a start. But now, Dorothy, I have had enough of it. Where do you want me to go?”
 
“So it wasn’t as nice as you thought it would be?” asked Dorothy, anxious to hear some of Tavia’s experiences.
 
“Nice?” There was no concealing11 the disgust in Tavia’s voice. “It was awful, Dorothy! It was a regular barn-storming company! Playing one-night stands! We never had good houses. They said it was because it was the summer season, but I guess it was because the play was so poor. We did not get all our salaries and half the time didn’t have enough to eat. Then the show ‘busted’!”
 
“Did you have a good—part I believe they call it?”
 
“A good part? Say, Doro,” and Tavia actually seemed her old self again. “I had an idea I was to be Lady Rossmore, or at least one of the family.”
 
[234]
“Weren’t you?”
 
“I should say not! I was Lucy, the parlor12 maid, and the only time I was on the stage was when I was dusting the make-believe furniture. And as for my lines—well, I had a very heavy and strong thinking part.”
 
“Oh, Tavia!”
 
“That’s my theatrical experience,” answered Tavia. “Oh, Doro, I’m very miserable,” she wailed13 again.
 
“Never mind, dear. Dry your eyes now, you’re all right. I’m—Oh, I’m so happy that I have found you again. Come back to the station with me. I have some one else to bring home, too. Urania, the Gypsy girl—you remember her at Glenwood, I guess—she has been trying to see the world and she caught too big a glimpse of it. Poor girl, she is quite sick and miserable.”
 
Then, as they hurried from the park, Dorothy told Tavia of the trouble she had to get Urania on the train. A happy thought came to Tavia, and, with a bright smile she said:
 
“I have it! In this little hand bag—all the baggage I have left by the way—I have a very quiet suit. I used it in the play, for sometimes I had to take two or three parts if one of the other girls was ill, but they never amounted to much—the parts I mean. We can put this suit on Urania.”
 
[235]
Being thus able to help some one else worse off than herself seemed to do Tavia good for her kind heart always prompted her to acts of this sort. It was a step back into the old life.
 
At the station they found Urania all excitement.
 
“The young men were here!” she exclaimed to Dorothy, “and they have gone off to look for you. I didn’t dare speak to them, but I peeked14 out and I heard the station man tell them where he had seen you go to, and they flew off again in their dust-wagon like mad. Oh, Miss, I wish they had found you, and they looked so tired and hardly spoke like I’ve always heard ’em, so polite and nice.”
 
“Ned and Nat here in Rockdale!” exclaimed Dorothy, overjoyed at the news. “Here, Urania, you go in that little room and put these things on you’ll find in this bag,” and she handed the Gypsy Tavia’s little valise.
 
“I’ll help her,” volunteered Tavia, glad to be of service to Dorothy.
 
[236]
“Now remember, Tavia,” said Dorothy in a low tone, “whoever we meet now I’m to do all the talking. This is my big secret and you must let me take care of it. Have you any baggage—Oh, I forgot, all the baggage of the company is held for debts, I believe.”
 
“Not mine,” replied Tavia promptly15. “All I have is in my valise. It was so small they let me keep it. They only wanted trunks and I didn’t have any. I travel light.”
 
“Well, hurry now and get Urania ready,” said Dorothy. She walked over toward the door of the ladies’ waiting room. Suddenly she fancied she heard—yes—sure enough that was the toot of the Fire Bird’s horn!
 
“Oh, Tavia!” she called. “Here they come! Hurry! Hurry Urania! Tavia! We must all be out there together when they come up.”
 
At that the automobile16 swept up to the station in a cloud of dust. Out on the platform hurried Dorothy, Tavia and Urania, the latter smiling broadly in her new outfit17.
 
“Well, I give up!” exclaimed Nat, the first to alight from the panting car. “If you haven’t given us a merry chase, Dorothy! We got worried after you left us and we traced you from place to place. Thought sure we’d lost you here. Oh, it was a merry chase.”
 
“Glad it was merry,” exclaimed Tavia, forgetting that Dorothy was to do all the talking.
 
[237]
“Yes, I should say it was,” put in Ned, “and she skipped off to meet you without giving us a hint—”
 
“Now, Ned, don’t be cross,” said Dorothy sweetly. “See what a large party you have to take home. And you must not scold the girls, for we have as much right as you boys have to take little trips together.”
 
The boys were too well pleased to argue or be angry. In fact, they had had a very miserable time of it since Dorothy “escaped,” as they called it. Now, they wanted nothing better than to get into the machine with the girls and make all speed for home.
 
“Have you room for Urania?” asked Dorothy. “Can she stand up between the seats?”
 
“Why, of course,” assented18 Ned. “Plenty of room. Get aboard everybody.”
 
“Let me get under the seat,” protested the Gypsy girl. “That was the way I came out.”
 
“So it was!” said Nat. “I’d almost forgotten about you, young lady. She’s the girl,” he went on, turning to the others, “who stole a ride with me the day I went into Dalton, Dorothy. She actually rode under the back seat where she’d hidden in the night. She made the noise we thought was a burglar, you know. She gave me the slip, though, when I went to take her back, so now she must ride in the open, where I can keep my eye on her.”
 
[238]
“Oh, Urania! You said—” began Dorothy, thinking of what the Gypsy girl had said about Nat taking her away.
 
“Oh, please don’t be hard on me,” pleaded Urania. “I was so miserable I didn’t know what I was saying. It’s true, just as he says, and it’s all my fault. I ran away. He didn’t take me.”
 
Dorothy climbed in beside Ned. Tavia was in her usual seat with Nat. Then Urania squatted19 down, in true Gypsy fashion, on the floor of the car at their feet.
 
“I guess we’ll just about make it after all,” commented Ned, as he turned on the power more fully4 and threw in the clutch. “We’re due home about seven, but we’ll have to speed it up a bit to do it. Lucky it’s nearly level all the way.”
 
“And when we do get home,” put in Nat, “you girls will just have to own up and tell the whole story. No serial20 for ours. We want it complete in one number.”
 
[239]
“Indeed, we’ll do nothing of the sort!” exclaimed Dorothy. “We’re not going to tell you a single word. We’ll get home about on time, according to agreement, and you have no reason to find a single bit of fault. Tavia will come to North Birchland just as she promised to early in the season. She’s been too busy to come before,” and Dorothy smiled. “And if we do have our own affairs to talk about you must not expect to know everything. Girls have to have secrets, or they wouldn’t be girls, and we have now got ours.”
 
“Yes,” agreed Tavia in a low voice with a loving look at her chum, “It’s Dorothy’s great secret and I guess I’ll help her keep it.”
 
And here, as they are speeding toward North Birchland, we will take leave of Dorothy, Tavia and the boys for a while. Dorothy kept the secret, as did Tavia, and no one ever knew the real meaning of Tavia’s absence, nor why Dorothy was so anxious to find her. The theatrical venture was never disclosed, thanks to Dorothy’s tact21 and abilities, for she showed that she could manage some things even better than could her cousins.
 
“Well, it was a glorious trip to Buffalo after all,” was Nat’s comment, as they neared North Birchland.
 
[240]
“So it was,” agreed Dorothy. Then she fell to wondering if she would ever again have so many adventures. Little did she dream of what the future held in store, as will be related in another story, which I shall call, “Dorothy Dale and Her Chums.”
 
“Running some, aren’t we?” said Ned, as the Fire Bird whizzed over the country road.
 
“I—I don’t mind it,” faltered22 Tavia. Then she turned to whisper to Dorothy. “I am so thankful to leave the—that behind!”
 
Dorothy only smiled, but that smile showed that she understood perfectly23.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 plight 820zI     
n.困境,境况,誓约,艰难;vt.宣誓,保证,约定
参考例句:
  • The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
  • She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。
2 incentive j4zy9     
n.刺激;动力;鼓励;诱因;动机
参考例句:
  • Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中,钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
  • He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。
3 miserable g18yk     
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的
参考例句:
  • It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他,这是可耻的。
  • Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。
4 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
5 anguish awZz0     
n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦,烦恼
参考例句:
  • She cried out for anguish at parting.分手时,她由于痛苦而失声大哭。
  • The unspeakable anguish wrung his heart.难言的痛苦折磨着他的心。
6 agitated dzgzc2     
adj.被鼓动的,不安的
参考例句:
  • His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定,回答全乱了。
  • She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时,她十分焦虑。
7 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
8 theatrical pIRzF     
adj.剧场的,演戏的;做戏似的,做作的
参考例句:
  • The final scene was dismayingly lacking in theatrical effect.最后一场缺乏戏剧效果,叫人失望。
  • She always makes some theatrical gesture.她老在做些夸张的手势。
9 buffalo 1Sby4     
n.(北美)野牛;(亚洲)水牛
参考例句:
  • Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
  • The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。
10 tragically 7bc94e82e1e513c38f4a9dea83dc8681     
adv. 悲剧地,悲惨地
参考例句:
  • Their daughter was tragically killed in a road accident. 他们的女儿不幸死于车祸。
  • Her father died tragically in a car crash. 她父亲在一场车祸中惨死。
11 concealing 0522a013e14e769c5852093b349fdc9d     
v.隐藏,隐瞒,遮住( conceal的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Despite his outward display of friendliness, I sensed he was concealing something. 尽管他表现得友善,我还是感觉到他有所隐瞒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • SHE WAS BREAKING THE COMPACT, AND CONCEALING IT FROM HIM. 她违反了他们之间的约定,还把他蒙在鼓里。 来自英汉文学 - 三万元遗产
12 parlor v4MzU     
n.店铺,营业室;会客室,客厅
参考例句:
  • She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
  • Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店?
13 wailed e27902fd534535a9f82ffa06a5b6937a     
v.哭叫,哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She wailed over her father's remains. 她对着父亲的遗体嚎啕大哭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The women of the town wailed over the war victims. 城里的妇女为战争的死难者们痛哭。 来自辞典例句
14 peeked c7b2fdc08abef3a4f4992d9023ed9bb8     
v.很快地看( peek的过去式和过去分词 );偷看;窥视;微露出
参考例句:
  • She peeked over the top of her menu. 她从菜单上往外偷看。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • On two occasions she had peeked at him through a crack in the wall. 她曾两次透过墙缝窥视他。 来自辞典例句
15 promptly LRMxm     
adv.及时地,敏捷地
参考例句:
  • He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
  • She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。
16 automobile rP1yv     
n.汽车,机动车
参考例句:
  • He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
  • The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。
17 outfit YJTxC     
n.(为特殊用途的)全套装备,全套服装
参考例句:
  • Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
  • His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。
18 assented 4cee1313bb256a1f69bcc83867e78727     
同意,赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The judge assented to allow the prisoner to speak. 法官同意允许犯人申辩。
  • "No," assented Tom, "they don't kill the women -- they're too noble. “对,”汤姆表示赞同地说,“他们不杀女人——真伟大!
19 squatted 45deb990f8c5186c854d710c535327b0     
v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 );非法擅自占用(土地或房屋);为获得其所有权;而占用某片公共用地。
参考例句:
  • He squatted down beside the footprints and examined them closely. 他蹲在脚印旁仔细地观察。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He squatted in the grass discussing with someone. 他蹲在草地上与一个人谈话。 来自《简明英汉词典》
20 serial 0zuw2     
n.连本影片,连本电视节目;adj.连续的
参考例句:
  • A new serial is starting on television tonight.今晚电视开播一部新的电视连续剧。
  • Can you account for the serial failures in our experiment?你能解释我们实验屡屡失败的原因吗?
21 tact vqgwc     
n.机敏,圆滑,得体
参考例句:
  • She showed great tact in dealing with a tricky situation.她处理棘手的局面表现得十分老练。
  • Tact is a valuable commodity.圆滑老练是很有用处的。
22 faltered d034d50ce5a8004ff403ab402f79ec8d     
(嗓音)颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 ); 支吾其词; 蹒跚; 摇晃
参考例句:
  • He faltered out a few words. 他支吾地说出了几句。
  • "Er - but he has such a longhead!" the man faltered. 他不好意思似的嚅嗫着:“这孩子脑袋真长。”
23 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。


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