"Oh, is that so?" sneered Zoie, and she levelled her most malicious look
at Jimmy. "What do you think Alfred would do to YOU, Mr. Jimmy, if he
knew the truth? YOU'RE the one who sent him the telegram; you are the
one who told him that he was a FATHER."
"That's true," admitted Aggie, with a wrinkled forehead.
Zoie was quick to see her advantage. She followed it up. "And Alfred
hasn't any sense of humour, you know."
"How could he have?" groaned Jimmy; "he's married." And with that he
sank into his habitual state of dumps.
"Your sarcasm will do a great deal of good," flashed Zoie. Then she
dismissed him with a nod, and crossed to her dressing table.
"But Zoie," persisted Aggie, as she followed her young friend in
trepidation, "don't you realise that if you persist in keeping this
baby, that mother will dog Jimmy's footsteps for the rest of his life?"
"That will be nice," murmured Jimmy.
Zoie busied herself with her toilet, and turned a deaf ear to Aggie.
There was a touch of genuine emotion in Aggie's voice when she
continued.
"Just think of it, Zoie, Jimmy will never be able to come and go like a
free man again."
"What do I care how he comes and goes?" exclaimed Zoie impatiently. "If
Jimmy had gone when we told him to go, that woman would have had her old
baby by now; but he didn't, oh no! All he ever does is to sit around and
talk about his dinner."
"Yes," cried Jimmy hotly, "and that's about as far as I ever GET with
it."
"You'll never get anywhere with anything," was Zoie's exasperating
answer. "You're too slow."
"Well, there's nothing slow about you," retorted Jimmy, stung to a
frenzy by her insolence.
"Oh please, please," interposed Aggie, desperately determined to keep
these two irascible persons to the main issue. "What are we going to
tell that mother?"
"You can tell her whatever you like," answered Zoie, with an impudent
toss of her head, "but I'll NOT give up that baby until I get ANOTHER
one.' "Another?" almost shrieked Jimmy. It was apparent that he must needs
increase the number of his brain cells if he were to follow this
extraordinary young woman's line of thought much further. "You don't
expect to go on multiplying them forever, do you?" he asked.