Chapter 20
The house echoed, and there was still an extraordinary fragrance of carnations.
Their mother was in the East Room.
“My darlings,” she said; she looked as if she had traveled a great distance, and now they knew that everything had changed. They put their heads against her, still knowing that nothing would ever be the same again, and she caught them so close they could smell her, and they loved her, but it made no difference.
She could not say anything, and neither could they; they began to realize that she was silently praying, and now instead of love for her they felt sadness, and politely waited for her to finish.
“Now we’ll stay here at Granma’s,” she finally said. “Tonight, anyway.” And again there was nothing further that she could say.
Her hands on them began to feel merely heavy. Rufus
