"And about this wedding license, I'll put on my thinking cap," remarked
Granny. She went into the bedroom and closed the door.
When Tessie was a little thing and heard Granny talk of her thinking
cap, she always visualized the cap as something between the formal
Sunday black straw or velvet, and the Monday morning gingham sunbonnet
Granny wore when she hung out the washing. And now that Tessie was a big
girl, she knew no more of what a thinking cap was like than she had when
she was seven, for Granny had never worn one in public. She always
closed the door before she put it on.
But as usual, the thinking cap quickly produced results, and in no time
at all Granny emerged with half a dozen names scribbled on a piece of
paper. They soon found Mrs. Waterman and Mr. Jacob Dassett, who had been
at the wedding of John Gilfooly and Teresa Andrews, and could remember
the ceremony perfectly. They were thrilled to hear that the inheritance,
a kingdom in the Pacific Ocean, of the daughter of John Gilfooly and
Teresa Andrews, might hang on their word, and they grew incoherent as
they ransacked their memories for recollections of twenty years ago.
"A queen!" exclaimed the astonished Mrs. Waterman. "Can you believe it!
And a mighty pretty queen she'll make!" She looked with admiration at
Tessie's flushed and dimpled face. "The spitting image of her ma, ain't
she, Mrs. Gilfooly? And I tell you, miss, there wasn't a prettier girl
in the state than Tessie Andrews when she married John Gilfooly. Ain't I
right, Mrs. Gilfooly?"
Granny nodded. "John was a handsome man, too," she declared. "They made
a beautiful couple, Tessie. I wish you could have seen them!"
"You bet I remember the wedding of Jack Gilfooly and Tess Andrews!" Mr.
Dassett spoke a bit testily that any one should have thought he would
have forgotten. "Didn't Sam Horton knock over the lamp and near set the
bride on fire? It would have been a bad deal for you, young lady," he
smiled at Tessie, "if he had. There wouldn't have been no queens then,
you bet!"
Granny's thinking cap produced not only witnesses to the wedding, but
also told her where to unearth old Doctor Grannis, who had brought
Tessie into the world, and who swore he remembered the six-pound,
red-faced mite.
"Well, are you satisfied now?" Granny asked Mr. Marvin, when the
statements of her witnesses, duly signed and adorned with notarial
seals, lay on the desk before him.
"Perfectly!" But Mr. Marvin did not look at her and smile, he looked at
her blushing granddaughter. "Perfectly! The court can ask for nothing
more. But you can understand, Mrs. Gilfooly, why we cannot accept the
evidence of the interested parties. But these statements make everything
all right, and Miss Gilfooly is Queen of the Sunshine Islands." He rose
and bowed to Her Majesty. "But according to the terms of her uncle's
will, she is to remain here until his personal representative arrives to
escort her to her kingdom. And in the meantime--" He touched the button
on his desk.
Tessie and Granny held their breaths as they waited to hear what was
going to happen in the meantime.
At the whirr of the buzzer, the door, which had been tightly closed
opened, and Bert Douglas shot in. He was followed by a man who was not
black nor red nor yellow, but an attractive combination of the three
colors. He wore a blue blouse hanging over his trousers which flapped
around his bare feet. His hair was frizzed and stiffened until it stood
half a foot away from his scalp and was adorned with shells. His nose
was tattooed in red and blue, and in his hand he carried an ax. At least
Granny called the strange weapon an ax. The blade shone like silver.
Granny shrieked when she saw him, and clutched Tessie by the hand as if
she would run away with her. Johnny the Boy Scout stepped bravely
before the women of his family and stared at the strange creature, who
stood with bowed head and an air of great humility. His humility did not
deceive Granny, not for a second. She did not trust him, and she kept a
firm hold of Tessie's fingers.
"This is Ka-kee-ta, the protector of the royal person," exclaimed Mr.
Marvin.
And as if to prove his words, Ka-kee-ta jumped into the air and clicked
his bare feet together before he dropped on his knees before Tessie, and
laid the blade of his ax against her shabby brown shoes. Tessie shrank
back and caught her breath.
"It is his duty and privilege to accompany the king, or queen, wherever
he may go," went on Mr. Marvin. "He came with the Honolulu lawyer, who
brought the papers concerning King Pete's death, and the king's will.
When he saw Miss Gilfooly he was so convinced that she was the rightful
heir, that he gave her the royal jewel, the Tear of God, and it has been
difficult to keep him from her until these formalities," he tapped the
sworn statements with the notarial seals, "were settled. Now," he smiled
and rose, regarding Tessie with amused kindly eyes, "he will protect and
guard his queen."
"Oh, my!" breathed his queen, in mingled dismay and excitement. She
stared at her guard.
It was Granny who looked dubiously at the protector of the royal person.
"Do you mean he'll board with us?" she asked, wondering how on earth she
was going to find room for him in her little cottage.
"I guess I can look after my own sister," declared the Boy Scout, red
with indignation, and no wonder. But he, too, stared at Ka-kee-ta. Gee
whizz! what would the fellows say when they saw him?
"He will always be near the queen," Mr. Marvin answered Granny, but he
ignored Johnny. "I understand that it is the custom in the Sunshine
Islands for the ruler to have a bodyguard."
"But who is to feed him and sleep him until this personal representative
comes to Waloo?" demanded Granny. "Now that Tessie's left her job at the
Evergreen, there won't be so much coming in as there was. And a big
strapping chap like that will eat a lot!" Granny shook her head. She did
not see how it was to be done. She stepped forward and looked boldly at
Mr. Marvin. "I'd like to know just what there is in this queen business
for us?" she asked bluntly. "Tessie isn't living like a queen according
to my way of thinking. Our house, even if it is small and needs paint,
was all right for a girl when she was selling aluminum in the Evergreen,
but it ain't all right for a queen. A queen shouldn't live in a house
where there ain't any electric light, nor no dining room, and no
plaster on half the kitchen ceiling--for it fell down last spring when
we had the big rainstorm, you remember? It isn't a proper place for a
queen at all! And clothes! We all need new clothes with a queen in the
family. But where are we going to get them? Are there any wages in this
queen business?"
"My dear Mrs. Gilfooly! And Miss Gilfooly!" Mr. Marvin was all
apologies. "There are ample funds for anything you may wish to purchase.
I could not advance any money until the question of Miss Gilfooly's
birth had been settled beyond dispute, but now--" he said something in a
low voice to grinning Bert Douglas, who left the room. "It is impossible
for me to say exactly what the queen's income will be, but I understand
it will be large and generous. From what I hear I should say that the
Sunshine Islands are rich and prosperous. The natives will do well by
their little queen. And there is also King Peter's personal estate. We
will know all about the exact figures when the personal representative
arrives. But you are right when you say that the queen should be
properly housed. And you could scarcely be expected to provide for
Ka-kee-ta on your present income!" He laughed softly to think that any
one would think she should.
"I might be expected to. Some folks expect a body to do everything,"
cackled Granny, mollified and radiant. "But I couldn't do it even if I
am a good manager. I might have trusted Pete to arrange for everything
even if the Pete I knew never thought of anybody but himself. He was
only a boy, then," she explained apologetically, "and there ain't no boy
so thoughtful as a grown man. And this--this--" She looked at Ka-kee-ta,
who stood just behind Tessie, the blade of his ax glittering beside his
bushy head. "He was Pete's friend?" she asked uncertainly.
"The protector of the royal person. The privilege is inherited in his
family. I believe it descends from father to son. Miss Gilfooly will
doubtless find many strange customs in the islands. There are old
traditions in all countries, you know, and the people guard them
jealously. Ah," as Bert returned and placed a check before him. He wrote
his name, carefully blotted it, and handed the check to Tessie.
Before Tessie could look at it, Granny had it in her fingers. If
Ka-kee-ta was protector of the royal person Granny proposed to be the
keeper of the royal purse.
"My soul and body!" she exclaimed when she saw the figures. "The good
Lord sure has a friendly feeling for the Gilfoolys! We'll be able to
board Ka-kee-ta and his ax at the Waloo Hotel. I'll be glad to move.
It's mortifying to the Gilfooly pride to have newspaper reporters and
newspaper photographers pointing out all the shabby places in the house.
You'll let us know, Mr. Marvin, when that special representative comes
to town? Tessie and I'll be getting ready for him."
"I'll let you know," promised Mr. Marvin. "And may I say," he took
Tessie's little hand, "may I say that, in all my career as a lawyer, I
never had a more romantic nor more interesting case than this. Most
romantic and most interesting!" he repeated. "If you need any advice or
any help, do not hesitate to call on us. Mr. Douglas will be glad to be
of service to you at any time." He looked at Mr. Douglas, who had turned
a delighted crimson at being assigned to such romantic and interesting
service.
"I'll be glad to do anything I can!" he stammered.
"That's real kind," smiled Granny, while Tessie flushed and told him he
was real kind, too. "You might go over to the Waloo and pick out a good
room for us and one for Ka-kee-ta, while Tessie and I think about
clothes. We can't appear in public in what we got. They wouldn't do
credit to Pete. And these newspaper men would be sure to photograph us
in our worst. We'll have to keep dressed up all the time now."