"Oh, I'd love to," Flip said. "Right now?"
"How long does it take you?"
"About a second," Erna told them. "Here's a chair, Martha, and one for
you, Kaatje. Run get your sketch book, Flip."
Flip got her pad and a couple of sharp pencils out of her locker. "Just
stay the way you are, please," she said to Martha. "That's fine."
It wasn't quite as easy to draw Martha as it had been the girls she
saw constantly in the Common Room and the class room, or as easy as
the faculty, whose caricatures, sketched hurriedly at the end of study
halls had thrown the girls into fits of laughter; but she managed to
get a passable exaggeration of Martha's almost Hollywood beauty onto
the paper, and the Head Girl was very pleased.
While Flip was drawing Kaatje, Martha said, "My mother writes me you're
going to be spending the holidays in Nice with Mrs. Jackman, Philippa.
We're going to be there for a week, so maybe we'll see you."
Flip shook her head, glancing up briefly from her sketch of Kaatje.
"I'm not going to be with Mrs. Jackman. I'm staying up the mountain
with Paul Laurens."
"Percy's nephew?" Martha asked in surprise. "How did you get to know
him?"
"She has tea with him every Sunday afternoon." Erna, who had evidently
appointed herself as Flip's spokesman told the seniors. "She's just
come back from there now, haven't you, Flip?"
Flip nodded, tore off her page, and gave it to Kaatje.
"Thanks simply ages, Philippa," Kaatje said. "You'll probably be
besieged by every girl in school."
"I don't mind," Flip said. "It's what I love to do. If those aren't
right or if you want any more I'd love to try again."
"We may take you up on that." Martha smiled at her. "Sorry you aren't
going to be in Nice for the holidays."
"Flip, you're made," Erna said when the older girls had left. "If
Martha and Kaatje like your pictures there won't be a girl in school
who won't want one. I bet you'll get artist's cramp or something."
"It's all right with me." Flip grinned happily.
"And it's wonderful about the holidays. When did that happen?"
"This afternoon. And Madame's going to be there, too."
"Percy?" Erna looked dubious. "I'm not sure I'd like that. She's so
strict."
"She's not a bit strict when you're not at school. She's--oh, she's so
much fun and she doesn't act a bit like a teacher. And Paul says she'll
take us on all kinds of trips on the holidays, to Gstaad, and we'll
come down from Caux on a bobsled, and we'll go to Montreux and places
to the movies and all sorts of things."
"It's too bad you can't ski," Erna said; and Flip turned away to hide a
grin.
8
Flip was out skiing by herself before breakfast several mornings later
when she saw the strange man again. At first she did not notice him,
and then she became vaguely aware through her concentration on her
skiing that someone was watching her, and she swung around and there
he was leaning against a tree. This time he did not smile and wave and
move away up the mountain. He just stood there watching her and she
stared nervously back. He was very thin and his cheeks were sunken and
his jaw dark as though he needed to shave. He wore shabby ski clothes
and a small beret and his eyes were very dark and brilliant. She stood,
leaning lightly on her ski sticks, looking back at him and wishing he
would go away when suddenly he came stumbling across the snow towards
her. She started to push away on her skis but he made a sudden leap at
her and she fell headlong. She started to scream but he clapped his
hand across her mouth.