Octagon Magic Read Online Free PDF Page A

saying she would be detained until late and to stay where she was.
    There was no use in protesting, but Lorrie was unhappy as she came back. Then her eyes went wide and all the unhappiness of the week exploded inside her.
    “Give me that!” She grabbed as what Kathy had taken from the desk.
    “Let me look first.” Kathy, laughing, jumped away, swinging her hand out of Lorrie's reach. “What a funny old doll. You still play with dolls, Lorrie? Only little kids do that.”
    In her grasp the old doll dangled too loosely. The delicate china head struck hard against the wall and smashed into pieces.
    “Miranda!” Lorrie sprang at Kathy, standing disconcerted now over the broken bits of china. She slapped her as hard as she could. “Give me—!”
    “All right, take it!” Kathy threw the headless body at Lorrie and it sprawled half in, half out, of the writing desk.
    Lorrie scooped up desk and all and ran, out of the Lockner apartment. She was fumbling with her own key when Mrs. Lockner caught up with her.
    “Lorrie, what is the matter? Tell me at once!”
    Lorrie struggled against the hand on her shoulder. “Let me alone! Can't you ever let me alone!” She was crying now in spite of her efforts not to.
    “Why did you slap Kathy? Lorrie, tell me, what is the matter?”
    “Let me alone!” The key was in the lock now. With a sharp jerk Lorrie freed herself from Mrs. Lockner's hold and got around the door. The writing desk and the paper fell all over the floor, but those did not matter now. What did, she still held in her arm tight against her chest.
    Lorrie turned and slammed the door right in Mrs. Lockner's face, locking it quickly. She heard them calling, knocking on the door. Let everyone yell and bang—it wouldn't do them any good! Crying so hard she could hardly see, Lorrie made the bedroom and flung herself on her bed. She felt the hard lump of Miranda under her, but she could not bear now to look at that headless body.
    Miranda had been extra special. She was not just a doll, but a person, and she was very, very old. Grandmother had played with her when she was little, very carefully, because even then Miranda was special. Grandmother's own grand mother had had Miranda. She was more than a hundred years old! Now—now—Miranda wasn't anything!
    Lorrie rolled over on the bed and made herself look at the remains. The small arms and hands of leather were intact,and the black boots and legs covered with red-and-white striped stockings were as always. But, above the old-fashioned dress Grandmother had made, the head and shoulders were gone, only one little jagged splinter was left. Miranda was dead and Kathy had killed her! She would never, never speak to Kathy Lockner again! Nor would she ever go back to the Lockner apartment.
    Still gulping sobs, she got off the bed and went to the chest of drawers. She found the handkerchief Grandmother had given her. That was old, too, soft heavy silk, yellow now, with a big, fat initial G and some marks over it embroidered in one corner. It had belonged to Grandmother's father.
    Tenderly she wrapped Miranda in it. Miranda was dead and Lorrie could not bear to look at her again. They might even say to throw her out in the trash, just an old broken doll. But Miranda was not going into any trash can, she was going to be buried where there were flowers in summer.
    And the place—the Octagon House! Lorrie put on her coat and cap. She opened the back service door and, with Miranda in her hand, crept down the back steps. It was get ting dark out, but she did not have far to go. In her other hand was the big spoon she had picked up in the kitchen. She could dig a grave with that. She only hoped the ground was not frozen too hard.
    Lorrie ran across the parking lot and out the other end, and came to the gate that she had climbed on her first visit. There were no lights at all in the house that she could see, and the bushes and trees made it seem very dark. But Lorrie was too unhappy