blushed. “Lunch-Box Lizz” was an appellation that was hard to swallow, but she knew from of old that there was absolutely no use in trying to silence Laura.

“Anyway,” she retorted, as she winked at Rhoda, “You missed the fudge that Mrs. Cupp sent up to us.”

“If Mrs. Cupp sent you up fudge, then I’m a monkey,” Laura returned. Nevertheless, she proceeded to look around for the empty plate, muttering the while that if Bess was any kind of friend at all she’d have saved some of the loot.

Bess watched her for a few seconds. Then feeling anxious to get on with the business of the day, she laughed, “There’s no plate and no crumbs and no fudge, but you’re a monkey, anyway, Laura Polk.”

Laura laughed, as the other girls joined in. “Well, you see it’s like this,” she explained, “It’s been so long since I’ve had anything besides a chocolate soda, that I’m just starved for something good to eat. But, Bess, since I wouldn’t eat any old chocolate fudge even if you offered it to me on a great big silver platter, will you please break down and tell me what all the mystery is about.”

“Yes, for Pete’s sake,” Amelia exploded, “What have you got on your mind? You and Rhoda have been going around the last two days looking as though you knew the answer to why Dr. Beulah wanted to know if our parents were at home this winter. What a question that was! I wrote home right away to find out what was up. What happened? Nothing. I don’t even get an answer.”

“What’s more, I don’t either,” Rhoda joined in. “Do you know I haven’t had a letter from my mother for two weeks now! I hope that if Dr. Beulah has something to write home, she is getting more response than I am.”

“Oh, we’re all neglected,” Laura dismissed the question. “What I want to know is, what have you two companions in mystery cooked up now? Come on, spill it,” she looked menacingly at Bess.

Bess turned to Rhoda, “You tell them,” she said.

Rhoda shook her head, “No, it’s your idea. Come, Bess, they are dying to know.”

Bess cleared her throat. “Well—”, and she looked around the room at the girls sitting on the chairs and cross-legged on the floor. It was nice to be there holding their attention.

“Bess Harley,” Laura threatened, “Don’t you go trying to pull any of my stunts. It’s all right for me to go round working up suspense, but I won’t have you doing it. I can’t stand it. Are you going to tell what’s eating you, or aren’t you?”

Bess got up, went to the door and looked up and down the hall, “Just want to make sure that Linda Riggs isn’t around,” she explained.

“Oh, she’s not here at all now and you know it,” Laura laughed. “Come on, you tell us your secret and I’ll tell you really and truly what Grace and Amelia and I were doing down in the village this afternoon.”

Bess looked doubtful. “She will, honestly,” Grace couldn’t contain herself any longer. “If she doesn’t, I will. Now come on, Bess, don’t be mean.”

“Can’t you guess?” Bess asked. “Can’t you guess, when you know as I do that Nan will be leaving about the end of April to go away?”

“Can’t you guess,” Rhoda chimed in, “When you know that it’s a secret, that it’s about Nan, that you are all—”

“Invited,” supplied Amelia.

“That there will be food,” Grace put in her bit.

“That everybody will know eventually,” Bess added.

“That it’s to be a great big surprise party on Nan!” they all chorused together, and then laughed.

“Sh! Did I hear somebody at the door?” Bess broke in on the confusion.

Immediately everybody was silent. The room was quiet as a tomb, as Bess got up and went to the door.

CHAPTER III
PLANS AND MORE PLANS

She clasped the knob firmly in her hand and opened the door suddenly. Though she saw nothing, she felt something soft and furry brushing against her legs. She turned white and screamed.

It was Laura who brought her back to her senses. “Oh Bess, be quiet!” she commanded. “You’ll have the whole dormitory in here. You’ll spoil everything. You are not afraid of a cat, are you?”

“A cat!” Bess exclaimed.

“Yes, a cat. What’s more it is as frightened as you are!” Laura said in great disgust. “How did it get into the building anyway?”

“How do I know?” Bess asked shortly, for she was still frightened.

“Now, there, don’t take it so hard,” Amelia comforted her friend, as Bess turned to view her unexpected visitor.

In a far corner of the room, its back arched high in anger was a very black, very angry looking cat.

“What’s the matter, pussy cat?” Rhoda coaxed. “Did Bess nearly scare you out of a year’s growth?”

But the cat was not to be appeased. At the sound of Rhoda’s voice directed toward it, it moved, slowly, around the edge of the room with its back still arched, however, and its heavy tail slowly curling.

“Ooh, it is mad!” Grace exclaimed as she got up from her place on the floor. “Better get it out of here.”

“What do you suppose I’m trying to do?” Bess helplessly asked.

Laura took command of the situation. “Now, don’t move, any of you,” she warned. “I’ve a way with cats.”

“And it doesn’t work,” Amelia rejoined, as the black ball of fury snarled at the red-headed girl.

“Well, I’ll show you, Mrs. Cat, who is boss.” Laura’s temper had been aroused. She grabbed Grace’s green suede jacket.

“Get out of here—now,” she ordered, shaking it before the animal.

The cat turned, leaped over a chair, jumped up on a bookcase, sprang to the window-sill and pushing out the already loose screen, it leaped across space to a tree outside, jumped to the ground and was disappearing around a corner just as the girls, recovering from their surprise, got to the window.

“Well, that is that.” Laura pretended to wash her hands of the whole matter. “Did I get rid of that cat, or didn’t I?”

“You did!” Bess agreed emphatically, as she slammed down the window as though to preclude the possibility of the animal’s doing a leap in reverse as she had seen swimmers do in news reels. “But will you tell me,” she asked, “what it all means?”

“Simply that someone left a door open downstairs,” answered the practical Amelia.

“And the cat smelled a mouse. So she came up here.” Rhoda dismissed the question.

“Oh, you two know what I mean,” Bess exclaimed impatiently. “I don’t like black cats, especially when they walk right in on a party I’m planning.”

“You think it casts a great big black spell over everything?” Laura supplied.

Bess shook her head. She was almost in tears.

“Oh, come, Bess,” Rhoda put her arm around the girl’s shoulder. “Don’t be like that. That black cat can’t do you or anybody else any harm. Don’t be superstitious.”

Bess smiled through her tears. “Guess I was more upset than I thought,” she half apologized. “If that door is closed,” she nodded toward the one the cat had entered, “let’s go on with what we were talking about.”

The party! The girls now all sat down close together in a circle on the floor. It was Bess who remembered in spite of her recent scare.

“Say, you two,” she said, addressing Laura and Amelia. “You had a secret, too. What was it?”

Both the girls looked