Betty Lee, Freshman Part 19

"No. Just before cla.s.s began. Jakey slid into that one just behind you."

"I didn't notice."

"_She_ may, if they are in different seats tomorrow."

The zero hour came. Betty looked at the questions on the board. Oh, they weren't so bad. It was fair. There were the special things that Miss Heath had emphasized, some of the hardest to get, to be sure, but Betty had studied hard and she had freshened up on the vocabulary lists and some of the rules of syntax, for she dreaded the translations, sentences that Miss Heath would make up, some of them at least.

Betty's cheeks were hot, but she worked away. Mercy, her fountain pen had given out. She took a pencil and found its point blunt. Hastily she traveled to the pencil sharpener and put on it as sharp a point as possible. Miss Heath did not want them to use pencil for examinations if it were not necessary; but this wasn't the semester final, when Carolyn said you _had_ to use ink, they said. But she'd better sharpen two pencils, perhaps.

Betty scarcely saw the rest of the scholars as she returned to her desk for another pencil, so absorbed was she in thoughts of the examination questions. There was a whisking of something on several desks as she and some one else pa.s.sed down parallel aisles at the same time, she to return, the other to go to the pencil sharpener. As she sat down and looked off thoughtfully at the board, the teacher was looking in her direction and two of the boys were chuckling behind her.

The teacher rapped for order and Betty, turning, caught a glimpse of Peggy, who was looking daggers at somebody behind Betty. But Betty was finishing her paper. The time was nearly up. She read over what she had, put in a long mark over a vowel in one of the declensions, looked for other omissions or mistakes, and puzzled over her last English to Latin sentence. She hoped it was right. There went the bell. Betty made ready her paper. Now it was handed in. Now they were in the hall. The test was over. What a relief!

"Did you see what those boys were doing?" asked Peggy, as Betty and Carolyn caught up with her at the door of the room where they were entering for another cla.s.s.

"No, what was it?" questioned Carolyn, but the teacher just then beckoned Betty, to give her back a paper that she had failed to return with the rest given out to the cla.s.s, and Betty missed Peggy's reply.

"That was a very good paper, Betty," said her teacher. "I found it with some soph.o.m.ore papers where it had gotten by mistake."

Betty was disappointed to find only an eighty-eight for her grade, but she knew that anything over eighty was good with Miss Smith. Tests were popular just now at Lyon High. All too soon would come the semester finals!

The busy week ended and Monday came again. The same young subst.i.tute was in Miss Heath's place. She was "terribly cross" with the boys, Peggy said, but she didn't blame her. Four or five of the freshman boys tried to see how far they could go and went a little too far for their own good, for when there was some chalk throwing at the blackboard, during written exercises there, the teacher called several boys by name to take their seats and see her after cla.s.s. "If any one else longs to be sent to detention, he or she may just keep on with the fun as these have done!"

There was an immediate cessation of performances, for D. T., as it was called, was not popular.

"By the way," the teacher added, "I should like to see after cla.s.s for a moment Betty Lee and Peggy Pollard."

Betty, who was at the board, pausing in her work to listen to the startling interruptions, was surprised to hear her own name. What could the teacher want with her? But after a surprised look at the somewhat grim face of an otherwise attractive young woman, Betty turned again to the board and finished the verb synopsis on which she was engaged. The cla.s.s work went on as usual, with correction and a.s.signments by the teacher, recitation and occasional question on the part of the cla.s.s.

The boys who had been told to stay remained in their seats at the close of cla.s.s and Betty, raising her eyebrows at Peggy, gathered up her books and went to one of the front seats to wait the teacher's pleasure. She felt in a hurry, for she was due at study hall on this day and it was on the third floor, quite a climb from the bas.e.m.e.nt floor.

With eyes demurely on her books, she listened to a brief and sharp rebuke delivered to the boys, who scurried out of the room as soon as they were ordered to "detention" that evening, immediately after the close of school. At "detention" some victim among the teachers, who took turns at the disagreeable task, was in charge of a room devoted to the derelicts from duty who had from one cause or another been a.s.signed to an extra hour in study after their cla.s.smates and others had gone. How long that extra hour! And when there was "doubly D. T." or detention for several days, alas!

That Betty was to receive any rebuke was the last thing that she expected, though she was nervously wondering for what she was asked to stay. She looked inquiringly, and in Betty's unconsciously sweet way, as the boys disappeared, and was beckoned to a seat in front of the desk.

"Come also, Peggy Pollard," said the teacher, Miss Masterman. "I believe this is Peggy, isn't it?"

"Yes'm, and that's Betty Lee."

"Peggy, did you exchange papers with any one Thursday?"

"No'm," replied Peggy, looking surprised.

"Did you communicate with any one?"

"No'm."

"Think a minute. Are you sure that you did not say anything?"

"No'moh, yes, I did say something, but it wasn't anything about the examination. One of the boys was acting smarty and I told him to stop it."

"Just what did you say?"

"It wasn't very polite," said Peggy, her face very red, but her lips curving into a smile. "I told him to mind his own affairs and leave me alone. I was mad for a moment."

"Are you sure that was all of the communication?"

"Yes'm, perfectly sure. I was too _busy_!"

"Very well. You may go, Peggy. That is all."

The teacher's face was calm and cold as she turned to Betty. Peggy had flown from the room in relief and Betty heard her unlocking her locker outside in the hall. She wondered if Peggy would wait.

"Please wait here a few minutes, Betty Lee," said Miss Masterman. Betty, wondering, waited. She didn't like the way the teacher looked at her.

What _could_ she have done to offend her. It couldn't be anything like what Peggy was kept for. Why, she'd been "busy," too, and had scarcely noticed anything except the questions and her paper. Besides, this teacher hadn't walked around like Miss Heath, to go to the rear sometimes and know just what everybody was doing. She hadn't seemed to be a bit suspicious that day. Miss Masterman now left the room.

In the next room her voice was to be heard. Why, she was telephoningthe office, Betty supposed. Mer_cee_! what in the world was the matter?

Betty's hands were cold. She grew more scared every minute. Perhaps something was wrong at home and Miss Masterman had gotten word. No, she had looked at her as if she had done something. Perhaps she'd have to go to detention, if not tonight, then tomorrow!

Betty unpiled her books and piled them up again. She would leave all but her algebra in her locker tonight. There! Miss Masterman was coming back. She walked to her desk, took up a book, looked at it, put it down, gathered up some papers and put them inside the desk, went after her wraps and laid them across one of the desks. She was almost as uneasy as Betty felt. Probably she wanted to get home, though it was still the last period.

At last she said, "I suppose you are anxious to know why I am keeping you. You are to go to the office of the a.s.sistant princ.i.p.al and he is busy with some other pupils still. He or someone will telephone me when he is ready for you. He seems to have a good deal of business tonight."

Miss Masterman smiled disagreeably. "It is in connection with cheating at examination that he wants to see you," and Miss Masterman looked keenly at Betty as she made this statement quickly in a sharp tone.

Betty gasped. "Why, Miss Masterman! I don't know anything about any cheating in the examination!"

"So?" coolly replied Miss Masterman. "Tell that to the a.s.sistant princ.i.p.al, then."

"Dodo you mean that you think I _cheated_?" vigorously asked Betty.

"I think that very thing."

"Then you are mistaken, Miss Masterman," said Betty, firmly and with some dignity. "I hope to be able to prove it."

The telephone bell rang just then and Miss Masterman answered it, saying, "at last," as she crossed to the room.

Betty, too, thought "at last." She was trembling from head to foot; but a little anger at the injustice of the charge sustained her and she remembered the kind face of the a.s.sistant princ.i.p.al. He had some children. Maybe he would listen to her. But what could she say, only tell him that she did not cheat. How did they think she could? Miss Heath would have called the a.s.sistant princ.i.p.al by his name in speaking of himoh, if only Miss Heath had been there at that examination!

CHAPTER XIV: SENT TO THE PRINc.i.p.aL

Betty went to her locker, put away all her books and took out her wraps.