Then in came the men, and the boys felt they must help to place it just right, and ran imminent risk of their fingers and toes in doing it. "Who's it from?" asked Ivor. "Is it yours, Lucia?" "Mine, from mother," answered Lucia. "I thought you was cryin'," said Queenie, edging up close to her; "I saw you cryin', I do b'lieve?" "Only because I am so pleased, and because—" But the others were clamouring for her to sit down and try it; so Lucia did not explain further, though she would have said, had she been able, that she was most unworthy of all the love which had been shown her, and she was ashamed of all her hard thoughts. It was not till the piano had been tried and retried, not till Lucia had sung them song after song, in her beautiful fresh young voice, that someone said,— "Where's May?" She certainly was not with them, and there ensued a general hunt, which ended in her being found talking to her doll, in a quiet corner, behind a hayrick, though what she had said to her doll was certainly unguessed by any of the party. "Now, Rosabel," she had said, "when next we all go out for a walk in the woods, I shall keep my eyes open for the road that the Queen drives in. She must drive somewhere, you know, and if I watch long enough, I shall be sure to see her. It can't be any harm, for I heard mother say to Lucia, 'Let the children enjoy themselves as much as ever they can; let them be out from morning to night, and if they can turn into the Family Robinson, so much the better!' Now, if mother said that, there can be no harm in my taking advantage of it to see the Queen! So I mean to. "I shall not take you with me, Rosabel, because I shall have to take my lunch, or something, and a sunshade in case it rains, and you would certainly be in the way if I had to go a long way. But I shall put you up in the hayloft, where you can see out of that little window, and then you will be able to watch for me to come back." Her reflections were broken in upon by Evan's voice, speaking vexedly. "What a hunt we've had for you, May, I do declare! Why, you've missed a jolly thing, with your love of being different from the rest of us—a jolly thing! Why, here's Lucia, had the biggest and the best present she ever had in her life, and you have been away and not seen it arrive!" May's imaginative mind flew to all sorts of wonderful things, but nurse stopped these short by scolding her soundly for giving them so much trouble, and threatening to send her to bed on the next occasion if she did not keep with the rest. "It's bad for the child," she said to herself, as she walked back behind the little party, "and Miss Lucia is inclined to be too easy with them, I do believe." CHAPTER VI. IN THE FOREST. MAY, however, was thinking so much of her project that nurse's displeasure passed over her with but little impression. She only made up her mind to wait for an opportunity when they were out together, and she had liberty to enjoy herself.