Cornelia, too astonished for words that Carey was arranging for all these church functions, easily yielded to the request; and they parted for the night, the sister with a singing in her heart that her brother was getting to be friends with a girl like the minister’s daughter. Now surely, surely he would stop going with girls like Clytie Dodd. Probably that girl would be offended at the way she had been left without even an apology, and would drop Carey now. She sat back with a sigh of relief, and dismissed this one burden from her young heart. Could she have known what plots were at that very moment revolving in the vengeful girl’s mind, and being suggested to her hilarious and willing group of companions amid shouts of laughter, she would not have rested her soul so easily, nor enjoyed the wonderful moonlight that glorified even the mean little street where she lived. The devil is not idle when angels throng most around, and Cornelia had yet to learn that a single victory is not a whole battle won. But perhaps, if she had known she would not have had the courage and faith to go forward; and it is well that the step ahead is always just out of sight. CHAPTER XXIV For three long, beautiful weeks Cornelia enjoyed her calm and hope climbed high. The stone columns of the pretty front porch grew rapidly, and began to take on comeliness. Brand endeared himself to them all by his cheerful, steady, patient aid, coming every afternoon attired in overalls, and working hard till dark, getting his white hands callous and dirty, cut with the stones, and hard as nails. Once Cornelia had to tie an ugly cut he got when a stone fell on his hand; and he looked at her lovingly, and thanked her just like a child. From that time forth she gathered him into her heart with her brothers and sister, and began genuinely to like him and be anxious for his welfare. It seemed that his mother and sister were society people, and made little over him at home. He had his own companions and went his own way without consulting them; and, although he must have had a wonderful mansion of a home, he seemed much to prefer the little cozy house of the Copley’s, and spent many evenings there as well as days. He seemed to be as much interested in getting the stone porch done as Carey himself, and he often worked away alone when Carey felt he must stay at the garage awhile to get money enough for more stone or more cement and sand. Once or twice Cornelia suspected from a few words she gathered, as the boys were arguing outside the window, that Brand had offered to supply the needed funds rather than have Carey leave to earn them; but she recognized proudly that Carey always declined emphatically such financial assistance.