Emily's Dream by Jacqueline Pearce Read Free Book Online Page B

have gotten out is if someone had opened the door when she was out riding Johnny.
    Emily carried the cage to the breakfast room and knocked lightly on the door.
    â€œAlice, it’s me. Is it safe to open the door?” The door opened a crack, and Alice waved Emily inside the room.
    â€œHe’s sitting on top the cupboard,” Alice whispered, pointing.
    Emily set the cage down in the middle of the breakfast table and faced the open cage door toward the canary. Then she refilled the bird’s water dish.
    â€œI’ll just go out quickly and pick some of his favorite weed, and then maybe we can lure him back to the cage,” she told Alice.
    It didn’t take Emily long to find a sprig of the yellow flowering plant. She reentered the room cautiously and made her way back to the table. The bird was still sitting on top of the cupboard. He cocked his head sideways at her approach and began to preen his feathers.
    Emily set the weed inside the cage and gestured for Alice to stay back. She whistled softly. The bird stopped his preening and looked up. He gave a tentative return twitter. Then he raised his wings and launched himself off the cupboard straight for the open cage door.
    â€œCan we be of help?” The breakfast room door burst open, and Mr. Piddington’s voice boomed into the small room. Mrs. Piddingtonfollowed him, leaving the door open wide behind her.
    The startled canary changed direction midair, flew over the human heads, through the open door and into the hallway beyond. Mrs. Piddington screeched and waved her handkerchief above her hair.
    â€œYou did that on purpose!” Emily accused as she brushed by the grinning Mr. Piddington and followed the yellow blur of feathers into the hall.
    â€œI’m sorry,” Mr. Piddington said, sounding more amused than regretful. “I guess our timing was a bit off.”
    Emily rounded the corner just in time to see the canary veer away from the closed front door, turn sharply and sail up the stairs. Emily returned to the breakfast room and grabbed the cage.
    â€œAnd stay out of the way!” she ordered the others as she rushed back out, but she kept the words under her breath, knowing Dede was near.
    Sure enough, Dede appeared in the drawing room doorway as Emily hurried by.
    â€œI said slow down, Emily,” Dede warned. “It’s just a canary, not a life or death emergency.”
    The canary had flown right into Emily’s room, and once Emily was inside with the door shut and the room quiet, it did not take long for the bird to fly back into his safe and familiar cage. Soon he was pecking happily at his dinner.
    Emily collapsed onto her bed, relieved and worn out. The canary was safe. But how had he gotten out? She remembered the smug look on Mr. Piddington’s face after he and his wife had opened the door and let the bird fly out. She was sure he’d done it on purpose. Had he opened the cage door as well? Emily was sure he had.

 16 
Regatta
    The next week was torture. Emily yearned to get away from the house–away from the stifling rules and phony politeness, away from Dede and the Piddingtons–but she was afraid to be away one minute more than she had to be. What if she went for a ride on Johnny and came back to find the canary cage empty?
    Emily felt powerless. She couldn’t say anything to Dede, and she was forced to be polite to the Piddingtons or risk getting into more trouble. If she told Dede she was worried that Mr. Piddington might let the canary out, Dede would only laugh and say Emily was being ridiculous andself-important. She couldn’t very well admit to Dede that she thought he might have let the canary out the first time to get back at her for the cigarettes going missing. Even worse, Piddington knew she was trapped, and he was enjoying it.
    At supper, Emily exerted the tiny bit of power she had. When she set the table, she made sure to give Mr. Piddington the ugly