He decided forthwith to tell her everything, and
never, never again to run the risk of deceiving her; but before
he could open his lips, she continued gaily:
"I've brought Zoie home with me, dear. There's no sense in her
eating all alone, and she's going to have ALL her dinners with
us." Jimmy groaned. "After dinner," continued Aggie, "you and I
can take her to the theatre and all those places and keep her
cheered until Alfred comes home."
"Home?" repeated Jimmy in alarm. Was it possible that Alfred had
already relented?
"Oh, he doesn't know it yet," explained Aggie, "but he's coming.
We'll tell you all about it at dinner." And they did.
While waiting for Aggie, Jimmy had thought himself hungry, but
once the two women had laid before him their "nefarious
baby-snatching scheme"--food lost its savour for him, and one
course after another was taken away from him untouched.
Each time that Jimmy ventured a mild objection to his part in the
plan, as scheduled by them, he met the threatening eye of Zoie;
and by the time that the three left the table he was so harassed
and confused by the chatter of the two excited women, that he was
not only reconciled but eager to enter into any scheme that might
bring Alfred back, and free him of the enforced companionship of
Alfred's nerve-racking wife. True, he reflected, it was possible
that Alfred, on his return, might discover him to be the culprit
who lunched with Zoie and might carry out his murderous threat;
but even such a fate was certainly preferable to interminable
evenings spent under the same roof with Zoie.
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