"Absurd?" exclaimed Alfred, turning upon her in amazement, "what
do you mean?"
"It's a joke," said Zoie, without the slightest idea of where the
joke lay. "If you had any sense you could see it."
"I DON'T see it," said Alfred, with hurt dignity.
"Neither do I," said Jimmy, with boiling resentment.
"Can you call it a joke," asked Alfred, incredulously, "to have
our boy----" He stopped suddenly, remembering that there was a
companion piece to this youngster. "The other one!" he
exclaimed, "our other boy----" He rushed to the crib, found it
empty, and turned a terrified face to Zoie. "Where is he?" he
demanded.
"Now, Alfred," pleaded Zoie, "don't get excited; he's all right."
"How do you know?" asked the distracted father.
Zoie did not know, but at that moment her eyes fell upon Jimmy,
and as usual he was the source of an inspiration for her.
"Jimmy never cared for the other one," she said, "did you,
Jimmy?"
Alfred turned to the officer, with a tone of command. "Wait," he
said, then he started toward the bedroom door to make sure that
his other boy was quite safe. The picture that confronted him
brought the hair straight up on his head. True to her promise,
and ignorant of Jimmy's return with the first baby, Aggie had
chosen this ill-fated moment to appear on the threshold with one
babe on each arm.
"Here they are," she said graciously, then stopped in amazement
at sight of the horrified Alfred, clasping a third infant to his
breast.
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