The possessive female was
aroused in Annie. So he left her.
It is no use saying she was not surprised. She was at first startled,
thrown out of her count. For she had been so _very_ sure of holding him.
For a while she was staggered, and everything became uncertain to her.
Then she wept with fury, indignation, desolation, and misery. Then she
had a spasm of despair. And then, when he came, still impudently, on to
her car, still familiar, but letting her see by the movement of his head
that he had gone away to somebody else for the time being, and was
enjoying pastures new, then she determined to have her own back.
She had a very shrewd idea what girls John Thomas had taken out. She went
to Nora Purdy. Nora was a tall, rather pale, but well-built girl, with
beautiful yellow hair. She was rather secretive.
'Hey!' said Annie, accosting her; then softly, 'Who's John Thomas on with
now?'
'I don't know,' said Nora.
'Why tha does,' said Annie, ironically lapsing into dialect. 'Tha knows
as well as I do.'
'Well, I do, then,' said Nora. 'It isn't me, so don't bother.'
'It's Cissy Meakin, isn't it?'
'It is, for all I know.'
'Hasn't he got a face on him!' said Annie. 'I don't half like his cheek.
I could knock him off the foot-board when he comes round at me.'
'He'll get dropped-on one of these days,' said Nora.
'Ay, he will, when somebody makes up their mind to drop it on him.
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