"He's NOT your baby!" cried the infuriated mother; "he's MY baby.
Give him to me. Give him to me," and with that she sprang upon the
uncomfortable Alfred like a tigress. Throwing her whole weight on his
uplifted elbow, she managed to pull down his arm until she could look
into the face of the washerwoman's promising young offspring. The air
was rent by a scream that made each individual hair of Jimmy's head
stand up in its own defence. He could feel a sickly sensation at the top
of his short thick neck.
"He's NOT my baby," wailed the now demented mother, little dreaming that
the infant for which she was searching was now reposing comfortably on a
soft pillow in the adjoining room.
As for Alfred, all of this was merely confirmation of Zoie's statement
that this poor soul was crazy, and he was tempted to dismiss her with
worthy forbearance.
"I am glad, madam," he said, "that you are coming to your senses."
Now, all would have gone well and the bewildered mother would no doubt
have left the room convinced of her mistake, had not Jimmy's nerves got
the better of his judgment. Having slipped cautiously from his position
behind the armchair he was tiptoeing toward the door, and was flattering
himself on his escape, when suddenly, as his forward foot cautiously
touched the threshold, he heard the cry of the captor in his wake, and
before he could possibly command the action of his other foot, he felt
himself being forcibly drawn backward by what appeared to be his too
tenacious coat-tails.
"If only they would tear," thought Jimmy, but thanks to the excellence
of the tailor that Aggie had selected for him, they did NOT "tear."
Not until she had anchored Jimmy safely to the centre of the rug did the
irate mother pour out the full venom of her resentment toward him. From
the mixture of English and Italian that followed, it was apparent that
she was accusing Jimmy of having stolen her baby.
"Take me to him," she demanded tragically; "my baby--take me to him!"
Jimmy appealed to Aggie and Zoie. Their faces were as blank as his own.
He glanced at Alfred.
"Humour her," whispered Alfred, much elated by the evidence of his
own self-control as compared to Jimmy's utter demoralisation under the
apparently same circumstances.
Still Jimmy did not budge.
Alfred was becoming vexed; he pointed first to his own forehead, then
to that of Jimmy's hysterical captor. He even illustrated his meaning
by making a rotary motion with his forefinger, intended to remind Jimmy
that the woman was a lunatic.