Lady Bonita Takes Marlee To England

Lady Bonita had thought and thought about going to see where Lady Kathleen lived. Little Marlee was so sad. She desperately wanted to go back to the ship, but after thinking it over carefully she decided to take Marlee back to England with her. She thought that since Marlee was so young she would soon forget about the crazy pirate life on board ship and adapt easily to the wonderful life that she had to offer her.

Marlee had beautiful clothes and wonderful food to eat. She had maids and servants to grant her every wish. But seldom did anyone ever see her smile. She would stare out the window for hours if her grandmother didn't distract her by offering her fruit or toys. Even desserts like cake and pudding didn't interest Marlee. She remained a very quiet little girl. She was given flowers and gifts. Marlee wasn't interested in much of anything.
One day one of Lady Bonita's servants suggested that the lass would like a pet. Perhaps that would make her smile. She also hinted that Lady Bonita should let her wear her little pirate dress on days when she was very sad.
Lady Bonita thought about the pet and the dress. For some reason she had saved that dress and had had it pressed and cleaned. She would see about the pet. She didn't like animals in the house, but she loved her little granddaughter so much she chuckled to herself, "Well, old woman, I guess you are going to have to change your ways."
 In the following days she sent for her housekeeper. "Why don't you go see if one of the farmers have any dogs that they can spare. If so bring it back to Taylor House. (In the early days the line of royalty named their homes after the last name of the husband, this being Taylor.) Now make sure that they do not give you a puppy. I will not have accidents on my floors! (Grandma Lu had to laugh and so did the children.)
Within a few days the stableman who took care of the horses told Lady Bonita that he had seen some miniature horses at the sale in town. He thought that they might make little Marlee smile.

The housekeeper brought a Shar-pei dog who was very wrinkled. Lady Bonita frowned and started to send the dog back, but little Marlee took one look at the wrinkled dog and said, "Oh, you will be my friend. I will call you Stashia." Marlee leaned in close and kissed the friendly dog.
Grandma Lu said, "Well, when she saw Marlee kiss that dog, she about fainted dead away!" Once again everybody laughed.
The next day the stableman asked to speak to Lady Bonita. She had the butler show him into her study. "My Lady, I found some little horses for your granddaughter. Would you like to take a look?"
Lady Bonita agreed and went outside and looked where the stableman pointed. "There they are out in the field. They are just the right size for her don't you think?" She hated to admit it, but she did think they were just right for her little granddaughter. Maybe these little horses would give her granddaughter a reason to smile. She just had to find something to make Marlee a happy little girl.