The next afternoon, three children from the Large Family sat in the library with Mr. Carrisford. They wanted to cheer up the invalid (a person who is very sick and cannot move). Mr. Carrisford invited them because he liked them. He was very nervous today. He was waiting for Mr. Carmichael to come back from Moscow. Mr. Carmichael was looking for a lost girl there.
Janet sat on the floor near Mr. Carrisford. Nora sat on a small stool. Donald sat on a rug (a piece of thick cloth that covers part of a floor). This rug was made of a tiger’s skin. Donald jumped up and down on the tiger’s head. He was playing very loudly.
"Do not make so much noise, Donald," Janet said. "You must be quiet when you cheer up a sick person." Janet looked at Mr. Carrisford. "Is our noise too loud for you?" she asked. Mr. Carrisford touched Janet's shoulder. He told Janet that the noise was fine. The children helped him stop thinking about his problems.
Donald said they would be as quiet as mice. Janet told Donald that mice do not shout. Donald used his handkerchief (a small piece of cloth for the nose) like a rope for his tiger. He said that a thousand mice might make a lot of noise. Janet told him to be quiet like just one mouse. Mr. Carrisford laughed at the children.
"My papa will be home soon," Janet said. "Can we talk about the lost little girl?" Mr. Carrisford sighed. He said he could not think about anything else. The children called the lost girl the "un-fairy princess." They called her this because she was not a fairy. However, she would be very rich when they found her.
Nora asked a question about the girl’s father. She asked if he gave his money to a friend for a mine (a deep hole in the ground where people find diamonds). The friend thought he lost all the money, so he ran away. He felt like a thief. Janet felt sorry for the friend. She knew the friend did not want to be bad.
Mr. Carrisford took Janet’s hand. He told Janet that she was a very kind girl. Suddenly, a cab (a carriage pulled by horses) stopped outside the house. Mr. Carmichael was home! The children ran out of the room to meet their father. Mr. Carrisford tried to stand up. He was too weak and sat down again.
Mr. Carmichael came into the room. He looked healthy, but his face was sad. "What is the news?" Mr. Carrisford asked. He asked about the child in Russia. Mr. Carmichael said the girl in Russia was not the right child. Her name was Emily Carew. She was much younger than the girl they wanted to find.
Mr. Carrisford felt very sad and tired. He said they must start the search again. Mr. Carmichael sat down. He wanted to help his friend. He suggested they search for the girl in London. Mr. Carrisford remembered the school next door. He told Mr. Carmichael about a poor girl who lived there.
Just then, Ram Dass came into the room. Ram Dass was the Indian servant. He was very excited. "The girl from next door is here," Ram Dass said. "She brought the monkey back again." He asked if Mr. Carrisford wanted to see her. Mr. Carrisford told Ram Dass to bring the girl inside.
Sara Crewe walked into the room. She held the monkey in her arms. The monkey did not want to leave Sara Crewe. Sara Crewe had red cheeks because she was excited. She told Mr. Carrisford that the monkey came to her window last night. She kept him because it was very cold.
Mr. Carrisford looked at Sara Crewe with interest. Sara Crewe asked if she should give the monkey to the Lascar (a sailor or worker from India). "How do you know he is a Lascar?" Mr. Carrisford asked. Sara Crewe smiled. She said she knew about Lascars because she was born in India.
Mr. Carrisford sat up very quickly. He was very surprised. He took Sara Crewe’s hand and looked at her. He asked if she lived at the school next door. Sara Crewe said she lived at Miss Minchin's school. She told him she was not a student now.
Sara Crewe told him her story. She said she lived in the attic (a room at the very top of a house, under the roof). She worked for the cook and she taught the small children. Mr. Carrisford felt very weak. He asked Mr. Carmichael to ask Sara Crewe more questions.
Mr. Carmichael asked Sara Crewe about her father. Sara Crewe said her father died in India. She said he lost all his money. There was no money left for her, so she had to work. Mr. Carrisford shouted Mr. Carmichael’s name. He was very excited and nervous.
"How did your father lose the money?" Mr. Carrisford asked. Sara Crewe said her father had a friend. He loved his friend very much. He gave his money to the friend, but the friend took it. Sara Crewe said the loss of the money killed her father. Then Mr. Carrisford asked for her father’s name.
"His name was Ralph Crewe," Sara Crewe said. "He was Captain Crewe." Mr. Carrisford gasped. He told Mr. Carmichael that Sara Crewe was the child. Ram Dass gave Mr. Carrisford some medicine because he was very shocked. Sara Crewe was confused and afraid.
"Who am I?" Sara Crewe asked. Mr. Carmichael looked at her. He told Sara Crewe that Mr. Carrisford was her father’s friend. He said they were looking for her for two years. Sara Crewe felt like she was in a dream. She was at the school the whole time. She was living on the other side of the wall.