Chapter 4 In the attic
That first night in the attic, Sara lay awake in the dark. She could hear rats scuffling in the walls -My father's dead! "She sobbed." I'll never see him again"
Every day, Sara was sent on errand after errand. She was expected to go out in all weathers and to dust and scrub the rooms. At the end of each busy day, Miss Minchin sent her to the schoolroom to study, so she would learn enough to teach the younger pupils.
over time, Sara's frocks grew shorter and shabbier and she became thin and pale. The other pupils stopped talking to her. "To think she was the girl with the diamond mines, scoffed Lavinia. Now she's nothing alma "I won't cry," thought Sara, biting hard on her lip. "I won't Her only friend was Becky. Theu had little chance to talk during the day, but each night, Becky crept into Sara's room.
"Let's pretend this room is covered in thick, soft rugs," said Sara. Over in the corner there's a little sofa, with cushions you can curl up on and a blazing fire. ooh!" said Beck stretching out her hands. I can almost feel it, miss. "
But once Becky had left, Sara's vision faded from her mind, and the attic was as cold and bare as before. Sometimes," Sara thought, it feels like the loneliest place in the world."