`` one of the dogs got one , and toby tried to wrestle it away , and the dog bit him , and he was running around and around the yard screaming that his finger was bitten off , and there was blood all over him , and nobody could make him stop so we could see whether it was , and mama was n't here , and mrs. chisholm was down by the creek with the twins ... '' she was stiffening again , and he could see the hot blood rising once more , flushing the back of her neck .