No, no, no, no, no noooooooooo.
I grasped the door handles and pulled. No joy.
"Let me out, please," I said, trying to keep the panic from my voice.
My polite request was answered with giggles.
"This is not at all amusing."
More giggles.
"You can absolutely forget about cake. In fact, I have reevaluated my beliefs about children and sweets. I no longer think your delicate little stomachs can handle rich foods. It is going to be plain, boring food from here on out. And tripe, sooooo much tripe."
"I like tripe," chimed Belinda from the other side of the doors.
"That is utter tripe. No one likes tripe."
Again with the giggling.
"All right, you have had your laugh, now let me out."
"I am sorry, but I cannot let you out yet," replied a most unexpected voice. Georgiana.
Before I could process this new revelation a tall, handsome figure strode up to the door and knocked lightly. "What is this rumpus?" my husband asked, but there was no severity in his tone. He was shamelessly soft when it came to his young cousins. He will make for an even more indulgent parent than I will.
Not that we will ever be parents.
Because I am never forgiving him.
Obviously.
"We are holding you both captive until you kiss and make friends," said Belinda.
I eyed Dar—the person standing next to me—suspiciously. He had told me he would be in the library if I needed him, perhaps he had become tired of waiting for me to break down and took matters into his own hands.
"Did you engineer this little trap?" I asked him.
"I did not," he said, clearly not appreciating my accusation.
Henrietta could not let her brilliance go unacknowledged. She said, "He wishes he was that clever. I came up with it all on my own."
"I helped!"
"Yes, Bel helped and Georgie got the key."
"I will not open this door until you both stop acting like stubborn children and have a sensible conversation. You have been shooting each other glares and muttering gibes under your breathes for three days now and it is quite beyond what I will tolerate.
"We will leave you to your privacy to work things out. I will come back to check on your progress in one hour," said Georgiana, sounding very much like a governess indeed. Unfortunately she was trying to school the wrong pupils.
No! Where was my shy, sweet sister-in-law who I thought was beginning to like me? The Georgiana I knew was far too mild to make such a hardhearted declaration. And Belinda and Henrietta! They were little imps, but they were supposed to bemylittle imps.
I had been betrayed.
"Do not bother trying to ring for Saunders; we disabled the bell," said Henrietta, delivering the final blow.
"Come back," I begged as I heard their retreating footsteps.
Sixteen
