Marguerite had been unconscious for a week, Challenger and Finn called it a coma and there were no signs of her coming out of it.

Roxton had taken up residence in her room, sleeping on the rickety chair Marguerite had for some reason always insisted in keeping in her room. Her head was wrapped in a clean white bandage that also made Roxton think she looked very small every time he looked at her.

Roxton woke to a rustling sound coming from the bed, and looked in that direction with hope in his eyes. To his immense relief, Marguerite was sitting up and looking around the room, but for some reason was sucking on her thumb.

"Marguerite?" he called, getting her attention. She whirled in her bed to face him, horror written across her face. The fear seemed to ebb when she saw him, but not much.

"Who arew you?" she asked in a small childlike voice.

Confused and getting worried, he answered, "It's me, Roxton." Instantly the terror returned ten fold.

"Lorwd Wokthton?! Pweathe don't whip me, sirw. I'm sowwy for pwaying in the thtanding thtones," she pleaded frantically, leaping out of the bed and backing away from him. Roxton tried to approach her, but she wouldn't let him, and wailed all the louder whenever he got close, jumping away and scrambling to the far side of the room.

It wasn't long before the rest of the household was running into the room to see what was going on. The presence of three more people only made things worse. By this time anything that might have made sense coming from Marguerite had become incoherent ramblings as she dodged the four people trying to calm her down.

"What did you do?!" Veronica demanded, covering her ears.

"I didn't do anything, she just went nuts!" Roxton defended

Suddenly something Marguerite was shrieking struck home in Veronica's mind. "Pweathe don't teww Unca Fwanthith."

"Everybody out!" she ordered sternly, taking the explorers by surprise. "I'll handle this, but she isn't going to calm down until all of you leave."

Finn, Challenger and Roxton hurried to comply, tripping over each other, all wanting the awful noise Marguerite was making to stop.

As soon as they were gone Veronica took a slow step toward the frightened woman. "Marguerite, it's me, Veronica. Do you know who I am?"

"Arew you Lorwd Wokthton'th wife?" she sniffled, beginning to calm down after the men left the room.

Veronica brow creased. "No, Lord Roxton isn't married," she stated as she moved a little closer.

Marguerite screwed up her face in confusion, "Yeth he ith, and has two boyth, boff biggerw than me, I theen 'em."

Veronica stopped her slow advance and starred at Marguerite, who was sucking her thumb, a sick feeling of dread creeping through her. "Marguerite, how old are you?"

"I'm thix and a half," she answered, pulling her self up taller in pride.

Veronica wiped her hand across her face. "We are in so much trouble."

***

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