Instantly, she saw that she had made a serious mistake. She had entered a small washroom and had trapped herself. And Ma Harper was practically upon her.
Penny did the only possible thing. She slammed the door and turned the key in the lock. For a moment at least, she was beyond reach.
“I’ve really trapped myself now!” she thought, recapturing her breath. “What a mess! If I had used my head this wouldn’t have happened.”
Penny sat down on the edge of the bathtub to think. Already Ma Harper was pounding and thumping on the flimsy wooden door panel. The door rattled on its hinges.
“You open up or I’ll break down the door!” the woman shouted furiously. “You hear me?”
Penny did not answer. There was no escape from the washroom for it had no window. The tub upon which she sat was ringed with dirt, evidently having seen no use in many weeks. Above her head stretched a short clothesline upon which hung a row of Ma Harper’s stockings.
“You let me in!” Ma Harper shouted again. “If I ever lay hands on you, you’ll pay for this!”
The threat left Penny entirely unmoved. She had no intention of opening the door, no matter what the woman might say or do.
Realizing that her tactics were gaining nothing, Ma tried another approach.
“Please let me in,” she coaxed in a falsely sweet voice. “We won’t hurt you. If you come out now, we’ll let you go home just as you want to do.”