Magnus, the Warlocks, and her new dress had combined to fire her
determination. She saw, quite suddenly, that she must escape at the
first possible moment.
The house that had been until now the refuge into which she had
escaped became the jumping-off place for her new adventure.
Until now the things in the house had been there to receive her as
one of themselves; from this moment they were there to prevent, if
possible, her release. She felt everything instantly hostile. They
all--Thomas the cat, Edward the parrot, the very sofas and chairs
and cushions--were determined not to let her go.
She saw, more than ever before, that her aunts were preparing some
religious trap for her. They were very quiet about it; they did not
urge her or bully her, but the subtle, silent influence went on so
that the very stair-carpet, the very scuttles that held the coal,
became secret messengers to hale her into the chapel and shut her in
there for ever. After her first visit there the chapel became a
nightmare to her--because, at once, she had felt its power. She had
known--she had always known and it had not needed Mr.
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