Marlee Had A Bed That Looked Like a Ship

"Marlee went over to Lady Bonita and begged her to have the servants go to the attic and bring the trunk downstairs. There may be papers in there that would prove that Miss Lexie was part of the family. Lady Bonita stood fast and refused to let her granddaughter have her way."
Finally Lady Kathleen said, "Fine have it your way, but I will have a lawyer force you to show us the papers. I know who my father had for a lawyer. I'm sure he will help us. Of course, all of the Lords and Ladies will know of it and you will have to explain all of this. If I were you I would get the trunk down here and it will be settled once and for all." Grandma Lu said, "Of course, Lady Kathleen was bluffing her way through all of this. She had no clue who her father's lawyer was. If you remember they went to a lawyer. All he wanted was gold."

"Finally Lady Bonita pulled a rope beside her chair that summoned the servants. Shortly the butler knocked and entered the room. She told the butler, "Get some of the servants to help get the trunk downstairs. There are many trunks up there. Since you seem to think you know so much, you go with them and tell them which one you think has papers in it."

Edward replied, "Right away, Madam."
He returned shortly with the trunk. It was dusty and a bit moldy. It was old and very heavy. Edward's white gloves were dirty. That seemed to bother Lady Bonita more than anything. "Open that thing if you can manage it then go change your clothes, Edward. You are a disgrace. You are excused."
"Miss Lexie looked at Lady Kathleen and shook her head. She had never come across a woman that was so mean. But she immediately stood up and went to the trunk."
 Lady Bonita said, "Stop! I will look in this trunk. You have no business getting in there." Lady Kathleen said, "Actually she does, and so do I. This is family business and we will all go through the papers together. Now."
True to form, Lady Bonita took charge of the search. She took handfuls of papers out of the trunk and looked through them all very carefully. She was not alone, however, Lady Kathleen took several layers of papers also. Miss Lexie had to watch because she had not had any education or schooling whatsoever. It was a sad thing to watch, but it couldn't be helped.
"There! Here it is! Lady Kathleen had papers in her outreached hand. There was another brother. His name was Caldwell. He married Lexie's mother after the other brothers were gone. That is why we never knew of him. Miss Lexie is another cousin, Lady Bonita. She is family. It has been recorded in the church files as well as our Uncle's papers with a wax seal of his."
Lady Bonita was very quiet. She didn't know how to handle this situation. Nothing had ever upset her quiet household before. She had always thought she knew her family. She had paintings on the wall of her ancestors. How would she handle this?

Marlee handled it for them all. "I have a bigger family than ever. How much fun we will have. You have to come to the palace across the sea, Grandmama. There are so many bedrooms and so many friends there. I have my very own bed that looks just like a ship too.  I want my whole family together. Please say that you will come, please. I want to live on the island with my Cap'n."
There were tears in Lady Bonita's eyes as she said, "Let us have our dinner and quietly discuss this matter.  I am much too old to be traveling by ship for weeks. I am quite comfortable right here in my home."
Then the conversation erupted into a noisy argument.
Edward, the butler appeared in the dining room, looked at Lady Kathleen and announced that the hansom driver was ready to take Marlee and Miss Lexie and Lady Kathleen to the docks. They should meet him at the front steps of the manor. Well Lady Bonita would not have it. She stood up at the table and told her butler to tell that hansom driver to go back to the city alone. If anyone was going anywhere they would go in style in her carriage. There would be room for everyone. There would be packing to do and trunks to fill and the servants would need to get busy around here if they were all going on a voyage to the island.
"So you see what Lady Kathleen had whispered in the hansom driver's ear had worked. She is a smart lady royal pirate. She knew that Lady Bonita did in fact love Marlee and wouldn't want to be separated from her and also wanted Marlee to be happy. And that is the end of the story! What do you  think?"
Arianna leaned back and said, "Well, I have a lot of questions. Whatever happened to them? Did they make it to the island safely? Where did they live? Did Miss Lexie get to go to school?"
Grandma Lu chuckled and said, "Yes, Arianna, you do have lots of questions. I do know a little more. There once was a very very old pirate"......

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The next story will be the conclusion of this series. It will take place hundreds of years later on the island that had once belonged to Lady Kathleen.