She needed only to think of little Veronica lying next to her to see how such a thing could happen. She must have fallen into the fountain, unless someone pushed her. Of course! Becky wanted a baby of her own, a real-life doll to play with, so she lured Molly into the cave and dunked her in the Fountain of Youth, pulling out a tiny baby.
Everyone must have known about this: Samantha, Prudence, Wendell, and David. Why hadn't any of them ever told her? Why did they let Becky do this to her? Maybe it was a punishment for being bad. Instead of spanking her or sending her to bed without dinner, they turned her into a baby and gave her to Becky to raise. Either Molly had done something terrible or the people she loved were monsters.
Even as Molly considered all this, Becky threw off Veronica's sweater. "Molly? What are you doing here? How did you get inside?" she said.
Molly stood up, unable to keep the tears from her eyes. "Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell me I was a big girl once? You liar!" Molly shouted.
"You heard that? Oh, Molly, I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to find out this way. Let's go home and we'll talk about it. I'll tell you everything, I promise."
"I don't want to go home with you. You're mean and a liar and I don't ever want to see you again."
"Molly, that's enough. You're coming back with me this instant." For the first time Becky noticed Veronica lying on the ground, clad only in a shirt that drooped to her ankles. "Who's this?"
"This is Veronica. She's my friend."
Becky held up the oversized sweater and pants. "You two have been playing with the fountain, haven't you? Molly, how did you get in here? Did someone leave the door open?"
"Veronica and I got in here all by ourselves," Molly said, puffing out her chest with pride.
Becky knelt down beside Veronica, who hadn't moved at all since Becky found them. "Veronica, can you hear me? Can you talk? Are you all right? Nod for me if you're all right, sweetie." Veronica nodded her head slightly. "Good girl. Molly, where did she come from?"
"Across the sea," Molly said. "Her grandfather had a map leading here with all sorts of riddles for her grandmother to solve. She never solved them, but Veronica did."
Becky examined the clothes in her hands again. "How old was Veronica when she came here? How long has she been here?" Molly said nothing. Becky took her by the shoulders and shook her. "Molly, answer me! This is important. We could all be in terrible danger. If anyone else finds this place-"