They finished shopping. Leah kept quiet as Tina pushed the cart towards the car, unloaded everything, and then buckled her into the car seat she kept for daycare emergencies. Tina put the cart back in the corral and got into the car. She looked at Leah in the rearview mirror.
“You’re probably wondering why I was treating you like a toddler,” Tina said. Leah nodded. “Well, sweetie, you did decide to prank me by messing yourself. I figured that I should just treat you the age that you were acting like when you pulled that stupid prank.”
“You mean…”
“That’s right,” Tina said with a nod. “For all intents and purposes, you are a toddler until the punishment ends. You’ll take naps, eat toddler food, watch toddler shows, play with toddler toys, and poop and pee your diapies.”
Dread built in Leah’s gut. She knew her stepmother. Tina tended to have punishments that lasted way longer than necessary.
“How long?” Leah asked quietly.
“Speak up, sweetheart,” Tina said dangerously. Leah swallowed nervously.
“How long are you going to treat me like this?” she asked, more loudly this time.
“I want to make sure you’ve learned your lesson,” Tina said, “so the punishment will last for…”