just as mad as a hornet

“Quit it!” Catherine yelled, and all of a sudden she was crying. He heard his Aunt Hannah’s sharp voice from the kitchen: “Rufus?” He was furious with Catherine. “Crybaby,” he whispered with cold hatred: “Tattletale!” And there was Aunt Hannah at the door, just as mad as a hornet. “Now, what’s the matter? What have you done to her!” She walked straight at him. It wasn’t fair. How did she know he was doing anything? With a feeling of real righteousness he talked back: “I didn’t do one single thing to her. She was just messing everything up on her picture and I tried to help her like you told me to and all of a sudden she started to cry.” “What did he do, Catherine?” “He wouldn’t let me alone.” “Why good night, I never even touched you and you’re a liar if you say I did!” All of a sudden he felt himself gripped by the shoulders and shaken and he turned his rattling head from his sister to look into his Aunt Hannah’s freezing glare. “Now you just listen to me,” she said. “Are you listening?” she sputtered. “Are you listening?” she said still more intensely. “Yes,” he managed to get out, though the word was all shaken up. “I don’t want to spank you on this day of all days, but if I hear you say one more rough thing like that to your sister I’ll give you a spanking you’ll remember to your dying day, do you hear me? Do you hear me?” “Yes.” “And if you tease her or make her cry just one more time I’ll—I’ll turn the whole matter over to your Uncle Andrew and we’ll see what he’ll do about it. Do you want me to call him? He’s upstairs this minute! Shall I call him?” She stopped shaking him and looked at him. “Shall I?” He shook his head; he was terrified. “All right, but this is my last warning. Do you understand?” “Yes’m.”