Clementine Rose found Digby Pert-whistle in the dining room, setting the huge mahogany table for dinner.

‘Hello Clemmie,’ he said. ‘What have you been up to now?’

Clementine gulped. She wondered if Uncle Digby had special powers. He always seemed to know when there was trouble about.

‘Nothing much,’ she replied, not quite ready to talk about the burnt hair. ‘I met Aunt Violet’s sphynx.’

‘Oh, yes, and what sort of a creature is this sphynx?’ Digby asked.

‘Aunt Violet says that he’s a cat but he’s the strangest looking cat I’ve ever seen. He’s got no hair,’ Clementine explained. ‘But I don’t think she can see that.’

Digby considered this. ‘Interesting.’

‘He’s not interesting,’ Clementine replied. ‘He’s ugly.’

‘Perhaps he has a special personality,’ said Digby.

Clementine shook her head. ‘I don’t think so. He even hissed at Aunt Violet.’

‘Sounds like a smart cat if you ask me,’ said Digby, his lips twitching. He continued putting the cutlery in place.

‘Uncle Digby, I need to tell you something,’ said Clementine. She took a small step closer to the man, then another, until she stood right beside him.

He turned and bent down to meet her gaze. ‘Uh-oh. What have you done now, Clementine?’

‘Well,’ she began, ‘I didn’t mean to but it just sort of happened.’

‘I have to get some wine from the cellar,’ said Digby. ‘Why don’t you come with me and you can explain on the way.’

Clementine nodded.

On the evenings they had guests, Clementine, her mother and Digby Pertwhistle usually ate in the kitchen before the meal was served. But tonight Clarissa wasn’t quite sure what to do. Aunt Violet wasn’t a paying guest but she was expecting to be served in the dining room.

After his visit to the cellar with Clementine, Digby Pertwhistle was as puzzled by what to do about the man and his missing hair as Clementine was.

She hadn’t realised exactly how tricky a subject hair was. When her mother told her that they would be eating in the dining room with Aunt Violet and the guests, Clementine asked if she could have dinner with Uncle Digby instead.

‘No, Clemmie,’ her mother replied. ‘I need you to be charming to everyone and hopefully Aunt Violet will behave herself. Digby, I hope you don’t mind serving all of us tonight.’

‘Of course not, my dear. Although perhaps if you made Violet eat her dinner out here in the kitchen with us as we usually do, she might pack her bags and head for home,’ Digby suggested.

‘I had thought of that,’ said Clarissa, ‘but I don’t want her making a fuss and upsetting the guests, which she’s sure to do if we leave her out here. She still doesn’t know that we run the house as a hotel. She’s such a terrible snob. I can’t imagine she’ll be pleased when she finds out. Mrs Mogg is coming to help with dinner so I can look after Aunt Violet. And I still don’t know why she’s here. She won’t give me a straight answer.’

‘Maybe she wants to make up and be friends,’ Clementine suggested. ‘And give you a present. She has lots of things in her suitcase.’

‘How do you know what she has in her suitcase?’ asked Clarissa, casting her daughter a stern look. ‘I hope you haven’t been snooping, young lady.’

Clementine shook her head. ‘I went to visit her and her bag was open and she has candlesticks and a clock and even a bronze statue of a horse.’

‘Really? Why would she bring all of that with her?’ Clarissa bit her lip and looked thoughtful, then shook herself and said, ‘Anyway, Clementine, run along and put on a fresh dress and then come straight back down to the dining room. And no more spying.’

Clementine nodded. ‘I’m going to wear my green stripes with the pink cardigan. Can Lavender come too?’

‘Oh no, Clemmie, not tonight. Make sure that she has a fresh bowl of water and her litter box is clean and I’ll take her up some pellets,’ her mother instructed. ‘I don’t think Lavender would improve Aunt Violet’s mood at all.’

The child skipped off up the back stairs that led from the kitchen to the upper levels. She opened her bedroom door and found Lavender pushing a little ball all over the floor. The pig squealed when she saw her mistress.

‘Hello Lavender.’ Clementine gave the tiny pig a scratch on the top of her head. ‘Sorry, but Mummy says you have to stay up here tonight. We’ve got to eat dinner with the guests in the dining room and I’m scared about seeing the man from the sitting room,’ she explained to the pig, who had scrambled into her lap and was enjoying a rub on her grey belly. ‘I think Aunt Violet’s going to tell on me.’

Lavender grunted and closed her eyes.

‘I told Uncle Digby what happened and he said that perhaps we should just wait and see. But I don’t know what we’re waiting for and I already know what we’ll see. That man is as bald as Aunt Violet’s cat. I haven’t told you about him, have I? He’s very strange,’ said Clementine, looking at Lavender’s pink tummy. ‘I suppose you don’t really have much hair either,’ she observed, ‘but you’re a pig and you’re not meant to have hair. Cats are.’

Clementine placed Lavender back on the floor and checked the water bowl and litter box, which was over in the corner of the room behind a screen. Then she took her green striped dress from the wardrobe and changed.

‘Be good, Lavender, and I’ll bring you some vegetables.’ Clementine pulled on her cardigan and sat down to buckle her pink shoes.

Lavender grunted and waddled over to her basket.

‘I’ll see you after dinner.’ Clementine quickly ran a brush through her hair and found a green hairclip to pin back the sweep of blonde hair that covered her eyes. ‘There.’