Mite!

“Hello?” she chirped from behind the leather trunk.

“It’s you!” exclaimed Alfred, his voice echoing around the vault.

“Yep, it’s me!” replied Mite. “And it’s you, whoever you are!”

Her face was even dirtier than usual. She had a packet of something brown, no doubt swiped from the kitchen, that she was munching on. And she had got it all around her mouth.

“What have you got there?” demanded Nanny.

“Chocolate!”

“Give me that!” ordered the old lady.

She went to snatch the packet, and a struggle began.

“NO!” protested the girl.

“Give me that!”

“I said ‘no’!”

“LADIES, PLEASE!” ordered Alfred. “This is unseemly.”

“You wot?” asked Mite.

It was enough of a distraction for Nanny to wrench the packet out of the girl’s filthy little hands. She sniffed it.

“This isn’t chocolate!” scoffed Nanny.

“Wot is it, then?” demanded Mite.

“Stock cubes.”

“I did think they tasted a bit meaty. I never had chocolate before, so I dunno wot it tastes like, do I?”

With that, the little girl snatched the packet back from the old lady, and carried on munching.

“Eurgh!” exclaimed Alfred.

“Now last time up in the junk room you gave us the slip,” began Nanny. “You need to tell me where this secret passage is right now!”

“You’re a right bossy one, you are!” was the girl’s verdict.

Alfred had to stifle a giggle. She was absolutely right.

“I said, right now!” said Nanny, not the least bit amused.

Mite munched some more on her stock cubes. “I’ll think about it.”

“What do you mean, you’ll think about it?”

“I’ll let you know when I’ve finished this!”

Nanny sighed and tried a different approach. “If you do as I say, I will show you where all the chocolate is hidden.”

The girl was tempted. “You will?”

“Oh yes. The palace has mountains of the stuff. To last a hundred years. You can help yourself to as many chocolate bars as you can carry.”

“I can carry a lot!”

“Milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate, mint chocolate, orange chocolate, ruby chocolate, caramel chocolate, fudge chocolate, nutty chocolate!”

“Now I want some too!” said Alfred.

“All right, all right, I’ll show you!” said Mite.

“Clever girl!” replied Nanny.

“Chocolate first.”

Nanny sighed. “The kitchen is all the way up those stairs, and I bet that underground passage is somewhere down here.”

“You’re right,” said Mite. “Follow me!”

She galloped along the vault, as the other two trailed behind.

“I nearly got caught earlier. There were all these guards down here,” remarked the girl. “Moving something around in the dark. You just missed them.”

Alfred shot Nanny a look.

“I told you it was true!” he said.

“What’s true?” asked Mite.

“It’s a long story,” replied Nanny, shutting down the conversation. “Not for your ears. Now where is this secret passage?”

“This way!” chirped the girl.

Right in the furthest corner of the vault was a loose stone in the floor.

“It’s under here,” said Mite, stamping the stone with her bare foot.

“Show me!” demanded Nanny.

The little girl huffed and slid the stone away.

CHONK!

Peering down into the gloom, all three could see a series of stone steps leading to what sounded like a river.

RUSH!

“Down there used to be part of the London Underground?” asked Alfred.

“Yeah. You can still make out some of the station names at low tide. Piccadilly Circus. Green Park. Knightsbridge.”

“The Piccadilly Line!” exclaimed the prince.

“Well I never,” said Nanny. “It must be another secret escape route built during World War Two. So secret that nobody knew of it. Good girl!”

“Now I want my chocolate!” Mite demanded.

“Of course. Of course. You will have so much chocolate you’ll be sick as a dog!”

“YES!”

“Here. Let me take you!” said the old lady, putting the girl’s hand in hers. “My little prince?”

“Yes,” sighed the boy.

“Funny name!” giggled Mite.

“I know,” he agreed.

“My little prince,” began Nanny again, “you need to go straight back to your room!”

“BUT—!”

“No buts! You need to go now.”

“But I want some chocolate too!”

“He’s not having the fudge one!” argued Mite.

“I will bring you up a bar, just as soon as I’ve taken care of this little one!” replied Nanny.

Together they made their way out of the vault.