They huddled together and spoke in low voices so the witch would not hear them.

‘Where’s the Lady now, pup?’ whispered Flax.

The pup sniffed the air. ‘She is several tunnels away.’

‘Do you think the room next to Uncle Edwin was hers?’ asked Rose. ‘There was a desk, wasn’t there? And lots of papers? I’m sure there were papers.’

‘As long as she’s not nearby,’ said Flax. ‘If you call a thunderstorm, pup, we might be able to use my last thread of magic to escape. You can call it from in here, can’t you?’

‘I – I think so,’ said the pup. ‘But we should try the key first.’

Rose shook her head. ‘We tried the key. It didn’t work.’

‘It didn’t work in those doors,’ said the pup. ‘But it might work in this one.’

He’s right, thought Flax. And she whispered to the toasting fork, ‘Will you be a key again?’

‘It’s no use,’ said the toasting fork. ‘I can smell the magic from here.’

‘Could you just try?’

‘Do I ask you to go around sticking your nose into mouldy horse droppings? No, it’s always me,’ grumbled the toasting fork. (But now it was a key.) ‘Well? What are you waiting for? Let’s get it over with.’

Rose poked the key into the keyhole. It wriggled a bit, getting the shape right. Then it said in a muffled voice, ‘Ugh, this is horrible. Turn me quickly. Though I’m telling you it won’t do you any good.’

Rose turned the key.

And turned it.

‘Told you so,’ said the key. ‘Now get me out of here. It’s disgusting.’

And as soon as Rose drew it out of the lock, it became a toasting fork again.

‘Right,’ whispered Flax. ‘We definitely need a thunderstorm, pup.’

She looked around the small cell. There wasn’t much to it. Just a bed attached to the wall, and a chair, and a bucket in the corner.

‘Do you know what to do?’ she asked.

‘I – I think so,’ said the pup.

His ears were flat. His tail was tucked between his legs.

‘I’m sure you can do it,’ Rose said softly.

The pup licked his lips and braced himself. He raised his head …

‘Wait!’ whispered Flax. ‘I hear footsteps. The Lady’s coming back.’