I quickly turned to face it. At first I found it difficult to make sense of what I saw. It was dressed in a long black coat fastened with white buttons that could have been made from bone. Its hands were covered in dark fur and its face resembled that of a wolf, but it had been shaved so that, apart from the elongated jaw and sharp teeth, it had a human quality, and the eyes were intelligent. The expression was human too: it showed a mixture of amusement, scorn and arrogance.

But the most significant thing about the strange entity was its size. This was nothing like a squirrel. It was at least as tall as me. Then I remembered what Jenny had said about her “beastie”—something that I’d dismissed at the time.

It could alter its size.

And I was trapped in here with it.

I stared at the creature, my confidence ebbing. It opened its mouth a little, and saliva began to drip from its jaws as if it was anticipating the first taste of a tempting meal. I was now on the menu. It would drain my blood if I didn’t stop it.

“I’m here to put an end to your murdering ways,” I told the creature, trying to take the initiative. But my voice wobbled with fear as I spoke.

“Murder, little human? What do you mean? I have killed nobody here yet. You will be the first.”

“You’ve killed three girls. Don’t try to deny it.”

“Ah, girls—you mean purrai! That is not murder. Such females exist simply to obey, and their lives may be taken at whim. I am surprised you do not agree. I had a great thirst, so I drank their blood. It is my right and the way of things. Purrai have no rights.”

I was appalled by his words, so casually spoken. “What you do in your own land is abhorrent to me,” I told him. “But you are in the County now, and what you have done is a crime here.”

The creature gave a grotesque smile, opening its elongated jaws to show its teeth. “Your land will soon belong to my people! Then your women will abide by our laws. As for the men and boys, they will all be dead.”

The words spun around inside my head. I’d been given a warning, but I could think about that later. Now it was time to act!

Swiftly I reached into my breeches pockets and grasped what I had stored there. In my left hand I clutched salt; in my right, iron. Salt burns entities from the dark; iron drains away their power.

I hurled both handfuls at the creature, and the two clouds, one light, the other dark in color, came together perfectly on its head. This was often enough to destroy a boggart; it could also temporarily disable a witch, making it easier to bind her with a silver chain. But my target reacted in a way I’d never seen before.