The writing pauses. I feel weak at the knees, sick. Rose’s fingers find mine and for the first time in years we hold hands. The writing begins again with a large sweeping R.

I feel a rush of giddy relief. It’s not me. Crowky won’t get to Home, not yet anyway! He must realize this too because a flash of anger crosses his face.

Then a question mark gleams and the message is complete.

What’s in the box, Rose?

Rose’s fingers slip out of mine and my relief is replaced by guilt. Crowky cackles. “What’s in the box, Rose? Tell us!”

“I don’t know.” Her voice is tight with panic.

“Then let’s find out.”

“NO!” I shout, but already he’s opening the lid.

We stare at the Box as snow falls gently around us. Nothing happens. The golden words fade away, and I have this brilliant moment when I think, It’s stopped working! Nothing’s coming out!

Then we hear a soft, low growl. It echoes around the clearing. It slips between the trees. It floats on the air and creeps inside me, making the hairs on my neck prickle. The growl is coming from the Box.

A snout and then two gray ears appear. The top of a head follows, huge and thick with fur. It’s some sort of animal. Two yellow eyes peer out. They slide from left to right, then settle on Rose.

“It’s a wolf,” I say. But this doesn’t make any sense. Rose isn’t scared of wolves; in fact, they’re one of her favorite animals. She’s even got this sweatshirt she bought from a shop on the pier with a wolf’s face on it!

The wolf sniffs the air—eyes still on Rose—and a sly smile creeps across its face.

Rose laughs nervously. “That’s not my fear. Look at it. It’s beautiful!”

The wolf leaps effortlessly from the Box and drops down in the snow. It pauses, then pads toward Rose. It stops in front of her, its head hanging from gigantic shoulders. “Hello,” she says, reaching out a hand.

The wolf wrinkles its nose, curls its lips over sharp teeth, and snarls. Saliva flies into the air and Rose shrinks back. Crowky is watching this with a look of delight. His hands are clenched and his wings are open and beating the air.

“Ignore it, Rose.” I grab her arm. “Look at me. Pretend it isn’t here!”

“It’s hard, Arthur. It’s big!”

The wolf stretches its head back and howls into the sky. Rose huddles between me and Win. “It’s just one wolf, Rose,” I say. “You’ve tamed dragons. I bet you could tame a wolf too!”

Then Win says, “Something else is coming out.”