‘The children who arrived last night,’ she said. ‘My brother Mikey, he’s just over a year old, and Shane’s sister Jenny – she’s five. Surely you must have seen them?’

The girl shook her head. ‘Afraid not. If they were here, I’d know about it. Now come on, we don’t have much time.’

‘We know they’re here,’ said Shane. ‘The Clurichaun told us.’

The girl sighed and rubbed her eyes. ‘Oh, the Clurichaun told you, did he? I’ve met him a couple of times and I hardly think he’s the most trustworthy of creatures. Did you stop to consider that he might have been lying to you? Or having some fun? They do that, you know. Him and all the others. They don’t usually make a habit of being helpful.’

‘Well, he, uh … he didn’t really have a choice in the matter,’ said Cat looking sheepish. ‘I sort of trapped him.’

‘You trapped him?’

‘Only for a few minutes. We had a deal – I’d let him go if he told me everything he knew.’

‘He could have been lying,’ said the girl.

‘Fairies can’t lie,’ said Cat.

‘But they can exaggerate and twist the truth to suit themselves, which is basically the same thing.’

‘Everything he’s told us has come true so far,’ said Shane. ‘He told us how to escape the Merrow and that creepy headless coachman. He didn’t have to tell us that, but he did. That’s why we trust him.’

The girl’s eyes widened. ‘You saw the Dullahan?’ she said in an almost-whisper.

‘We not only saw him,’ said Cat, crossing her arms in defiance. ‘We beat him. We’ve come all this way and we’ve been through so much already. We’re not leaving without Mikey and Jenny so if you’re not going to help us, you can at least tell us how to get back to the Great Hall. The Clurichaun told us we didn’t have long to find our brother and sister. If we don’t get them back before dawn–’

‘Then they’ll be lost to you forever,’ said the girl, quietly. ‘Yes. I know.’

The fight seemed to go out of her, and she suddenly looked exhausted and much older than her years. Cat looked at the girl again – really looked at her. Her dress was decades out of fashion, though not quite as old-fashioned as ghost-Caitriona’s had been, and her long, blonde hair was curled into perfect ringlets. She reminded Cat of the girls she saw in Granny’s old photo album. No, she didn’t just remind Cat …

‘Wait, are you … Nancy?’ she asked.

The girl looked at Cat, her eyes wide with shock. ‘I … I think so. It’s been such a long time since I’ve heard that name. Maybe hundreds of years … I’d almost forgotten.’

Cat reached out and squeezed her hand. ‘Not quite as long as that, but yeah, it’s been a while. I know your friend Mary. I’m …’ Cat hesitated, not sure if her words would help the girl or hurt her. She decided to tell her the truth. ‘I’m her granddaughter. My name is Caitriona, but everyone calls me Cat.’