Ella pulled her gold necklace out of her jumper and rolled the gold beads between her fingers. She’d got the necklace in the Victoria and Albert Museum, next door to the Natural History Museum. Chose it out of all the ones in the display cases. It had gold beads and the head of a man with a beard dangling off the bottom. It was the head of Achelous apparently. Some sort of Greek god. The name had reminded her of Achilleus, who was a great fighter.

If only Achilleus had come with them when they’d left the museum. He’d have protected her and Monkey-Boy. He was their champion. If he knew she was here he’d come charging out of London with his spear and kill everyone.

But he didn’t know, though, did he? And all she had was Face-Ache and this necklace.

Ella prayed to Achelous to look after her.

Chapter 5

5

When they went back outside, Ella saw that there was something tangled in the wires on the other side of the farm gate. Some large animal. The wires must be connected to a bell, as a warning. She could hear it ringing, off in the bushes. As they walked closer, though, she saw that it wasn’t an animal, it was a grown-up, a mother. And she was still alive. Struggling feebly. Ringing the bell. Ting-a-ling-a-ling.

They climbed over the gate, ducked under the high wire and Scarface went to inspect his prey.

Ella held back. Shaking slightly.

The mother was quite a large woman and most of her hair was missing, apart from a few long, trailing, greasy strands. She was wearing what looked like a filthy nightie and had bare legs and feet. Her skin looked all white with purple blotches and lumpy yellow growths.

She was hanging off a long pole with spikes fixed all along it, some of which were stuck in her back.

The wire must be a tripwire.

Sam used to have one he’d got from the Science Museum. It made an alarm go off if you trod on it. He sometimes used to put it in the bedroom doorway.

This tripwire was different. It obviously made this long, bendy pole fly out from the bushes. Ella remembered arriving here the other night. Stepping over the wire, not knowing what would happen if she touched it …

She imagined that pole springing out, whacking into her, those spikes going into her skin, her body.

The mother was impaled on it. She was wriggling, trying to get free, not understanding what was holding her there. Blood was dripping into a pool beneath her. Her mouth and eyes were twisting and going narrow then wide, like she was trying to make faces, chewing the air, bending her neck. Scarface sighed through his nose, took a knife from his belt and lifted her chin.

Ella turned away as he put the blade to her throat.