‘I don’t want you to get your hopes up,’ Elspeth said. ‘Whatever is down there, there’ll be beams. Maybe steel, insulation, and all sorts of hardware. Chances are this is just another dead end.’

‘We’re already at a dead end,’ Meggy said.

‘True. Now, stay back in case any splinters start flying. And don’t forget. It’s his flat below us. If we disturb him and he comes up here in a rage, you just go and get into bed. Pretend you’ve been asleep this whole time.’

‘How much do you think he can hear?’ Meggy asked, whispering suddenly. ‘When I ran up here there were two flights of stairs. We’re at the top of the house. Would the noise go all the way to the ground floor?’

‘It might. I guess we’ll find out pretty fast. He usually comes up to me in the evenings, so maybe he’s out during the day. You willing to take that chance?’

‘It’s better than doing nothing,’ Meggy said.

‘I agree, but let’s be as quiet as we can anyway. If we make a loud noise, we’ll stop to see if we can hear him coming up, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Meggy said.

‘Right, well, I’m ready.’

Elspeth knelt to the side of the damaged floorboard and carefully slid her fingers in deep enough that she could bend them, knuckles still showing above the cavity. Bracing herself, knees pushed hard into the floor, she tugged. The floorboard creaked and allowed itself to be bent fractionally in its centre, but did not give. Elspeth tried again. More creaking, some splinters coming away from the edges of the gap. But nothing more.

‘Here, let me help,’ Meggy said, kneeling behind Elspeth and wrapping her arms around the woman’s chest.

‘On three. One, two, three!’

Meggy pulled, wrenching Elspeth’s shoulders. The board gave a bonfire-style crackle, and Meggy flew backwards, tumbling over her own feet. Elspeth landed hard on her backside, holding a small piece of floorboard in her hand. She waved it at Meggy.

‘Got a piece! We did it. Come on. It’ll be easier to work on now.’

They threw themselves into it, pulling away a section of the board that was beginning to rot but still holding on to its strength. At last it was gone, a four foot by five inch black hole in its place. Grasping the next boards to either side, they tried to increase the hole, pulling, bashing, finding themselves fighting proper carpentry and more solid wood.

‘It can’t just have been one rotten board,’ Elspeth said. ‘There must be others. We have to lift more of the carpet.’

‘Wait,’ Meggy said. ‘I can get my leg down into the space and kick upwards. I should be able to shift the board at the end.’

She raced away, reappearing seconds later clutching pink-and-white striped trainers.

‘He bought me shoes. What a bloody idiot,’ Meggy declared.