Stig’s eyes widen in disbelief. I walk around, blowing out more candles. Instantly the shadows become darker. Something rises to my left: the vague outline of shoulders and a head. I turn and gasp as another figure looms up behind me.

Stig catches my arm and spins me around. Fear and confusion flash across his face. ‘Martha, don’t.’

‘Just trust me, Stig. Please.’

Gandalf snarls at the door. Bending down, I hold his head in my hands and peer into his eyes. ‘I know you’re afraid, but we have to be quiet. We can’t make a sound.’

He licks my hand, and for a moment I’m convinced he actually understands. He jumps onto the sofa and curls up, and I pat his head. ‘Good boy. I love you, Gandalf.’

I straighten and see Stig standing in the kitchen, surrounded by shadowy figures. My body tenses. For an awful moment he seems like one of them. One of the dead.

Two lamps are flickering on the table. I point at them. ‘Please, Stig.’

He shakes his head, refusing to move.

I shut off their flames, plunging us further into darkness. Only one candle remains – on the shelf above the fire. I open the stove door and Stig grabs my shoulder. His jumper brushes me and I get a flash of his fear and powerlessness. Poor Stig can’t see what’s there; he can’t help or protect me. I have to be strong for us both.

I squeeze his hand and he pleads at me with his eyes.

‘I know it seems crazy, but I know what I’m doing.’

Stig moves back with a tiny nod. I throw ash over the embers, then take the last candle and step into the middle of the room. The air is icy and thick with shadows. A noise like rushing water fills my ears as shapes manifest in the darkness: a pair of bare feet with no legs; someone’s broad shoulders. The sound vibrates faster and a hand materialises in mid-air, just inches from my face. I jump back, terrified it will touch me. Shadows reach out from every side. I struggle to breathe.

‘What’s happening?’ cries Stig.

I look at the wavering flame of the candle in my hand. Don’t fear the darkness, Martha. Don’t fear the darkness. Don’t fear the …

The flame goes out, extinguished by an unseen force. I drop the candle and blackness devours the room. Stig pulls me onto the sofa and we sit huddled together, his arms around me. I can’t stop shivering; it’s like the cold is burrowing into my bones.