Taking a candle, I took the corridor by the scullery at a run and then the flight of stairs that led to the servants’ garret. I needed to see where Greer slept, see if there were things that would tell me more about her.

The herbs that Mrs Lenister used were in the air and I peeked into her room curiously. It was small with a simple bed, a press and dresser. On a table lay an open Bible and a photograph of two babies in knitted hats and jackets. Starched aprons hung from pegs.

I continued on to Greer’s room. If she was involved in witchcraft, perhaps the evidence of it would be there. Greer’s chamber was of similar proportion. Her drawers contained little: some bangles and brooches, a hairpin with missing jewels. I wondered if she had stolen them. There was even a brush and comb set although the silver had worn nearly away. I walked across the floorboards in case, like William, she had hidden something there, but it occurred to me that if she was as clever as she seemed to be, she might not keep anything that would hint at aberrant behaviour in her own room, and so I began to explore the remaining ones.

There was little to show but cobwebs. It was then that my thoughts returned to the night of Mary’s nightmare, how her anxious glance behind me hinted at something to hide, and I raced back to the scullery for the key.

Once in the attic, my eyes went to the window where the widows’ whistle had hung and was dismayed to find it gone.

I stood then exactly where Greer had stood that night and looked to where her gaze had rested. When I went to investigate, I discovered behind some crates a Japanese screen, the painted flowers long faded.

Carefully, I pulled the screen away. The floor creaked uneasily beneath my shoes, bowed from age and damp. Wind threw splashes of sleet at the windows.

Behind the screen lay a large cupboard. I eased it open and held my candle up to see what lay beyond. The object filled nearly the entire space and was concealed beneath a piece of discoloured cloth, but I knew immediately by the shape what it hid and I was part intrigued, part horrified. Until that moment, I had not known what I might be searching for, but my fingers pricked with discovery. Crouching, I pulled the fabric away and placed the light closer.