Page 51 of Resurgence of the Pack

‘What was his question?’ I asked nosily.

The old man wagged his finger. ‘That’s for him to know. Now to the business side of things. I answered your questions – two of them – and one day I will require a favour from you.’ Before I could object, he held up a hand to forestall my objections. ‘For now, I require your vow of silence.’

‘About what you are?’ I clarified.

‘About everything that has been said and seen since you walked into my corridor.’

I grimaced. ‘I’ll agree to the vow of silence but I won’t agree to an open-ended favour. I’ve readRumpelstiltskin.Plus I need to be able to tell my brother the answer to his question.’

The dragon smiled. ‘Good for you. A favour to be called within a year, which will not bring any harm orloss to anyone. And yes, of course you must tell your brother his answer, or else there was no point in answering it.’

I tried to think of a way that his words might be tricking me but I came up blank. ‘Okay,’ I agreed. ‘Done. I vow not to communicate with anyone the events that have transpired since I walked into your corridor and walked back out of it, save for the answer to my brother’s question.’

The dragon smiled. ‘Marvellous. I do appreciate a well-constructed oath.’

I glowed yellow as the vow’s magic took hold. Things were cooking nicely; I knew the date and I knew the location. Now all I needed to do was go back in time and stop the thief.

Easy-peasy.

Tarkers’ face slackened with relief when I walked back out. ‘You’re alive!’

I grinned. ‘I seem to be. Let’s roll.’

No rocks this time?Esme asked mischievously.

Let’s keep our rocks to throw at people that annoy us,I suggested.

Good idea.She paused.But not at glass houses, right?

You’re getting the hang of these sayings.I grinned.

I turned to my brother. ‘So, apparently the answer to your question is yes.’ I nudged him. ‘What was the question?’

He glared. ‘None of your business.’

I nudged him again, ‘Aw, come on. Just tell me – is it a good yes, or a bad yes?’

He smiled faintly. ‘Yes is rarely bad.’

‘I can think of a few examples,’ I disagreed. ‘Saying yes to bigotry is always shitty, for example.’

He rolled his eyes. ‘Trust you to rain on my parade.’

‘I’ll stop if you’ll tell me what we’re parading for,’ I said, hoping to entice him into spilling some beans.

‘None of your business, Lucy Caboosy,’ he huffed.

‘Fiiiiine. But you know I’ll get it out of you eventually.’

‘We’ll see.’ He slung an arm around my shoulders. ‘Did you get an answer to your question?’

‘I got even more than I bargained for,’ I admitted.

‘In a good way?’

‘In a good way,’ I confirmed, hoping I wasn’t lying.

As we walked out of the Bodleian, a familiar figure caught my eye. Elvira was dressed in a black pencil skirt with a white shirt and black jacket. As always, she waswearing skyscraper heels and enough kohl eyeliner to outline the whole of the United States on a map. Her warm Mediterranean skin tone was complemented by dark red lips. The only flaw in her otherwise perfect appearance was the tiniest kink in her nose.

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