Silver Hill by Catherine Cooper Page B

room. He was surprised to see rows of tables, all laden with food. He turned and gave Camelin a warning look.
    ‘Over here,’ called the Dorysk.
    Jack looked around and saw the Dorysk fluttering above a large cauldron, which sat by the hearth. Jack ran over and looked inside. To his relief the two dragonettes looked alright, considering their circumstances. Their cages had been tied to the cauldron rings and were immersed in the mixture. They were having difficulty keeping their heads above the surface.
    ‘Don’t worry,’ Jack told them. ‘We’ve come to rescue you. I’ll have you out of there in no time. I’m Jack Brenin and this is Camelin.’
    ‘We know,’ one of the dragonettes managed to say as it struggled to keep its head out of the marinade. ‘We’re very grateful you’ve come… they were going to…’
    ‘It’s alright,’ interrupted Jack. ‘We’ll talk later, but what are your names?’
    ‘I’m Norris and this is Snook,’ the other dragonette replied.
    ‘Won’t Charkle be pleased,’ said Camelin as he hopped around the cauldron. ‘Now I’ll be able to have my wand back.’
    ‘Charkle!’ cried both dragonettes.
    Jack felt so happy for the two brothers.
    ‘Yes, Charkle. He’s safe and we’ve heard a lot about you two, but let’s save all that for later, we need to get you out of here. We’ve got a long flight ahead of us once we get out of the tunnels.’
    ‘So what’s the plan?’ asked Camelin.
    ‘We all need to get away from here as quickly as possible,’ explained Jack. ‘Timmery can lead and the Dorysk can bring up the rear, in case we need to use Plan B, but first I need to get you two out of this cauldron and find something to tie onto the ends of these ropes or they’ll notice you’ve gone.’
    ‘What’s Plan B?’ asked the Dorysk as Jack looked around the larder.
    ‘You might have to shape-shift into a dragonette. Do you think you can do that?’
    ‘I’ll have to keep my glasses on or I won’t be able to see where I’m going.’
    ‘That won’t be a problem, it’s only in case we’re seen and need a diversion. If that happens, Camelin and I will transform, that will be the signal to start Plan B. The light will be so bright it will blind the Spriggans for a few seconds. You’ll need to make sure they see you. They’ll think the dragonettes are loose and will hopefully follow you. If you lead them off in the other direction it’ll give us enough time to get out of the door, then, as soon as you can, shape-shift into a moth and get back to us on the ledge. We won’t leave without you.’
    ‘We won’t!’ said Camelin.
    ‘No, we won’t,’ confirmed Jack as he looked around the room for two heavy objects to put into the marinade, in place of the lanterns. ‘Hopefully we’ll be out of here before anyone finds you’re missing.’
    ‘You’ll need to hurry,’ said Snook, ‘they’ve been coming in and out all night.’
    ‘They’ve not had their pudding yet,’ said Norris as he nodded towards one of the tables. ‘They never go without their pudding, no matter how much they’ve eaten.’
    ‘Spriggans!’ piped Timmery as he flew into the kitchen. ‘There are two of them and they’re heading right this way.’

THE MONSTER OF SILVER HILL
    ‘Quick! Hide!’ whispered Jack.
    Timmery and the Dorysk immediately flitted off towards the darkest part of the tunnel. Jack turned to speak to Camelin but he was nowhere to be seen. The voices from the tunnel were getting louder and Jack knew if he didn’t find a hiding place soon he’d be discovered. He wished he’d learnt an invisibility spell or could shape-shift like the Dorysk. There weren’t many places to hide in the room. None of the tables had cloths so it wouldn’t be safe to hide under them. The cupboards looked too small, even for Jack to squeeze into. He had no idea where Camelin had gone or where he could go. Jack could hear footsteps now as well as voices. He was contemplating using his