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  ‘Yep.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘A little knocking sound. Comes and goes. It’s very faint, and I can’t tell where it’s coming from. But it’ll get stronger – it’s scarcely dark yet. What about you?’

  He pointed at the bottom of the steps. ‘You remember what happened to Mr Hope, of course?’

  ‘Fell down the stairs and broke his neck.’

  ‘Exactly. Well, there’s a tremendous residual death-glow right here, still lingering three months after he died. I should’ve brought my sunglasses, it’s so bright. So what Mrs Hope told George on the phone stacks up. Her husband tripped and tumbled down and hit the ground hard.’ He glanced up the shadowy stairwell. ‘Long steep flight . . . Nasty way to go.’

  I bent low, squinting at the floor in the half-dark. ‘Yeah, look how the tiles have cracked. He must’ve fallen with tremendous f—’

  Two sharp crashes sounded on the stairs. Air moved violently against my face. Before I could react, something large, soft and horribly heavy landed precisely where I stood. The impact of it jarred my teeth.

  I jumped back, ripping my rapier from my belt. I stood against the wall, weapon raised and shaking, heart clawing at my chest, eyes staring wildly side to side.

  Nothing. The stairs were empty. No broken body sprawled lifeless on the floor.

  Lockwood leaned casually against the banister. It was too dark to be certain, but I swear he’d raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t heard a thing.

  ‘You all right, Lucy?’

  I breathed hard. ‘No. I just got the echo of Mr Hope’s last fall. It was very loud and very real. It was like he’d landed right on top of me. Don’t laugh. It’s not funny.’

  ‘Sorry. Well, something’s stirring early tonight. It’s going to get interesting later. What time d’you make it?’

  Having a watch with a luminous dial is my third recommended rule. It’s best if it can also withstand sudden drops in temperature and strong ectoplasmic shock. ‘Not yet five,’ I said.

  ‘Fine.’ Lockwood’s teeth aren’t quite as luminous as my watch, but when he grins it’s a close-run thing. ‘Plenty of time for a cup of tea. Then we find ourselves a ghost.’

  About the Author

  Jonathan Stroud was born in Bedford in 1970. After studying English Literature at York University, he moved to London, where he worked as an editor in a publishing firm. He is the author of the best-selling BARTIMAEUS sequence, which is published in 35 languages and has sold 6 million copies worldwide, as well as four other novels: HEROES OF THE VALLEY, THE LAST SIEGE, THE LEAP and BURIED FIRE. Jonathan’s latest series is the chilling LOCKWOOD & CO. He lives in Hertfordshire with his family.

  Also by Jonathan Stroud

  Buried Fire

  The Leap

  The Last Siege

  Heroes of the Valley

  The Bartimaeus series

  The Amulet of Samarkand

  The Golem’s Eye

  Ptolemy’s Gate

  The Ring of Solomon

  Lockwood & Co.

  The Screaming Staircase

  The Whispering Skull

  www.lockwoodbooks.co.uk

  www.jonathanstroud.com

  LOCKWOOD & CO.: THE DAGGER IN THE DESK

  AN RHCP DIGITAL EBOOK 978 1 448 19694 4

  First published in Great Britain by RHCP Digital,

  an imprint of Random House Children’s Publishers UK

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  This ebook edition published 2015

  Copyright © Jonathan Stroud, 2015

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