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sick
with envy. ‘Oh. I wondered when I’d meet someone with
Atlas Moth wings. Nothing like a pair of those to give a Finwip an
inferiority complex!’
    Alice hurried down
the stairs. ‘I think they’re fantastic! I bet you can
fly so much better than me!’ she gushed.
    ‘ I am sure
your wings are perfect,’ replied Ralph with a smile.
    Thomas tutted in
disgust at that smooth response, while Alice simply blushed. She
hung her head in embarrassment and wandered out of the library.
    ‘ What’s
in there?’ she asked, pointing to a modern metal door which
looked completely out of place.
    ‘ Just our
security room,’ called Christina, running in the opposite
direction after Daniela.
    Thomas followed, but
Alice paused outside the security room. Just how safe was this
village?
    ‘ Can I have a
look?’ she asked Ralph.
    With a puzzled
expression he took a bunch of keys from the pocket of his robe and
unlocked two locks. ‘If you want. But it is not very
interesting in here.’
    Alice stepped inside
and found ten CCTV monitors on the walls of the windowless room. On
the desk were a control panel and an empty mug. ‘There’s
no one here!’
    ‘ No one can
sit in here all day. Besides, we rarely have a problem.’
    Troubled by this
relaxed approach to security, Alice sat down on a chair and
scrutinized each screen in turn. One was focussed on the lake, one
on the golden willow and one on the statue of the boy with his dog.
One room of the palace above ground was also being filmed.
    ‘ What’s
special about this room?’ she asked, pointing at it.
    ‘ The original
entrance to the village is in that room,’ replied Ralph. ‘My
mother fears a historian may discover the secret one day.’
    ‘ Any problems
recently?’
    ‘ No. Why?
Are you looking for something? Or someone?’ he asked as
Alice’s eyes darted from screen to screen.
    ‘ Yes. No. I
mean, I don’t know.’
    Ralph stood behind
her and leaned over her shoulder to study the screens. He opened his
huge moth wings so that one rested gently on her back. ‘Are
you afraid of someone? You can tell me. I will do what I can to
help you.’
    Alice pretended not
to have noticed the position of his wing. She looked in to his
entrancing eyes and took a deep breath. ‘We’ve been
having trouble at home. It’s a long story but that’s why
we came here. Thomas and I ... well, she’s been trying to ...’
    ‘ She? A
Sinwip, I assume?’
    Alice nodded.
    ‘ And you think
she is in Berlin now?’
    ‘ Yes. Maybe.
I’m not sure. Thomas doesn’t think she followed us.’
    ‘ I see. Well,
you are safe here in the village. Can you not stay with us?’
    ‘ No. We’re
staying with my aunt.’
    ‘ That is a
shame. But please do not worry, Alice. You will be OK, I promise.’
    ‘ How would you
know?’
    ‘ Your
grandfather said you are very strong. I believe him.’
    ‘ Hmm. He
seems to have told you a lot about me,’ said Alice
suspiciously.
    Ralph smiled. ‘Only
because I asked.’
    ‘ Alice, I’m
afraid we have to go. Something’s come up.’
    Alice jumped at the
sound of Thomas’s voice behind her. ‘Oh, no! What’s
wrong?’
    He wouldn’t
answer and simply gestured to her to follow him out of the room.
    ‘ How
unfortunate,’ said Christina. ‘I hoped you would meet my
husband when he returned from work. Another time, perhaps?’
    ‘ Definitely,’
Alice assured her. ‘We’ll be back for the coffee and
cake!’
    ‘ We look
forward to it. I shall walk you to the lift.’
    ‘ Auf
Wiedersehen,’ said Ralph quietly from his chair.
    ‘ Bis bald!’
replied Alice in a detached manner. Secretly she felt pleased he
looked disappointed that she was leaving.
    Torsten spotted them
walking out of the village and ran ahead to open the door of the
lift. Alice giggled.
    ‘ Why is he
dressed like that?’
    ‘ Oh, it is
just for fun, really.’ replied Christina. ‘He is the
caretaker here but acts like a butler. He says we owe it to the
aristocrat who