"Well, I..." Romilly caught sight of Jillie Djinn's gimlet glare and faltered.
"Miss Badger," said Marcia, "this is a matter of extreme urgency, and I would appreciate any information at all, however insignificant you may think it is."
Romilly took a deep breath. This was it. In half an hour she would be out on the street, clutching her Manuscriptorium pen and looking for another job, but she had to answer truthfully. "It's the new scribe - the pimply one who some people say is called Merrin Meredith, although he says he's Daniel Hunter. Well, the day after Beetle left - the day I got appointed Inspection Clerk - I went to have a look at the Keye Safe - that's the box where the Keye is kept when we're not in the tunnels - and he was there. When he saw me he shoved something in his pocket and scuttled away. I told Miss Djinn, but she said it was fine. So I supposed it was, even though I thought he looked really guilty...." Romilly faltered again. She knew she had done an unforgivable thing in the eyes of Jillie Djinn.
Jillie Djinn glared at Romilly. "If you are implying that Mr. Hunter took the Keye, I can assure you that that is not possible," she snapped. "There is a Lock on the Keye Safe that only a Chief Hermetic Scribe can UnDo."
"Except..." said Romilly.
"Yes, Miss Badger?" said Marcia.
"I think that Mr.... er, Hunter, might well know the UnDo."
"Nonsense!" said Jillie Djinn.
"I think the Ghost of the Vaults might have told him," said Romilly tentatively.
"Don't be ridiculous!" spluttered Jillie Djinn.
Romilly did not like being called ridiculous. "Well, actually, Miss Djinn, I think the Ghost of the Vaults did tell him. I heard Mr. Hunter boasting that he and, er..."
"Tertius Fume," Marcia supplied.
"Yes, that's it. He and Tertius Fume are like that." Romilly intertwined her two index fingers. "He said that the ghost had told him all the arcane codes. Foxy - I mean, Mr. Fox - didn't believe him. He's in charge of the Rare Charm Cupboards, so he asked Mr. Hunter what the UnLock was, and Mr. Hunter knew it. Mr. Fox was furious, and he told Miss Djinn."
"And what, pray, did Miss Djinn say?" asked Marcia, sidelining Jillie Djinn.
"I believe Miss Djinn told Mr. Fox to change the Lock," Romilly replied. "Mr. Hunter spent the rest of the day telling us that if we needed to know anything we should ask him because he knows even more than the Chief Hermetic Scribe."
Jillie Djinn made a noise of which an angry camel would not have been ashamed. Marcia was more lucid. "Thank you very much, Miss Badger," she said. "I appreciate your honesty. I realize this may have put you in a difficult position here, but I trust you will not have any trouble." Marcia glared at Jillie Djinn. "However, if you do, there is always a place for you at the Wizard Tower. Good day to you, Miss Djinn. I have urgent matters to attend to."
Marcia swept out of the Manuscriptorium and hurried up Wizard Way. As she rushed through the Great Arch, a bulky figure stepped in front of her.
"Zelda, for heaven's sake get out of - " Marcia stopped, suddenly realizing that it was not Zelda Heap standing in the shadows of the Arch. Swathed in a multicolored blanket stood Zelda Heap's great-nephew Simon Heap.
Chapter 26 Witchy Ways
Merrin Meredith had made the mistake of hiding in the doorway of Larry's Dead Languages. Larry didn't like loiterers and was out the door like a spider that has felt the twitch of a tasty fly in its web. He was nonplussed at finding a Manuscriptorium scribe in his doorway.
"You come for a translation?" he growled.
"Uh?" squeaked Merrin, wheeling around.
Larry was a beefy, red-headed man with a wild look in his eye brought on by studying too many violent dead-language texts. "Translation?" he repeated. "Or what?"
In his jumpy state Merrin took this as a threat. He began to back out of the doorway.
"There he is!" Barney's high voice squealed in excitement. "He's at Mr. Larry's!"
Merrin briefly considered making a dash for it into Larry's shop, but Larry was pretty much blocking the entire doorway, so he scooted out into the wilds of Wizard Way and took his chances.
A few seconds later Barney Pot was clinging to Merrin's robes like a little terrier. Merrin struggled to pry Barney off, but Barney hung on even tighter, until a large rottweiler in patchwork bustled up and grabbed him. Merrin said a very rude word.
"Merrin Meredith, not in front of little children!"
Merrin scowled.
Aunt Zelda looked Merrin in the eye, something she knew he did not like. He looked away. "Now, Merrin," she said sternly, "I don't want any lies from you. I know what you've done."