“FOURTEEN times!” said Dot, shuddering. She didn’t like maths much wherever she did it, but right now she wished she was back studying it with Mrs Redman at St Mary’s. “And I had to do it backwards, too!”

“I know!” said Mr Mouse, grinning up at her. “Care to give it me one more time?”

“NO!” said Dot. “Definitely not!”

They were walking round the front of the house, past the grand entrance with its double set of steps curving up to the huge front door of the Hall. Dot’s a-NNOYING buttoned boots crunched on the gravel with that nice sound that always made her think of her fave nutty breakfast cereal.

A gardener was brushing the lawn with a rake as she passed. He was young and quite nice looking. He touched the front of his cap as he passed. “Mornin’ Miss Dorothea!” he said with a grin. “ ‘Ow’s that doggy of yours then? Nice little chap he is!”

Dot smiled back. “I’m just going to see him now” she said. “I’ll say hello for you.”

“You do that!” said the gardener with another grin.

“Whaddya think?” said Mr Mouse, whiffling at her chin with his whiskers. “Bit of a babe, eh?”

Dot went pink. Mr Mouse was always doing stuff like that! “He’s very nice” she said. “But that’s all, thank YOU!”

They turned round the corner of the house and there in front of them was the stable block. The big clock on the front showed the time – a quarter past twelve. As they came nearer to the entrance, two snowy white doves flew out of a “dovecot”, their little house above the doors.

They could hear voices from inside. Raised voices.

“But I told you I wanted to take Templar out today! Why can’t I have him?” It was Laetitia – the young lady Dot had seen at breakfast.

“Uh-oh!” said Mr Mouse. “Sounds like a hissy fit to me!”

It was. As Dot walked into the gloom of the sables, she saw Laetitia. She was all dressed up, and she looked beautiful – she wore a glossy top hat and a black jacket nipped in at the waist, with the white lace of the collar of her blouse peeping out. A long, swirly black dress completed with the outfit, with a pair of extra shiny black boots peeping out beneath. A pair of silver spurs at the heel of the boots clinked as she tapped her feet angrily on the cobbled floor of the stables.

She was staring angrily at Old Josiah, one of the two head grooms who ran the stables. And twitching what looked like a very fierce riding crop on the side of her skirt!

“If he’s gone lame, Miss Laetitia, he’s gone lame!” said Old Josiah, who clearly wasn’t a man who’d allowed himself to be bullied – and specially not in his own stables. “You ride him a deal too hard sometimes, to my way of thinkin’! You’ll just have to take Hector. He’ll give you a good ride all right!”

Laetitia did a big sigh. “Oh… very well then!” she said, still cross. Then she saw Dot and relaxed.

“Are you enjoying your stay, Dorothea – even with all the ghosties and ghoulies?” she said, smiling.

“Yes, thank you” said Dot politely. “I’m sorry to hear about Templar.”

“Oh, well” said Laetitia, with a shrug. “He’s just my favourite here… Hector will be fine, I suppose. I shouldn’t have been so short with Old Josiah. It’s just that… ”

Clip clop, clip clop. Out of the deepest part of the stables, came Old Josiah with a wonderful horse – his coat a warm golden-brown, a white blaze on his forehead and white socks above his shiny hooves. As he tossed his head, his shiny mane shone in the light streaming in through the high windows over the stable door.

“Wow!” said Dot.

“I beg your pardon?” said Laetitia, looking at her in a puzzled way.

Oops, thought Dot. MUST MUST MUST remember I’m not in the 21st century.

Laetitia put her foot in the stirrup and – making it look VERY easy, which Dot knew from her riding lessons it wasn’t! – got up into Hector’s saddle. She sat side-saddle, as ladies did then. That looks cool thought Dot, but HOW does she stay on!

“Now you take it steady, Miss Laetitia” said old Josiah, looking up at her and stroking Hector’s glossy coat. “He’ll see you right, but he needs to start off slow.”

“All right, Josiah, I will” said Laetitia, patting Hector’s neck to calm him. She smiled down at Dot. “Good bye Dorothea!”

Giving Hector a little tap with her riding crop, she turned to ride him out of the stables – and then, too quickly, spurred him into a trot and then a canter, his hooves clattering on the cobbles.

Old Josiah gave a big sigh. “Might was well save me breath!” he muttered.

But Laetitia wasn’t alone for long – far from it.

From deep inside the stables, came a growling and a snarling – and then a brown and black shape came zooming out, head down, ears back, tail up!

It was Angharad – what on EARTH was she doing!!