Jenny led Nat upstairs, putting her index finger against her lips to sign for her to be quiet on the landing. A narrow staircase at the end of the corridor led up to the attic room. There, Jenny closed the door behind him. "We shouldn't disturb Mrs. Appleton, or Mrs. Carpenter and the bairn," she explained.

The attic was dark but for the light coming from a a single window at the wall end of the room. Though it probably had more floor than any other room in the house, an adult person of average height would probably only be able to stand up in the tallest part, running along the middle. Against the wall opposite the one with the window, there was an old iron bed with a rug in front of it. "We can share t' bed until Mr. Appeton get sum't else up 'ere," Jenny said.