LITMIR.BIZ

      errr-flapp!

      Esmé Pepper saw the letter arrive first, landing loudly on the doormat of the house at Highwood Road. It was addressed to Uncle Potty, but there was no clue as to the sender. The postmark was smudged and the address was printed, not handwritten. Esmé scratched her right ear and began to worry. She hoped it was not the letter that had been threatened by the local council.

      Kerrr-phoooow!

      The sound of a small explosion coming from the garden made Esmé start. Her twin brother, Monty, and her uncle Potty, a professional magician, were outside, busy creating new magic tricks. Esmé put the letter in her trouser pocket and ran out to the recently fitted magic shed that Potty had been using over the last few weeks. Potty was standing alone, covered in soot. Only minutes ago, the shed had sported its clean, watertight roof. Now there were pieces of charred wood all over the grass and the entire roof was gone.

      “Problem?” asked Esmé.