Where had my grandson gone? I searched for him everywhere. While I was searching, I went to Mink’s cottage to buy some sea urchins’ eggs. As soon as I got inside, I saw the wolf skin which I guessed belonged to my grandson.

“I knew he was dead – I knew it! I knew it!” I cried. I wept and howled. Mink told me that if I needed to make so much racket, I ought to go do it outside. Half-blinded by my tears, I limped home and flung myself down before the fire.

My old husband was there with his friends, and he asked me why I was weeping. I told him that Mink had killed our grandson. The old wolves promised to avenge him, but it took them a long time to decide how. One proposed this and the another proposed that. They finally agreed that they would try to trap Mink by inviting him to a party. I won’t say I was enthused about the plan. The old wolves were likely to forget what they were doing once the party got started.

Grandmother Wolf in The Mink and the Wolf, Orange Fairy Book. Illustration by H.J. Ford.