Peter reflects on Dennis’s letter and wonders if he can afford to delay his escape. Finally, he decides that he will delay his escape for only one night. He waves at the window to signal Dennis. Then he takes out Valera’s parchment, cuts his own wrist for blood, and uses straw from the mattress as a quill to write a note on the other side of Valera’s letter.

Dennis sees Peter wave out the window. Then, he waits a few hours until Peter returns to the window and throws something out. Dennis runs to the tower and looks for what Peter threw. It is snowing now, so Dennis has trouble finding it. He begins to panic, and then he hears his dad’s voice telling him to relax. Finally, he finds it. It is the gold, heart-shaped locket. Inside the locket is a note. Dennis runs back to the napkin storeroom and reads it. In the note, Peter tells Dennis he will escape tomorrow night and cannot afford to wait for Ben to get there. He explains he has a thin rope that is too short and will drop at least 20 feet.