The Landlady

Five and sixpence

Step 1: When Billy asks the landlady how much she charges, she replies clearly. Step 2: She says 'Five and sixpence a night, including breakfast.' Step 3: Billy thinks this is 'fantastically cheap' – less than half of what he had been willing to pay. Step 4: The landlady even offers to reduce it slightly if Billy does not want an egg for breakfast. Step 5: This unusually low price is one of the clues that something is not normal about the place – she is not interested in money, she is interested in keeping certain guests.

A dachshund

Step 1: From the very beginning of the story, Billy peers through the window and notices 'a pretty little dachshund curled up asleep with its nose tucked into its belly.' Step 2: Later, after entering the house, the landlady refers to this dog as 'my little Basil.' Step 3: When Billy touches the dog, he realises it is hard, cold, and perfectly preserved – it has been taxidermied (stuffed). Step 4: The parrot is a separate pet in a cage that is also stuffed. A cat and a rabbit do not appear in the story.

They have been taxidermied (stuffed) by the landlady

Step 1: Billy first notices that the parrot seems unusually still, and he remarks that it had 'completely fooled' him into thinking it was alive. Step 2: The landlady admits 'Alas, no longer' when Billy asks if it is alive. Step 3: When Billy touches the dachshund Basil, he finds its back is 'hard and cold' and the skin underneath is 'greyish-black and dry and perfectly preserved.' Step 4: The landlady then casually confirms: 'I stuff all my little pets myself when they pass away.' Step 5: This revelation is a major clue suggesting she may do the same to her human guests.

In the sitting-room on the ground floor

Step 1: Before leaving Billy to unpack, the landlady asks him to do one thing. Step 2: She says 'pop into the sitting-room on the ground floor and sign the book.' Step 3: She explains that 'everyone has to do that because it's the law of the land.' Step 4: When Billy goes downstairs, he finds the guestbook lying open on the piano in the living-room. Step 5: This is where he discovers the two previous names – Christopher Mulholland and Gregory W. Temple – and begins to feel something is unusual.