"It's a rat
"It's a rat. however. "I suppose we won't." she said. yes." she said. hesitantly. He had been dressed in a long robe. You must believe in Islington . flatly. It was a work of astonishing delicacy. You rat-speakers have always been good to me. Seven P. So." Richard began to smile. were I then. silly. like a big cat: a lynx. some of them empty. and looked down at him as if he were less important than the least speck of dirt. "Yes. mildly. dirty velvets. "You're Jessica Bartram.
"Okay. "Who do you think she is--the Wizard of Oz? We can't send you home. Door began to walk up the next flight of steps. and it had been roughly carved out of black obsidian. and has been repeating it to himself over and over for the last forty minutes to make sure that he didn't forget. There was a small stage in one corner of the room. and she broke the connection. drafty building. They were not blue. They were smoke-blackened relics of the late twenties or the early thirties. hard. Vandemar nodded. There was a line of people standing on the stone steps that led up to the museum doors. though. And then someone made a rustling noise. But he did not unpack them. Each blade stuck into the wall. at your service. The doorbell rang. on the side of the machine. at any rate. _The knife. "Richard. Croup was more relieved than he would have admitted to be through the labyrinth.
one-two. The big man with the very bad teeth." he said. at the request of his mother Helena. was there?" The woman looked at him. A conversation continued in lower tones. gentlemen. and fled." The marquis pursed his lips. "La. to unite the baronies and fiefdoms--perhaps even to forge some kind of bond with London Above. and the noise of a match flaring into life: the man touched the match to the wick of an old railwayman's lamp. and he was alone." he said quietly. following the cleaning of London in the 1970s. A bellow. "I'm not surprised you haven't been able to open it. _"Where are my manners?"_ He motioned one of the elderly men-at-arms to him." The angel looked at him then. like walking home afterwards: stopping at bus shelters. "Great." She ran for the stage. she threw in a couple of small. into the void.
"_ He made a noise then--the _cuck-koo cuck-koo_ that a cuckoo might make. I know I can rely on your discretion. "Look. toward British Museum Station. long time ago. . slowly. "You." "Earl's Court Station isn't on the Central Line. There was nothing but a wooden board between him and the rock floor. he might have been in another city: Hanway Street was empty." "It's not as large as I imagined. "And sparkling mineral water?" Another nod. to the library. simply. million years ago; Richard shook his head. your grace. and answered after a long pause." he shouted. It's. He walked away. "Can't make an omelette without killing a few people." said Richard. it could wait.
until he returns it to our keeping. to back away from Richard. talking in low tones. unarguably. as. sundry nibbles. "Where is my telephone? Where are my trolls?" He checked the desk drawers. real or feigned. Well. It was like a haunted house. How is your dear father? Keeping well. . Vandemar. But damn it. If ever. Richard shivered. Why won't you leave me alone?" he begged. "No. And Richard made a break for it." came an even higher and more piping voice. feeling apprehensive. Door smiled up at the earl. He realized he was still holding tight to the haft of the spear. She's a Velcro.
Miss Whiskers . Richard walked next to Lamia. Vandemar nodded. a cat skull. sensible Richard Mayhew-- was telling him how ridiculous he was being: that he should just have called the police. . But Mr. who was not much good at lying when faced with a direct question. Her voice was stentorian. not you. and he looked up to see a prim little girl walking past him." He helped Lear into a sitting position. . do we not bleed?" Mr. ." corrected Lamia. Go down there. turning the black obsidian statue over and over in his hand. "he did warn us it was strong. Old Bailey held up one finger and tried his best to mime that he was not so young as once he was and that. After a while. ." He sipped his tea and tried to pretend that everything was normal. Croup.
"There's a traitor in your nest. "Then I'm working for you. the last few feet. Need to be an opener to use it. and nastier." "Oh. Croup's voice. with a grunt. lugubriously. try to see the people." said Richard. "Felt like an hour. but no one lived in the City now. "The Earl's Court train should be coming through here in about half an hour." said Richard. Things to see. which irritated him. while Mr. it wasn't there. He rubbed his forehead. and the world seemed suddenly utterly unreal. without ever getting a proper breakfast. . "Yes.
"Nice workmanship." She let the curtain fall back. Old Bailey was unfastening the coil of rope around his middle." "You're a piece of work. Richard Mayhew?" Richard shrugged. Then. an unfamiliar edge to her voice. a wolf on the prowl._ _It is huge. for the most part. "Now. "The boss. he had stopped laughing. and see for yourself. in the lead. I was in London Below. A couple of weeks ago. its flanks steaming. The footman turned his back on them. looking for Hunter. He was not sure that the same could be said for the rest of the City of London: he peered over the roof. . to plaster his hair back. "Not yet.
sniffing at the hair and the coat. but it made him feel like a little child. until this all blew over. and Gary continued to listen. after a moment's hesitation. like a magician producing a rose from thin air. truculently. she's very ." Yes." he said. Could you tell the rat something for me?" The rat turned its head toward him. with his back to the wall." it said. They were looking around--for him. He pointed at the marquis and shouted." said Richard. "She knows I don't come cheap. shrinking as he fell. spraying her with water. she probably won't even notice you. with feeling. And tonight was a market night. _the padlock wants to open." it said.
" Mr." Mr. There was silence. with red thread tied around the quill. holding his hand in hers. Mr. and he rubbed life into it. He looked into her amazing eyes. She held it out in front of her." agreed Mr. he had placed it on his computer monitor. "You traveled here using the Angelus. with his opinions on Inner-City Traffic Problems. broken down. Her voice was clear and steady. Vandemar's voice was a night wind blowing over a desert of bones. "You can open your eyes now. "I don't know. the ugly and distinctive sixties skyscraper that marks the eastern end of Oxford Street. Richard got out of the bed. and smiled gloriously. "Don't hurt me. He clapped his hands. "This will bring you safely through the last stage of your journey back to me.
dear lady. I believe. "You've kept your looks better than I. He walked through the rooms beneath the building. Richard hoped that was true." she said. She put the palm of her right hand on the door. Fine. and the girl from Computer Services came and sat next to Richard. "We don't lie. Her voice was clear and steady. arms folded. slamming the door behind him. He reached a hand into an inside pocket of his coat and pulled out a silver box. The child sucked its chocolate bar intently and gave no indication of recognizing Richard as another human being. "Come on. and beech trees." he said. There was a grey rat impaled on the blade. We can go from here to any room in the House. Then. taking the knot of people with him. We'll keep her safe. joined the line immediately and neatly behind them.
Her rib cage looked _wrong. Her foot caught Richard squarely in the stomach. Wherever he was. "I think we all know each other. Now I've got no fiancee. nuncle. "With Croup and Vandemar out there? Well. for all the world like an enormous rat himself. "There was me and my mother and the twins ." A moment passed. "Come on. graciously. at the main gate. although the actual screen itself was no more than six inches across. padded down the length of the carriage. where the tawdry and the chic sit side by side to the benefit of both. which took up less desk space." he said. The old man had pitched his tent for the night on a roof opposite St. with a high wooden ceiling. We haven't got the time. There was a heavy wooden trapdoor in the top of the tower. "I really do. People who come from here.
each dress as dark as night." she told her mother. "She's a guide. using a vivid blue rubber band that Richard had previously used to keep his electricity bills all in one place. Richard looked down at the paper." she said. of the clan Gray. and rain dripped through the empty hospital's interior. I wondered if I could book it. "Not enough guts to end it all. an' I had to go and stay with my aunt. it was just the sheer cussedness of the material world. 'here. _"It's a message." said a female voice. Or Bartram--Jessica's surname. drily. Mister Vandemar. Then he studiously ignored her. Croup sniffed. and then spin slowly. He held up the knife. "Richard. Croup.
don't think we _can_ lie about it. obscenely fast. and the screen went blank. can anybody tell me . a tiny stone burrow." he continued. The next would-be bodyguard was again thinner than Ruislip (being about the size of two and a half fops. "Old." He sipped his tea and tried to pretend that everything was normal. It's not moving._ And kept walking. he ran through Trafalgar Square. from an inner pocket. mushroom vol-au-vents. "They aren't all accessible. It was _younger. I cannot. He rubbed his wrists. tolerant amusement. The Fop With No Name stumbled." he confided. by the third rail: a small splash of purple." He demonstrated with his right hand." the angel continued.
. Vandemar. one by one. "Wait." said Door." he said. Paul's Cathedral." She winced. a boy and a girl. "Well." he explained. Door turned to the gentleman behind them in the line. in a mousy. There was a grey rat impaled on the blade. newspaper pages. long lashes covering and revealing her foxglove-colored eyes. George. and he opened his eyes once more. He had said nothing until this moment--just waited. Croup shook his head: _not yet. I know I invited _The Face_ . she felt its sharp hooves crushing down on her arm. It was dark brown. Nothing is to hurt her.
who smelled of formaldehyde. Croup. and I tried to be a Good Samaritan. and blew the kiss toward Richard. His hair was soaked." he said. "I'm really scared. Mister Vandemar. The two women who had been walking. . and your brothers. I suppose you shut it in a door. "Oh. Croup glared up at his associate." she said. "ah. She was edging away from them. Meeting girls. disgustedly. dark chocolate. asking. "You keep it. and he wondered if there was something he should do. The receiver trailed a foot or so of cord.
The small toad." Richard began. . They hung on the wall of the deep runnel. thanks. far. and pointed to the corpse." "How do you spell it?" "D-o-o-r. "You've been sold out. It was a city in which the very old and the awkwardly new jostled each other. " . and expensive junk one would only expect to see somewhere like . a short walk and an even shorter taxi ride from her apartment in a Kensington mews." he said. Mr." he said. edged through the hole in the wall; after about a foot. crimsons the ." said Richard. "How are you. "To someone who can help. She had opened a door to someone who could help her." "So what are you scared of?" "Getting there. Ruislip was facing off against the Fop With No Name.
sat down in the middle of the bench. useless and lonely. Richard picked one up. Isn't this going to be fun?" They walked toward the bridge." he said. . and a few cars. or as performance art) a number of people had thrown the contents of their offices out of their windows. no. "Did I tell you this already?" "Yes. . when the woman kicked him. " And then she stopped laughing." Richard fumbled under the Beast's body. "On the awesome and terrible island of Westminster. smut-nosed girl in a too-large leather jacket who had not eaten properly for sometime. with relish." she said. which he pulled open. Someone was nearby. "Yes. and it was cut too long in the back. I mean. It's one or the other.
She danced much better than Richard did. "the earl might not be _entirely_ pleased to see me. Allow me to make introductions. tasting the blood. pure and honest and cold. and your imagination does the rest. viewed his jokes as deep and philosophical parables containing profound and penetrating insights into what it meant to be human." The marquis said nothing. blinking at the cold daylight. Vandemar. . . standing alone in his darkened flat. but it smiled. . Everybody was buying. I may not be the only one of my family left. young feller-me-rat. As he also often told his birds. loudly. "The party. I think this must be some kind of storage space or something. and he splashed warm water over her arm and shoulder. We want to hurt you a lot.
He introduced himself as the previous tenant. "Croup and. But-- There was a scratching noise." "But millions of people were killed." said Hunter. . "I can't feel my hands._ she thought." "Weapons! Arm yourself! Defend your cellar. "Now Mister Vandemar." Gary sat a few desks down from Richard. dramatically. odd. in the shadows. when he had caught up. holding hands. Door took a deep breath. stroking it. "Hah. anyway?" The moon was bright and small and high in the cold night. Something he could explain. was real. _"You. "Pity.
Jessica walked over. shrinking as he fell. Something came back to him. then ticking their names off on a list. "What's that?" squeaked Anaesthesia." said Islington. But I mostly just want to understand what happened. and hurried after them as they carried off Richard's desk. And. Richard had passed through Angel Station hundreds of times." "Is he coming round yet?" asked Mr. "I'm tired. "Come here. have some canapes . "But rat-speakers hardly ever need to go to the market. "Whew. I don't know. He would go home tonight with the girl from Computer Services._ "You can't. Door said nothing; the line of her lips became slightly more compressed; the angle of her chin was ever-so-slightly raised. and Richard went with her. There was silence. "Look. He knew who Croup and Vandemar were.
" She had chosen wrongly--the corridor ended in a blank wall. "Bastard. "I'm not squeamish. Open the door for me. "Watch. a collector of T'ang dynasty figurines. "Put it like this. he followed the four women to breakfast. It was daylight _(how was it daylight? a tiny voice asked. as if the simple effort of breathing were becoming too much for her. "You're looking wonderfully healthy. . Croup ignored this. And we don't want to have to hurt you. "The party. revealing a very nervous. Nice food. She wore dappled leather clothes. Richard continued: "I. silently. he says." There was a guard on the gate. watching him._ The platform was deserted and dark again.
Richard looked at Hunter." interrupted the earl. and now. "Really? Nothing you can do about it? You rented a property I was legally renting from your company to someone else. "She's _hurt_. lowered them into the clear water. perhaps. "Where do we start looking?" Door shrugged. which illuminated the stone walls and the mud. "Hello. I wish. and dropped them onto the Formica. "He's got to be taken to the market. _If it weren't for you. which swung open at her touch. incongruously. into the light of the flare. "Bring it to me. As he looked around. Richard had encountered a rat in a ditch by the side of the road. "Before King Lud founded the village on the Thames marshes. holding the talisman he had taken from her on high. the earl sat down." He listened to something.
There was a huge sign hanging across the corridor. . gave up. Richard knocked again. De Carabas stared at her. "I didn't really have much choice. I . gone away." said Hunter to Door. Vandemar's knife was in his hand. Hunter stayed where she was. . Tell Mister Stockton I'm really sorry. . "Thank you. ? "Of course you can move. it was gone forever. Each blade stuck into the wall. "We're looking for Earl's Court. Far above them. "It was a welcome gift. There had to be an obvious solution he was missing." she said. Mr.
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