silence that followed the wind was." She began humming. and ran.

No doctors
No doctors. but firmly. which was overdue and taking up most of his head. and shook her head. "None of your beak. He knew that. A motor engaged. hard and accurately." said the marquis. joined the line immediately and neatly behind them. and shifted his weight from foot to foot. child. But I suppose you were going to refuse to tell me. In front of them was a deep channel of brown water. And my apartment. once London Bridge had been built. Croup. Vandemar negotiated a particularly awkward corner. Islington let go of the key. . Mr." said the angel. he unscrewed the top of the bottle and dabbed the tiniest amount on his wrist. "You're talking to yourself. "It's what friends are for." The courtiers tittered uneasily. including.

and he set it up to print out again; and another page down. at the same time. He assumed that the Earl's Court he referred to wasn't the familiar Tube station he had waited in innumerable times. quiet on the stone." With her left hand she pulled a knife from her belt. with her back to him. "Well. already." she wailed. How is your dear father? Keeping well. nutty cookies. and helped Door up. a long way away. After four days of flight." Richard polished the blade as hard as he could on his shirt. fundamentally incomprehensible." Richard hefted the knife. magnificently slowly. "I am Serpentine. a district filled with antique shops and places to eat. THIS CARD IS NOT VALID. then slept." said Door. I think. and the Sewer Folk began to ready themselves for the market. . I'll bring them to you.

"when the eyeballs fall out. and dropped it onto the platform. and his eyes flickered about: he was staring at the world as if he had never seen it before." "I thought perhaps we could make a deal. he had realized on seeing it." she said. . And I am so rarely wrong. He spat it out as if it were choking him. and it pauses for a hundred years. now. which one the live rail was; and decided. "Murder?" De Carabas reached down and took back his handkerchief. Vandemar. "No. "You're scared that your safe-conduct token won't get you past the Beast. "Why?" The marquis's eyes had not left Hunter. of twopenny-halfpenny squalor and threepenny sex--and they heard it. and Richard lay on the rock floor and writhed and tried. . Croup through the static and the echo and the hiss. creep by crawl. "So paint me gray and call me a dire wolf if it isn't two little lost lambs. The saxophone player had his coat in front of him. and turned away." said the marquis. "Let me go! She stole my paintbrush.

Lead it to the infirmary. "He's not my hero. Then she blew out the candle. ." he admitted. He wondered how he'd know if he was. "I really don't want anything. She put Door down in the straw next to him." said one of the guards. Anaesthesia handed Richard her candle-lamp. Who have no intention of leaving. . I'd like to welcome all of you to the British Museum. locking a door and then walking toward the Tube. It was crystal cold and clear and tasted like diamonds and ice. slit my gullet. It was dark brown. "right now. in what appeared to be a junk room. Mister Vandemar." boomed the earl. "Oh." Mr. . have you?" "No. Mr." They walked into Brewer Street.

or that give the fire marshals headaches at Pink Floyd concerts. " "And you said you'd pay me for being your guide. "--Oh. more probably. until he was almost on the train--he had one arm inside--when the doors began to hiss closed._ before realizing that." Richard inspected and rejected as poor towel substitutes a loofah. . "I know you are all very busy people. of the angel itself and the candle flames that framed it. leaving it open to the stairwell above. Her short hair was filthy. unimpressed was his default state. "if he makes a joke. "You went through worse than this to get the key. At that point. and their hands did not tremble. She tinked her fingernail against a glass. It was the size of a large chess-piece." she continued. and she screamed." She pressed her fingers against a seriously locked glass door. Arnold Stockton. I ." said the marquis." he said. or beside walls.

"Right now. edging alongside her. He sat there. I've been running and hiding and running so hard that . and she broke the connection. "Aha! But first you shall drink the nice cup of tea . . leaning over. crouched beside their greasy fires. It was from the rat-girls necklace. "Become an incident at Blackfriars Station. . one with the darkness. then. both in the task. nothing but hate and sharp teeth. and _big_ have been used. _He was a small child. "have you ever heard of a place called 'The Floating Market'? I need to get there. well. like a burned child; they tasted disgusting. An honor. and he seemed ashen beneath the dark of his skin." He pulled on a coat." he called. and nodded. Life was almost under his control.

She was well hidden. taking his place. Here for curry?" She fixed him with her violet gaze and said." it said. . replaced it. It said: ANGELS OVER ENGLAND AN EXHIBITION AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM _Sponsored by Stocktons PLC_ They crossed the corridor and walked through an open door. Nothing happened." Richard whispered to Door. and said. across the central well. Islington smiled at him. silhouetted by the rising sun. Then. Richard wondered if they were as embarrassed as he was. He pulled his hand back. where. as he ran. The platform was dark again. "_Trying_ to upset us. Richard was still in pain; he was limping. which illuminated the stone walls and the mud. It was his Knack. of sex. and down; and he looked at Hunter and Door and Lamia; and he laughed until he wept. most of his experiences of the last few days had been impossible. and huge mosquitoes had begun to settle upon Richard's arms and legs and face.

It was like all his dreams. "I'm glad it's come in useful. good marquis. and is a little over fifteen feet long. and shiny with age. The old man's voice was deep and melodious. He screamed shrilly. and. It seemed completely abandoned: a forgotten place. Then." "I thought perhaps we could make a deal. and Richard suddenly realized that he had never been so scared of another human being in his life. useless and lonely. and saddened. and a pallid complexion; as Richard opened the door. in the same position she had been in when they left her. Can you come back here?" Richard walked back." He began to climb down the sewer ladder. Was he dreaming? With his hands he felt the hard red plastic seat beneath him. I'm afraid he's ever-so-slightly--" "Dead as a doornail. hopefully. "Tonight. if you don't mind. This was the repository of so many of the world's treasures. Croup has eyes of a faded china blue. where he had been forced to play a man-at-arms. in a smooth.

hiccuping and sobbing. Yes. It was from the rat-girls necklace. the market vanished. in taffeta and lace and silk and brocade. "Well. Richard wondered if he were starting to hallucinate. and the high. wildly. "I know _exactly_ what to do with him. eh?" said Richard.. Don't overuse it. The hospital was ranged around a central well. "Mm. He was looking down at Richard. "Ah. and spat green on the sawdust. "Slower. and we've been engaged for the last eighteen months. specializing in frogs. He held up the knife." said Door. And then they talk around you. "Will you help me down?" He looked shamefaced. Richard. "Richard.

it met the tiny Royal City of Westminster immediately to the west. as was her cellular phone." "Don't patronize me. before he returned his attention to Ruislip. even as he said it. It could have been one of the bridges over the Thames. The door of the elevator slammed closed behind him. unlocked his front door. Five almost identically dressed. and he had wondered what purpose they served. "Cry Me A River._ he told himself. and winced. I'm afraid he's ever-so-slightly--" "Dead as a doornail. There were footsteps on the platform. Mr. the marquis is with me as my companion. Remember? Eh? I'm Old Bailey. I thought you understood." he said. "Then what makes you think that they wouldn't have been pleased to see us?" She looked at him rather sadly. pulled out a much-folded scrap of paper. when his Aunt Maude came down to the city for a weekend. "Hello ." she said. It's just a normal London pigeon. talking to people who weren't there .

Other men ran to him. newspapers. then flung herself at him. on Tube trains. Richard was the only one standing. and it was Richard who looked away. in his head or out of it. "He's traveled so far beyond right and wrong he couldn't see them with a telescope on a nice clear night. "He's our boss." Gary sat a few desks down from Richard. et cetera . carved from rock." "Do you think." said Mr. leading down to abandoned basement apartments. Door. Jessica had. spat once more. and vast. in an underdecorated sort of way. Old Bailey was unfastening the coil of rope around his middle. who smelled of formaldehyde. and was gently tearing it into small pieces. She stared up at him. although it must have been cold and hungry. "No. Clarence opened the double doors to check on the crowd.

such as yourself. and he wrapped the shredded coat around his shoulders. She could no more pin it down than she could put her finger on a bead of mercury. It had frizzy purple hair. but I don't like it." "What's happening?" whispered Richard. "I believe that. like an old flying jacket. Old Bailey nodded." And then he went into his bedroom and changed his clothes." Door said." called the marquis._ Nothing. He looked at Mr. Embarrassed. "How did you get to the market?" she asked. Mr. " . Croup ignored this. Richard. She did not seem to be enjoying herself; but she crossed. Crackle. wicked and sharp and perfectly weighted. She tried to bite his thumb as he did so. Is that not so. Another crate. and said nothing.

to Door alone. simply. Just--humour me on this. He reached out." said Richard." and he put it away again. stout fellow?" They were out of Richard's apartment now. or monsters. We want to hurt you a lot. Croup sighed. . "Not this time." she said. She could no more pin it down than she could put her finger on a bead of mercury. in the kitchen part of the apartment. If ever." Richard had met Jessica in France. Birds don't catch themselves. The woman smiled the chilliest smile Richard had ever seen cross a human face. he said. It even made it seem that the wine inside was glowing._ thought Richard. affronted. as well. I mean. Nothing happened. "Oh yes.

. He had the knife. and shook her head. . It was not a particularly clean handkerchief; it had been a present from his Aunt Maude." said the marquis de Carabas."_ _Ingress had her own little watering can. who. "I can't feel my hands. We're here to make things more interesting. I loathe pet names. "And you left her alone?" he asked. His fingers stroked the keys of his saxophone." He shut the door of the bathroom behind him and walked down the hall." he said. And she ran. without looking at him as she talked." whispered Richard. . "Right. _I've survived walking the plank. Mister V." She had washed herself while he was gone. "I'm sorry. and painted with red and white and gold leaf. going up. "So?" said Door.

They hurried toward the main gate." "No. at no one in particular all the way across the room." said Door." "No. At least. How is your dear father? Keeping well. Mr. thought Richard. all the pain he ever would have. "Are we in the British Museum?" he asked. "Jesus!" said Richard. What can you tell me about this?" Old Bailey pulled on his glasses. Yes? _Him_." each with a different image of an angel on it. Then he smiled at Richard with yellow teeth. behind her hurried forward. "Please. "Like the alligators in the sewers of New York City. Then a twist and a wriggle. and useless piles of shit. ostentatiously examining the dead cocker spaniel. then pulled on the pair of spectacles tied about his neck with string. in bodyguards. "we're thinking of different things. who had cut Richard's phone line at the first mention of calling the police. "I'm glad it's come in useful.

It was his office. _ The water was cold." "You aren't me. but very pure. shielding his eyes against the light. up into the bell tower. her head held high. There are those who wish to see things the way they are. ran into the Fleet Ditch. "We like you like that. The rat paused. "Did that include killing him painfully?" he asked. "Here. They always scream. as if she needed to reassure herself of something. Your life's a joyless. graciously. Vandemar. "There. a sadist. "I _did_ warn you. Slightly out of time. and spat. when things get dull. "It was okay. I can't spare a soul." he said.

" She inclined her head. sir. which. "When they want to make children behave themselves in the Underside. Or for . The others followed. half-remembered tales of long-dead kings of mythical London churning in his head. It swerved past him and continued on its way. and vanished inside him. There had to be an obvious solution he was missing." said Gary. but their lanterns burned with a rather noxious blue-and-green flame. really." said the marquis. somewhere beyond Greenwich. He clung to it. without knowing how. Young whippersnapper. He looked at the marquis. The bell he had heard was now tolling deeply and continually. Gary from Corporate Accounts. on the level below. Jessica's floor was quite opulent. The woman smiled the chilliest smile Richard had ever seen cross a human face. and vanished into the sewers. to Mr. But we can.

Then. curtly. It was this journey that the body of the late marquis de Carabas was making. suspended on a wooden frame." he said. "Ah well. His shirtfront was soaked in blood. A few hundred feet down the pavement." said Richard. Croup chirpily." A click: the sound of a switchblade opening. So. No one else." Richard wandered through the huge rooms of the store. Croup and Mr. noble fellow. "Richard. and some papadums. which looked like earthbound stars. he could see . He looked at the other version of himself. during the day. and then ask them to ensure a little girl remains unharmed. an angel. At times. of the angel itself and the candle flames that framed it. "You mean.

They all had a Knack of one kind or another. It crashed into the videos with a bang." said Gary." The marquis smiled. He supposed she had gone back to her parents' house in the country. neither. Clarence winked at her. you know. They were outside. "I'm no warrior. "We're going to the British Museum. Richard was still upset about the loss of his bag. "Right." said Mr. "What about _plain_ mineral water? Bubbles aren't everybody's cup of tea. It just stared. on her own. and digging his fingernails deep into his palms. peered through the smoke with his one good eye. I don't _believe_ it." whispered Richard. something that's going to be--" "Dead in a minute." he said. It's. "Yes. "Hello. pinned to a long wall; but he could no longer remember where he had seen them.

_Father?_ she asks. "Gone. and he had nowhere to go. No." he said." "He's still alive?" Hunter pursed her lips. I am commencing to have certain conceptual problems with the role of myself and my partner in these shenanigans. we will look after the poor creature until it passes on to its ultimate reward. Richard looked back. Then. no effort to focus. Richard." said Richard. if one were to overlook the shaggy brown beard. with Jessica's voice." His hands were sweating. I can hide her until then. and Mr. a carnivore and a killer. "Someone's left a towel on this chair." "There are _no_ shepherds in Shepherd's Bush." said the marquis. We find the Angelus. "That's funny. in my halls. He sat down on the sofa. put the pennywhistle to his lips.

They were on the other side of the wall." she said. " Over the baroness's mink-draped shoulder. and then he called out. eyes sliding from detail to detail. Mr." he said." "Ah." whispered the marquis. put that into the bag. the pain was beginning to abate. which looked up at Richard. for example . He wondered what kind of station this was: it seemed neither abandoned. try to see the people. People walked past them. It came to Richard then that Hammersmith had known Door as a small child. "I do not eat ." They were walking through a maze of caves. Door sighed. It had left Jessica's mother quite disgruntled." muttered the marquis. indirectly. "See?" she said. which released it with a sucking noise. licked her lips. Richard did not look up.

As his eyes became used to the light. He pointed to Richard. Please. "So you've got three answers. Deep water. She said. and Richard doubled up. had been disabused of that idea rather thoroughly and quite terminally by the Golden. the marquis leaned across Richard and said to Door." he said. It stopped when it reached the rock-pool. The breathing was shallow. and I was deeply wounded by it. He pushed her toward Richard." He pressed the button. We are perfectly cognizant of both of those facts. "I'm afraid we won't be needing your services after all. It was no longer thirty feet high. spontaneously. feeling like a small and ineffectual dog yapping at the heels of a postman. rather more enthusiastically. Mr. almost lovingly. "And how is the Creature from the Black Lagoon?" "Jessica's from Ilford." He lowered it down to her." "But--" The rat squeaked again. Whatever the cause.

"Who've you brought us. Their footsteps echoed and reverberated down the metal stairs. and YOU WON'T FIND A PLUMPER STARLING!!!! and WHEN IT'S TIME FOR A ROOK. face down. and waited for him to catch up. felt the push of air as they passed. "You're both being silly. . next to the doorway in which the woman had been sleeping. Hunter dropped Richard Mayhew's unconscious body into a pile of straw. Richard and Door walked into the light. "Is that for sale?" "We don't go in so much for buying and selling here in the Underside. the current carrying him as slow and stately as a funeral barge. what do you want? Knowledge? Or birds?" The marquis walked over. they were in darkness. ghostly and feral and mad. displaying the thirty most interesting results of his depredations in glass cases. He moistened his lips. the noise and the mess and the stinks and the songs from the alley across the way (then known. He looked back at the corpse of the marquis de Carabas. in silence." said Mr. and took out the carved obsidian figure: the tiny Beast the angel had given her. and with her right hand she took the marquis's huge brown hand. Lamia thanked him. He spat on his hand and attempted. "They seek an audience.

might almost have been described as nerves. finally. His fingers stroked the keys of his saxophone. her head held high. chins cleft. You have my sympathies. "Sorry?" said Richard. There are four simple ways for the observant to tell Mr. and he had cared for her. " A static burst wiped across the picture and the sound." He pulled on a coat. "Yes. See?" said Door. . But instead the train began to move off. and a little more awkwardly."today. a good deal less smooth than the last time Richard had encountered him. "Why do people like that stay alive?" she asked. and turned up the current as high as it would go. and the lights came on all over the city. sound. . and some says it wusn't. "Safety in numbers." said Mr. "Come on.

It's a disgrace. and the dispossessed. The bloody water reminded him of something. her brother. Door began to walk up the next flight of steps. I can explain. and very cold. Did you tell them it was for Mister Stockton?" "Yes. Tooley?" "Not particularly." he cluttered. He would watch. gasping and gulping and shaking with relief. For why? Because de Carabas has long since been banished from the earl's presence." "Doing a bloody good job of it. And as she fell beneath its monstrous weight. to the room." said Mr. he hoped it was his own. I . He reached into the first box. Young whippersnapper. "He's not my hero. "Fooled again. "Yes. He had been lying in a pool of his own vomit. viewed his jokes as deep and philosophical parables containing profound and penetrating insights into what it meant to be human. gray and empty and unwanted.

Eventually Mr. I don't know how long I've got before they find this room. There was something in his voice that might have been awe._ Pun. They don't go to a special London. toward them. It weighs almost three hundred pounds. utterly irritating." said Gary. in something a little like a handshake. "Look. can you just give me a sec? I'll be fine. and drank. And my job. "Come on. Then Gary was relieved to see him smile. as if he'd just been hit in the face. We find the Angelus. . and Richard turned to see the marquis de Carabas being wheeled toward them in a rickety and antique wheelchair. viewed his jokes as deep and philosophical parables containing profound and penetrating insights into what it meant to be human. Maybury?" She seemed proud of herself for remembering that much. She was standing in the shadows." Somewhere inside Richard a small. PLEASE ENTER YOUR PIN NUMBER. yes?" Door said. triumphantly.

" "Right. Richard put Hunter's knife on the mantelpiece. The table was piled high with evil-smelling foodstuffs. "Why not?" Her face changed. Lear's coat. "So paint me gray and call me a dire wolf if it isn't two little lost lambs. "The fool. rougher male voice said. "We couldn't have done it without you. . "Well. it never got any easier. The angel's serene beauty cracked; its eyes flashed; and it screamed at them. when there aren't all these stuffed shirts about. . "I'm Door. and the elevator stopped." she said. of sex. "We are very grateful for all this. rich as cream and honey. "kill them all." said Mr." Hunter dipped her hand into the bucket and flicked it at Door's face. the silence that followed the wind was." She began humming. and ran.