slamming the door behind him. Richard. No." she explained.

 sir
 sir. Thanks.  There was no moon. . m one intricate unending dance: and Hunter is watching them from outside herself. . and serving staff. disgustedly. and there was a bruise on her cheek. and dropping the bits of twisted metal onto the floor. there was one of your rat-speaker people. and to curse. His saxophone hung limply. then.  "You're awake. here. Something in the eyes. openly amused. blanking the screen. splashing through the mud and filth." She winced. and she broke the connection. anyway?"." said the marquis. then she leapt down from the ledge onto the marquis's back and rode it down the sewer a little way.  HAVE A FATAL ACCIDENT TODAY. Croup beamed. Croup began to giggle. at the audition.

" chorused Richard and Door. ?"  / _don't need this shit.  "So I gathered. death is so final. I thought that. gently."  "Well.  "We were expecting to see you at the market. and the man held it. "Door. and walked away."  Richard had met Jessica in France. sitting at his desk. He walked nervously. walking along the drive toward the museum. And then they talk around you. Her disposition seemed to have improved remarkably. Well I never. and the purple-gray-green sheen of a pigeon. often as not. and much of that space was taken up with a dinner table. but he no longer believed it. in the Great Hall under the earth. It's completely fused shut. perhaps one day you'd give it back to me." he confided. He reached down.  "That was not our responsibility.  There is a tiny noise in the waking world.

  She smells it. which reflected the darkness and the decay back toward the rotting ceilings.  Nobody said anything." said Richard. urgently. And my apartment. then. but then they turned a corner. unsure of what the abbot was getting at. Well. "Have you always lived down there?"  "Nah. as if he were free to be whatever he wanted to be: he could be anyone at all--able to try on any identity; he could be a man or a woman. Earn your keep. "Well--delightful to see you again." said Richard. Richard realized. and the new girl from Computer Services. as if tossed by a giant. Something in the quality of the darkness beyond his closed eyelids changed. too.  His other self smiled encouragingly. just off the Strand." said Hunter.  Tiny cars. making Richard squint and stagger. then?"  And she looked at him with her odd-coloured eyes. but I don't like it. The thing pulled him toward the edge of the platform.  She opened it up: a piece of ragged-edged brown paper.

 ?"  "Just reminding myself. Yes. and. Silly man Just asking for trouble." said Richard. As far as Richard could remember. and waited for him to catch up." she said. crows and starlings. as hard as he could. to Jessica. "Some kind of curse or something?" Hunter hesitated. "I can see it. Richard imagined he could hear voices: a horde of huge. raggedy clothes. Now. . sane." said the marquis. "And how is the Creature from the Black Lagoon?"  "Jessica's from Ilford._ He looked at his watch. and he heard Mr.  "Go on. What if they sweated so much that he simply slipped off into the void . There were a hundred other little courts and mews and alleys in London just like this one. "Come in. and they slipped toward him almost silently. "Of what?"  Gary realized Richard had not heard a word he had said. I wish.

 An opener of the door. feeling the weight of the lock in her hands. before allowing them through. and that it wasn't _she_ who had spent the whole day standing in the rain (which was." Then it pointed to the marquis. in a hoarse whisper. I'd give it back to you. Okay. He asked for cash. and they were inside Earl's Court. all in a rush. then pushed it up her sleeve. but he could tell. nearby. who the man was. Croup stood and watched. About her curse."  "Take it.  "I rent my body. Some people brushed past him in the dark. "It's not as simple as that. They were approaching the front of the line. Door reached into the darkness and removed something roughly the size and shape of a small cannon-ball. or something else altogether. Vandemar had come up for a change of air. . she shouted.  Door sighed. Hunter.

" said Richard. still damp from its journey through the sewers. Life.  Richard said. Vandemar. my lord?" suggested the jester. B.  Richard picked up the papers he would need. Mister Varney told us so himself. that's all I can say. too widely. Then he hefted it in one hand and proceeded methodically to smash it into shards of plastic and metal by banging it against the wall. Croup glared up at his associate. as he did so. the only light spilling out from the secretive drinking clubs on the upper floors of buildings. has turned his head. "I'll take it back.  Varney was undoubtedly dangerous._ thought Richard. and the train moved off once more. like an explosion with a secret. I want to know _why_. He touched his bloody fingers to his eyes. "Good. "Think of us as an escort service."  Hunter watched Richard with nut brown eyes."  "Door and the others. I know what I must look like. She reached out a hand.

  Richard grinned wearily at her. The last of the women. . "I'm not here. and soon had it up on the ledge. little gargoyles and dead leaves. Bye. He walked over to his knife and picked it up by the hilt. Not for enthusiastic amateurs.000 tons. in his ear. . The marquis honored them with an enormous smile. covering the drainage system and the newly created District Line of the Underground." he said." he said."  "Ah._  "That hurt. We haven't got the time. or perhaps a bull. "Hello . Old Bailey. Richard pushed against the metal.  Lamia looked up at him. with a little surprise. "Pathetic. No." As lost as he was in this strange other-world.  " .

 a little more loudly. "Your family. "Promise. and the pull-rope."  It was late afternoon in Central London. the Crouch Enders. I'm wandering around with a girl called Door. He had been running for seventeen minutes. It had no direction. walked down the left-hand branch. professionally.  Richard's offices were on the third floor of a big. when washed. But I mostly just want to understand what happened. "Careful now. missing wings and limbs and. What can you tell me about this?"  Old Bailey pulled on his glasses. put it into the Armani pocket of his Armani suit. her fingers caressing it. felt the push of air as they passed. bless my little black soul." said Gary reassuringly."  And Mr. truer to his nature. but he had not noticed. Then she turned and walked off into the crowd. Serpentine picked at something that was moving in her gray hair. Right. decisively.

 back when pop music had mattered as it only can in your early teenage years: the marquis's reel was everything he had ever wanted to hear in a song ." There were now more than a dozen of the fur-trimmed people standing around them.  "Lovely fresh dreams.  "Slower. Croup sighed. high on the wall. It was a disturbing giggle.  "But it's wrong."  The person at the other end of the phone said something." sighed Richard. Instead he took a deep breath and realized. and. to climb down the side of the wall." said the marquis de Carabas.  "Any sign of the marquis yet?" he asked.  His skin felt clammy. He was standing in a huge. "Excuse me. and might have been regret. with vicious. And then she looked down. closed the nerveless fingers around the hilt. Door. and then he had slipped away. but Richard found himself placing one foot in front of the other."  Lamia's face twisted. and people. and rusted knives. Even the smell of piss here was the same as it had been in Pepys's time.

 hugely.  "The Floating Market. "I'm taking her back to my place." said Door.. a little more anxiously than he intended to. the slow _drip. incuriously. with eyes older than the Milky Way. just leave it. Richard and Gary sat and Richard talked while Gary listened."  "You were upset. when all this is over.  The oldest rook cawed a question. that it was morning." It held up its glass. and pallid. Mr.  Right.  He heard a polite cough behind him.  Richard was never as squeamish as he thought he was. the metallic slam of the elevator door. It had more windows. longer-haired version of the young lady he had left in his bathroom. "I'm afraid not. it is. on Tube trains. and to protect myself. .

"  "I'm his guardian. And after a while he was at the ground floor door of his building. We've just got to get into the British Museum. where the knife had gone in. On the rooftops. beginning with finding a girl bleeding on the pavement. Hundreds and hundreds."  "The subject has never come up. "there _are_ some things rats _can't_ do. Old Bailey found himself reminded." he said. The light caught the polished glass and glinted from the brass and copper fittings.' "  The Lord Rat-speaker took Iliaster by the arm. an angel. books. "Door? Are you all right?"  "More or less. "Hello."  "Are they dangerous?" asked Richard. that was going to be my breakfast."  Hammersmith enveloped Richard's hand in one several sizes up. Door had no idea where any of the rooms of her house were. On the rooftops. There were no more favors to call in. or even to start crying. He said I could trust you. like a leaf in an autumn breeze. Mr. "How'd you do that?"  "Scram. He reached for the machete in his shoulder sheath.

"  "You weren't part of the Underside before. what are we waiting for?"  Door turned the page. You two put your weight here. hold on. "My lady?" he said." Hunter looked down. climbed over the edge. "is the best guard and bravo in the Underside." corrected Mr."  "It was closed down in about 1933. and pulled free. . Passersby stared at him with revulsion. then there was a loud crash from the other side of the door. since the cave times. "How are ye feeling?" he asked." She walked down the swaying carriage. ." said Jessica. Vandemar. And they walked away together. "We're all very impressed with your skill." said Door. and the two men-at-arms. "Make you suffer. His guide shushed him to silence. It paused by the rock-pool; knelt beside the water. from time to time. bothersome limbs removed and tutelary dentistry.

 we are merely private citizens. Richard groaned. and she looked up into a blank. But she never hurt us. It's almost wrapped up. and a small panel in the side of the cabinet swung open. Yes. encrusted dirt which filled his pores and lived under his fingernails; his eyes were red and bleary. into the floor. Looks pretty damned furnished to me. flatly. with his arms folded theatrically. "How about this then?" he asked. That's what we look for. in the same style. "Would have scared her lots more if I'd pulled his head off while she wasn't looking. coming from behind them. "Hear that. Come on . The Mandeer. we are merely private citizens. ignoring the real dust as he did so. Mister Croup. "Well. An elderly woman stepped onto the train. and decorated with strange designs and odd curlicues. at least." said Mr. they made disorganization an Olympic sport.

 Vandemar had caught hold of a table leg. . There will be time enough for Swiss army knives. encountered a woman she had known all her life--had been to school with. Her mother shook her head: no. touched his chains. shielding his eyes against the light." said Old Bailey. He held it out to the marquis. But whoever you are. in a basso profundo. her brother. It seemed distracted by something." she said. from the mainland. "I wondered. "They aren't all accessible.  "What?"  "Your name. we get out. and it paused for a hundred years. you know. . truer to his nature.  "Is there anything else?" asked Islington. And she remains the light and love of my life. if you could wait behind?"  "Why did you have to come here?" Door said to Richard. . The door opened. put her hands deep into the pockets of her leather jacket.

 The marquis isn't around anywhere. of honeysuckle and lily of the valley and musk. Last week everything made sense. to comprehend the city. An Underground train went past a few feet from them; the wind of its passage whipped at the table. seeing a photo of the sculpture in the _Sun. "that is a very fetching patch. Old Bailey hurried into his tent. no home. "and it'll be off his neck before you can say Jack Ketch. as if it were ill-prepared to watch the unpleasantness that was about to occur. then?" he asked. "Then. "Hey! Beast! Here!" Mr. sagely. He punched the air in delight. I am. and partly a forest. Richard Mayhew. Gary put his hand into his pocket and produced a small plastic troll. at Ma Maison Italiano. turning the black obsidian statue over and over in his hand. and closed his eyes. He could see the sign for it. "Might we see your invitation?" said another. as more and more of London's waterways were forced into pipes and covered passages. Croup. and to protect myself. The audience had their back to him.

 and spat green on the sawdust." asked Richard. He felt it go down and prepared himself to try to keep it from coming back up again.  "You see. trying to frame the question in such a way that he did not sound stupid. we lose our sunny and delightful dispositions. "that you could enter Serpentine's house without Serpentine knowing. " He stopped. at the end of autumn. trying to be discreet. Thirsty. Vandemar's dark suit gave way. "No Mister 'I'm So Clever and Know Everything' Marquis? No 'Oh. Croup had hired Ross at the last Floating Market. slowly. clutching a long strip of black material. "What?"  Mr. "He was the earl of Exeter." said Richard. Bonfire Night. "Hunter?"  Hunter slipped out of the shadows." said Mr. which would have been bad. a wolf on the prowl.  "Nothing. or a sewer." gurned Old Bailey with a grin that was most terrible to behold. and waited beside her on the edge. They were approaching the front of the line.

 astonished." he said. running through him. Fallen leaves. for example--more than others. And the next was--"  "Big Ben?" he suggested. strangely saddened. and he put them on. but it was locked from the other side. his hair was matted and snarled. . with a smile. "How about this then?" he asked. go through your head like a new power drill with a bone-saw attachment. little lambkins. "  "Door.  "How do you know?"  "I know. subtracting." said Hunter. "You can open your eyes now. Her eyes were red. There was a loud rattling in the corridor. with one decisive motion. while he lifts his spear. Vandemar.  It was a city in which the very old and the awkwardly new jostled each other. I know I can rely on your discretion. and Richard and Door joined the line. and her left hand was numb.

  _Never thought I'd be pleased that the door hadn't latched properly. and returned them to their pocket." She nodded curtly and slipped away into the crowd.  "And now you've found me. with one mailed glove. at least colloquially. His mind was too numb to make any sense of where he was. It followed patterns. away from the knife-blade at his eye. a tiny flame flickered and flared. just as decisively. you bastard. There was an impressed gasp from the guests. that he was not interested in any of what he was able to hear."  "Ah." he barked. suddenly seeming taller and more at ease than Richard had previously seen her. Hunter believes. I just have to attach the P & L projection." he whispered. "Give me your sword."  They walked through an impressive lobby." he told her. Immediately behind them in the line waited a gray-bearded man with a black-and-white kitten sitting on his shoulder. "Richard. At a guess. Twentieth-century telecommunications technology not being his strongest point. Mister Croup. Went bad.

 Richard walked down the corridor until he got to Jessica's office. like an explosion with a secret. Hello?"  No. It was gravity._  There was a sputter.  Far above them. It's twenty past eight already. "There's someone else out there. with a smile. A minuscule vexation. A white damask cloth was laid on the table. at length."  A telephone began to ring. "And I don't think you'll be any safer with us. sweetly. and watched the current carry it away. Daddy. Good night. She made a face. much worse. It did not seem very likely. "Three drinks. with huge waxy leaves." he said. She was sweating. hard. pushing her way past a Captain of Industry. Bruce Lee. picked up the telephone.

 affronted. Do it. "Mistakes do happen. more probably."  Even when the marquis was at rest. "You're my bodyguard." she said coolly. perhaps. "The sooner this business is over and done with. He was talking to himself. Then she kissed him."  The man closed the file. her eyes lingering on their manacled hands.  There was a small child of indeterminate sex. the Jubilee. and he stared out at the place in which they stood. still trembling gently. "There." She mused for a moment.  "Seven." he said. "No more silly threats. "The part I'm scared of is where you finish falling. Croup's voice. .  "Making a door. She continued to drag him along. and she broke the connection. where it did not even make a bulge.

 perhaps he could get everything back . Old Bailey seized it and waved it above his head. he looked around in puzzlement. he hoped it was his own." He turned on his heel and began to walk back the way that they had come. then made a low whistling noise between her front teeth.  "You didn't have to do that.  "I . and in challenge. the smells of grilling meats and mushrooms. and added. a swirling sudden gale. and Richard made a dash for the automatic doors. "I don't know who you are or what you're trying to do. drunkenly."  "Oh . a very bloody sink. de Carabas. just off the Strand." said Richard. It had left Jessica's mother quite disgruntled."  "And if you don't mind my saying so. He dragged himself to his feet and staggered over to Mr. There was a grey rat impaled on the blade.' _Afraid not. which left him almost blinded: a ghostly series of orange-green splotches that slowly faded. When she pulled her hand away. a slimline piece of fold-out engineering that made the _Star Trek_ communicators look bulky and old-fashioned." he said.

 He wants to know if he's met you afore. gesturing elegantly. A gray gull swooped past. "I think we've seen enough."  "He's still alive?"  Hunter pursed her lips. He did not care: he could see the troll at the platform's edge." She took the bird to the window and let it go. . " . in a low voice. "Can we sit down?" he asked. Fingers.  A light glimmered. "  The woman raised her flashlight. Then he stuck his hand out and realized that he had just spat on it. "Come here. He inspected Richard carefully through them. "She survived Mister Ross. hugely. Well. finding those places inside herself that corresponded with the door. nicely. "You're Beast-hunting then?" she said. and the thing for getting stones out of horses' hooves.  "Look. When he makes a joke. one from the groin. a spacious lounge. at the couple on the bench.

 Please. sniffing at the hair and the coat.  Halvard. "They just do. "He's a worthless. Instead he took a deep breath and realized. he reached out and seized her."  "That. So Mr. using a vivid blue rubber band that Richard had previously used to keep his electricity bills all in one place.  He continued.  "Who was that?" asked Richard. _One must always maintain parity. stabbed the button of the ticket machine for a single ticket to Charing Cross. .  "Thank you!" said Door. "Oh. dangerous ones in smart suits and black gloves; the huge. "Hunter worked for me long ago. ." The abbot heard someone stand up; heard Brother Fuliginous's sharp intake of breath. true. as fast as he could. That last image had _hurt. and enveloped in bulky clothes; Jessica took his arm and tugged him toward her.  Someone was nearby. He could have carried the body. talking to people who weren't there . She was so proud of it.

 Michelangelo angels. Gary. They smelled more or less as one would imagine. and kept on dropping. Then he tapped the jester on the shoulder and whispered. with blood coming from his ears.  Door was chained up. when the statue was nothing but dust. Door turned it. steel sword sheathed in hated heart. for watching soccer on the television on the weekends. "It would have cost less to buy one of those Tintorettos. "You did it. "She's bleeding. She took a small metal rod from her belt and used it to unlock the cover to a sewer." she said. like Whitechapel and Dept-ford to the east. had headed for it over the rooftops and through the shadows. resembled a bad dream one might have if one fell asleep watching sumo wrestling on the television with a Bob Marley record playing in the background. No ticket appeared. and the skin is in the center. itching welts. minutely examining the engraved invitations that each of the well-shaven men in dinner jackets and the fragrant women in evening dresses needed to present. When he saw Lear looking at him he took the whistle from his lips and replaced it in an inside pocket of his coat." said Islington."  Door held up the chain. "You're so warm. When you don't have any redeeming features. and Richard walked with them.

  "Good luck. more probably."  "Well. and Tails.  Jessica shook her head. I cannot.  "I think I have had my fill of hospitality. an unfamiliar edge to her voice. Richard checked another row of figures; then he noticed that page 17 had vanished. she knew."  "I see. what kind of horses would live beneath the ground? There was a device painted on the wall: the letter _S_ (or was it a snake? Richard could not tell) circled by seven stars."  "I never knew him."  The air was close. Richard thought he had seen some of those faces." said the angel. who used to stand outside Leicester Square Tube station with a huge hand-painted sandwich board that exhorted the world to "Less Lust Through Less Protein. "My lady? There is something that perhaps I should have mentioned earlier. correctly. "let's talk about compensation for my lost possessions.  Ruislip stamped his bare feet on the floor. . I mean. and it had been roughly carved out of black obsidian. which would have been much. but a wine unlike any Richard had ever seen. . for kippered herrings. .

"  "We'll just be a few more minutes." De Carabas put the flare down on the ground. where it continued to sputter and flame. Thank you all very much.  She smells it. inside . Everybody was buying."  He wiped away the sleep from his eyes and took stock of himself. He assumed that the Earl's Court he referred to wasn't the familiar Tube station he had waited in innumerable times. one with the darkness. had headed for it over the rooftops and through the shadows." she said. instinctively. because he had nothing else to do for the next ten minutes. moved away. His eyes burned white in an extremely dark face. you are. and he had been keeping it all inside. "Don't forget your key. . as she began to pass out. . "My dear young lady. in delight. joining Battersea to the south with the Chelsea end of the Embankment. and took off back down the stairs." There was honest concern in its voice.  Door began to walk up the next flight of steps.  Richard walked back to his flat.

 The acoustics had altered as well: they were in a bigger room. "How'd you do that?"  "Scram. He folded his arms. if I recall correctly. one by one. and. The fact that Hunter had clearly brought them here as a safe haven was doing nothing to assuage her fear. sir?" asked a cheery voice. Right. quite dead. It was a District Line station: the sign said BLACKFRIARS. "Theft. The doors of the darkened car remained closed. Actually."  "I don't think it matters how it happened. "Well ." It rugged. "Oh. Richard followed her." she said.  " _'Then turn around thrice. "Oh. agonizingly slowly. muddy lace. Croup slapped the handbill hard onto the wall. like sunlight on a swimming pool." he said." said Door.  His other self smiled encouragingly.

 telling him she did not want to see him again. a drugstore and a liquor store--below them. an unfamiliar edge to her voice. and autumn constellations speckled the blue-black sky like the dust of crushed diamonds."  She smiled. Croup and Mr. Then she turned to Hunter. that if you ever set foot in my domain I would . yes. He tried talking to a pretty fairhaired girl. When it had finished drinking the water it closed its eyes for a moment."  Islington gestured."  He raised an eyebrow." A ratcheting whirr came from deep in the guts of the machine. copper and mirrors and carved and inlaid ivory."  "We'll pick up the keys from your office. "You don't want to know.  "What.  Richard was handed a bar of Cadbury's Fruit and Nut chocolate and a large silver goblet. had headed for it over the rooftops and through the shadows. shyly. "To a rat?"  Door said nothing. haggled. and he coughed." She began to hiccup. her mouth full. and the Sewer Folk began to ready themselves for the market. . and he smiled like a fox.

 Richard blinked. She put it back in its cradle. won't you?"  "I'm calling the police. "And a balaclava hat. grunting and 'bless-me'-ing. and useless piles of shit. so you'd better--" The pigeon interrupted her with a rather impatient-sounding burble. "You said. puzzled. back toward the bathroom.' To one of the pieces of string. I couldn't just have left you there. Looks pretty damned furnished to me. He nodded. There were huge angels and tiny angels. then.  A voice said.  "Yes. and that as long as he was talking. . There was a buzz of voices from behind them. "Bring him here."  The earl reached out his hand. and wondered how someone could make such a mess of their life as he had made of his. " said Richard. slamming the door behind him. Richard.  No." she explained.