Lady Friday(66)

‘How … how did I do that?’ he whispered.

‘Don’t ask me,’ said Suzy as she landed at his side. ‘But I reckon Dame Primus is going to be pretty miffed.’

‘I think I will understand the circumstance,’ said the Will as it landed on Arthur’s shoulder, parrot-sized once more. ‘Once I can get together with myself. That breach could have destroyed the whole Middle House.’

‘Right,’ said Arthur dazedly. ‘I have to stop saying that, don’t I? Particularly when I mean wrong … Ugham’s dead … The Piper’s children …’

‘Quicksilver and Sable are here,’ said Fred sombrely, who was crouched by the two children. ‘They seem to be just asleep. But the others …

’ He gestured at the shallow, smooth-walled crater that had been carved by the Nothing breach.

‘The Gilded Youths?’ asked Arthur. He couldn’t see them anywhere above.

Fred pointed down. Arthur looked. Way below there was the glint of gold and many small, distant figures.

‘Flying home,’ said the Will. ‘Confused. Best place for them, really. No place like home.’

‘Yes,’ said Arthur bitterly. He looked at the crocodile ring on his finger, watching the progress of the gold with resignation. ‘Not that any of us will be going home.’

‘Where are we going?’ asked Fred.

‘We’re going after Lady Friday,’ said Arthur. ‘To get the Fifth Key.’

‘We going to do like the Piper?’ asked Suzy eagerly. ‘No elevators for us, Front Door locked, telephones off …’

‘We will take the Improbable Stair to Monday’s Dayroom,’ said Arthur. ‘Then the Seven Dials to wherever Friday is, out in the Secondary Realms. I’ll use the Atlas to find her.’

‘But you don’t want to use the Keys,’ said Fred.

‘No,’ said Arthur. ‘I don’t want to. Ugham didn’t want to die for the Piper either, did he?’

Fred shook his head. ‘I don’t understand,’ he said.

‘I suppose you could call it honour,’ said Arthur. ‘Or responsibility, or something like that. Come on. Beast, I presume you can walk the Stair?’

‘If you lead me, Lord Arthur,’ replied Part Five of the Will. ‘Or allow me to ride your shoulder.’

‘We’d better leave wings for Quicksilver and Sable,’ said Arthur. He reached back and twitched his off without thinking, handing them to Fred to lay down next to the sleeping Piper’s children. Suzy shed her wings too, and picked up Ugham’s weapons, though only the hilt remained of his sword and a slim splinter from the spear shaft. She also took the piece of paper, shoving it deep in an inside pocket.

Fred took his damaged wings off, but as only two needed to be left, he folded his up and put them in his pocket.

‘Let’s go, then,’ said Arthur. Using the Fourth Key, he confidently sketched steps out beyond the mountainside, and equally confidently stepped out, apparently into the empty air. Suzy followed at once, holding the back of his belt. Fred hesitated, almost lost his hold on Suzy’s coattails, and jumped badly.

All three, with the Will on Arthur’s shoulder, vanished and were gone from the Middle House.





Twenty-four


LEAF WOKE SLOWLY. For several moments she thought she was in the middle of some not-very-pleasant dream, imagining she was awake. But as her senses came fully together, she knew it was no dream.

Harrison’s anxious face loomed just above her own. He had the silver spoon in his hand, some noxious-looking blue liquid dripping from it.

‘Wake up!’ he urged. ‘Wake up!’

Leaf slowly edged her head up and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Her arm felt like it had just recovered from a bad case of pins and needles and she almost smacked herself in the lip. She was not surprised to see the smear of the blue medicine on her hand.

‘What?’ she said muzzily. ‘Who—’ ‘It’s Harrison! Wake up! We have to go hide!’

Leaf sat up properly. Her poor, stressed brain was putting everything together.

Harrison – sleepers – Lady Friday – experiencing – Friday’s Noon …

‘What’s happening?’ she asked. She meant to sound incisive but her words came out slurred. Her mouth was still recovering too.

‘Lady Friday’s gone completely mad!’ shrieked Harrison. ‘She’s experiencing everyone! All the sleepers at once! We have to hide!’

‘All the sleepers?’

‘Every mortal in the place! The Denizens are putting everyone in the crater. They’ll be here in a minute!’