by Jenny Nimmo
There was no sign of Olivia, so Charlie dropped down from the wall, picked up a shiny red apple, and went back inside the house.
"Ah, you've found an apple." Alice beamed at Charlie when he walked in. "Those apples are so good."
Things had calmed down a bit, although Uncle Paton and Christopher Crowquill were now discuss ing something in a quiet but agitated way
"I saw my friend, Olivia," Charlie told Alice. "I didn't know she lived on t he other side of your wall. She wouldn't speak to me."
"She's having a crisis," Alice said gravely. "It sometimes happens when people fight against their true nature. I hope she accepts things soon. It will make such a difference — to all of you."
"Really?" Charlie was baffled. "How do you ... I mean, are you endowed, Miss Angel?"
"Alice, please." Her green eyes twinkled. "Yes. I am endowed."
Charlie would have liked to ask her a few questions, but at that moment, Uncle Paton stood and, brushing the cake crumbs off his trousers, said, "We must go!"
As they took their leave, Christopher Crowquill thanked his visitors and warmly shook their hands. "I can't tell you what your visit means to me," he said. "I have few friends left in this ill-starred city And being a jailbird has taught me who they are. Alice Angel is true to her name. She has been an angel. Not one week passed during my long incarceration that she didn't visit me. She gave me hope and now she has given me shelter. But I beg you to keep my whereabouts a secret or she will be in as much danger as I am."
They swore never to tell a soul about their visit, Uncle Paton more vehemently than anyone. "We'll be in touch," he said to Christopher. "Don't give up hope."
The white door closed firmly behind Paton as he followed Charlie and Miss Ingledew down the path. The street was deserted, but Christopher was taking no chances.
The streetlights had come on, and although it had stopped raining, Uncle Paton took the precaution of hiding his head under the umbrella, just in case he had another accident. The umbrella covered Julia as well, so neither of them saw the odd gray shape that darted into the shrubbery on the other side of the park railings. Charlie wasn't sure that he'd seen it either, but he became more and more convinced that he had seen it, and that it wasn't a fox or a dog but a gray misshapen beast. Spying was Asa Pike's favorite occupation, so if he had followed them, number fifteen Park Avenue was now a marked house.
Charlie told himself that Asa couldn't possibly have guessed why he and his uncle were visiting Alice Angel. By the time they had reached Filbert Street, he felt reassured, but there was something he needed to know, and he asked his uncle why Mr. Crowquill had called the city ill-starred.
"I imagine that for him the place is ill-starred because he was sent to prison," said Uncle Paton. "That's a terrible thing to happen when you're innocent."
"No, it's more than that," said Julia quietly "Think of all the tragedies that have happened on this ground, right from the start when the Red King's children began to kill each other. I've more than a hundred ancient books that describe the eternal struggle that has been going on here through the centuries. Good people struck down and evil prevailing.” She smiled. "But I still love the city. I think it's because, to survive among all those dark deeds, the good have to he that much brighter and that much stronger."
Charlie thought of his father, struck down and lost because he tried to fight the Bloors. "You found The Book of Amadis," he said. "Do you think it was my father who Gabriel saw caught in the Castle of Mirrors? I know he had dark hair, and I know he's trapped somewhere, and then there's the piano music."
"I can't say Charlie," Julia said gently "But it's possible."
They had reached number nine, and Paton folded the umbrella while Charlie ran ahead to turn off the hall light and any others that might be at risk.
Grandma Bone had woken up. "Where've you all been?" she called from the living room.
"Walking," said Paton.
"Walking? Is that woman here again?"
"If you mean Julia, yes, she's here," said Paton angrily. "We're going to have a cup of tea, and then I'm walking her home."
"You'd better watch out for the lights." His sister gave a nasty cackle.
"I don't think I'll have any tea," Julia said quickly. "Emma went home with a friend, but she'll be back soon."
As Uncle Paton escorted Miss Ingledew down the steps, she called back, "Emma's got a new pet, Charlie."
"What is it?" he asked.
"You'll find out tomorrow," said Miss Ingledew, taking Paton's arm. "When she brings it to the Pets' Café."
THE PASSING HOUSE
Charlie ran almost all the way to the Pets' Café. He had Runner Bean's leash in his pocket and an excellent plan in his head. The city was full of Saturday shoppers and this slowed Charlie down.
He turned onto Prog Street at the same time as Dorcas Loom and her two older brothers. Albert and Alfred Loom were broad, pugnacious-looking youths. They enjoyed robbing backpacks, tormenting cats, and tripping up skateboarders. They were also the proud owners of four rottweilers, which gained them admission to the Pets' Café. Dorcas usually waited on a bench outside. She was afraid of animals, and Charlie often wondered how she managed to live with two such aggressive creatures — not to mention the rottweilers.
With a quick "Hi!" Charlie dashed ahead of the Looms and bounded into the Pets' Café.
"What's up, Charlie?" said Norton. "Are you being chased by the headless horseman or what?"
"You'll find out in a minute," said Charlie.
He saw Emma's blond head in the distance, and leaving Norton to fa ce the Looms, he made his way over to her. He was surprised to find that the table was full. Lysander and his parrot, Homer, had turned up. Tancred sat beside him with one of Gabriel's gerbils, and Gabriel was feeding Billy's black rat, Rembrandt.
"Charlie, sit here!" Fidelio made space for Charlie, as his deaf cat clung to his shoulder.
As soon as Charlie sat down, Runner Bean, who'd been asleep under the table, leaped onto his lap, giving the table such a shake it tipped to one side, sending several plates and glasses crashing to the floor.
There were cries of "That dog!" "Can't you control him, Charlie?" "I was enjoying that cake!" "There goes my juice!" while Charlie yelled, "No one told me Runner was under the table."
Almost simultaneously, the Loom boys arrived, causing an even greater commotion with their rottweilers. The four big dogs began snapping at any small creature that had the bad luck to be within biting range.
The noise in the café was so loud that Mr. Onimous had to jump on a table and shout, "Quiet, please! Unruly behavior is not acceptable in this establishment."
Homer, Lysander's parrot, squawked, "Well said, sir!"
At which Alfred Loom shouted, "What's your problem, darling?"
Mr. Onimous stared at the youth in disbelief. "I beg your pardon?" he said.
"I said, “hat's your problem?'" Alfred repeated.
Pulling himself up to his full height of four feet eleven inches (plus the table, which made him six feet five inches), Mr. Onimous replied, "Consider the smaller animals, sir. You can see how frightened they are. Your dogs create mayhem every time they bring you in here."
"It wasn 't us, it was him." Albert Loom pointed at Charlie. "Him and that crazy yeller dog. He's bigger than ours."
Runner Bean gave a deep-throated bark and rushed at the rottweilers, while Homer squawked, "Get ‘em!"
A terrible fight ensued. Several other dogs couldn't resist joining in and the uproar was deafening. Screeching birds flew up to the ceiling, cats shrieked, snakes practically strangled themselves, donkeys jumped on strangers, and an iguana ran out the door.
Anything smaller just hid.
Norton was badly bitten when he tried to separate the dogs, and Charlie was knocked to the ground by a terrified Shetland pony, just as he grabbed Runner Bean's collar.
Mrs. Onimous jumped up beside her husband (thus making herself eight feet six inches) and began to bang an empty cookie tin. Her head was now touching the ceiling, and you might have thought the sight of such a huge person would subdue the mob. Not today. Only the sound of an approaching siren made any impact. As soon as the Looms heard the siren, they pulled their dogs out of the fight and left the café. Two minutes later, Officer Wood and Officer Singh arrived on the scene. Things had calmed down considerably by then, but Mr. and Mrs. Onimous were still standing on the table.
Officer Singh crunched his way over the broken dishes and addressed the proprietor. "Could we have a word, sir?" he asked Mr. Onimous. "In private."
Mr. Onimous jumped off the table, and when he had helped his wife down in as dignified a manner as possible, the couple disappeared into the kitchen with the two policemen. Norton, whose hands were bleeding profusely limped after them.
"The Looms were off like lightning when they heard that siren," Tancred remarked.
“And they caused all the trouble," added Emma. "It's not fair."
Charlie had managed to haul Runner Bean back to the table, and everyone made a great fuss over him for being so brave. Homer even shouted, "Croix de Guerre!" although no one knew what it meant.
"It's a French medal for bravery" Lysander explained. "He learned that from Mom."
They shared the cookies that were left on the table while they waited for Mr. and Mrs. Onimous to reappear. Several of the noisier animals had left, and it was now quiet enough for Charlie to hear a distinct and persistent quacking coming from somewhere. He looked down and saw a white duck sitting under Emma's chair. "So it's a duck," he said. "Your aunt told me you'd got a new pet."
"She flew into our yard yesterday" said Emma. "I named her Nancy after my mother. She died, you know."
"Yes, of course. She's a very nice duck." Charlie couldn't think what else to say
"No Olivia again," Fidelio observed. "What's the matter with her, Em?"
Emma shrugged. "I don't know. She hardly talks to me now, and when she does, she's always in a bad mood."
"She looks a mess," said Lysander. "
And she used to look fantastic," Tancred added sadly
Charlie thought it was about time he told them about Alice Angel and the flower store. "I think Olivia's endowed," he said. "But she won't admit it. She even heard the ghost horse, and as far as I know, only the endowed can hear it."
Fidelio agreed. He had never seen, heard, or sensed the horse, even while the others were cowering away from it.
Lysander demanded to know more about the ghost horse, so Charlie brought him up to date, adding the details of Ezekiel's horrible experiment.
“A heart!" cried Tancred, when Charlie had finished. "That is so gross!"
"There's more." Without mentioning Christopher Crowquill, Charlie went on to tell his friends about Billy Raven and the dreadful talents of his new parents.
"So now you're going to risk your life, and maybe ours, trying to rescue Silly Billy is that it?" asked Tancred.
"That's about it," said Charlie. "But Billy isn't silly He's just had a lot of bad luck."
"I'll say," Gabriel muttered grimly.
It seemed a good time to mention the button again. Charlie held it out to Gabriel and begged him to "visit" the world of mirrors just once more. "Maybe if you listen to the piano again, you'll recognize the music. Anything that could tell me a bit more about that place — and the man trapped there!"
Gabriel took the button with a sigh and, once again, held it over his heart. He closed his eyes, and they all watched in silence as his brow furrowed and his long face took on a look of solemn concentration. Now and again, a shudder passed through his body and his mouth gave a small twitch. After five minutes had passed, Gabriel opened his eyes and dropped the button onto the table.
"Rachmaninoff," he said. "Prelude in C. And it's a record — one of those old 78s that scratch."
"And the man?" asked Charlie.
"H is face was all distorted. There were so many mirrors — details kept breaking up. Sorry Charlie."
But Charlie wasn't too disappointed. He had the name of the music now It was something to go on.
Chatter in the café sank to a whisper as Officer Singh and Officer Wood came out of the kitchen and left the café. A few moments later, Mr. Onimous appeared and announced that they were closing for the day Norton had to be taken to the hospital for stitches and a tetanus shot.
When Charlie and his friends got up to leave, Mr. Onimous came over to their table. "Sorry, kids," he said. "We won't be open tomorrow. Norton's in a bad way and my poor wife has got the shakes. The police have warned us that our precious café might be closed down. Those Loom boys make trouble whenever they come here and people are complaining."
"You should ban the dogs, Mr. Onimous," said Lysander. "My father would advise it."
"Your father might be a judge, but he doesn't know anything about running pets' cafés," said Mr. Onimous gravely "I can't start banning clogs, young Lysander. Owners maybe, but not dogs." He leaned over the table and picked up the black rat. "I'd better take him back to the kitchen. He misses Billy something terrible, you know."
"Billy's coming to visit him very soon." Charlie sounded more confident than he felt. "Thing is, Mr. Onimous, I need to find a place called the Passing House."
"Whatever for?" Mr. Onimous asked, looking surprised.
Charlie told him about Billy's adoption, and as he listened, Mr. Onimous' wise, whiskery face became furrowed with concern. "Grief! Grief! And more of it," he declared. "What's happened to the world when a boy can't lead a carefree life? The Passing House is in Crook's Passage, Charlie. Up by the cathedral in the old part of the city But look out! I wouldn't want to cross swords with those de Greys."
"I'll take Runner," said Charlie, fastening the leash to Runner Bean's collar.
"You're not going without me," said Fidelio.
"And I'll be walking that way too." Emma tucked Nancy into a lidded basket.
Gabriel, Tancred, and Lysander lived in the opposite direction, on a wooded hill called the Heights. But they all wanted to be contacted if help were needed. Tancred's blond hair was sizzling with electricity and little breezes kept whipping around their ankles as they walked up Frog Street.
"I've got a nasty feeling about all this," Tancred said. "Storm's on standby Charlie."
“And that goes for my ancestors," said Lysander.
When they reached High Street, the three older boys turned right, while Charlie, Fidelio, and Emma took a left turn toward the cathedral. Once again, a heavy mist had begun to thread its way through the city. But this was not the gentle mist of yesterday. It was more like vapor that came from deep under the earth: Chilly and sinister, it thickened with every step that the three friends took closer to the cathedral.
As they passed Ingledew's bookstore, Emma went in and put Nancy's basket by the counter. Her aunt was talking to a customer, so Emma gave a cheerful wave and said, "Back soon!" then hopped out again. At this point, Fidelio ran in and laid his elderly cat on top of the basket.
"Won't be long," Fidelio told the bemused Miss Ingledew
When Fidelio came out of the store, he noticed three bright creatures approaching through the mist. "Did you know the Flames were following us?" he asked Charlie.
Charlie looked back at the three gleaming cats. "They must have a reason," he said. "They always do. Hi there, Aries! Hi, Sagittarius and Leo!"
The cats replied to his g
reeting with deep, friendly meows. Runner Bean gave a warning bark but the cats didn't take offense. When the small party set off again, they followed at a discreet distance, respecting the big dog's instincts.
Beyond the cathedral, the city became a maze of narrow passages and damp, shadowy steps. The street signs were cracked and faded, some of them almost illegible. To find Crook's Passage, Charlie had to take several steps into the darkest alley he'd yet come across.
"It's here," he said in a low voice.
"Gloomy place," Fidelio remarked, following cautiously
"It smells awful." Emma wrinkled her nose.
They began the steep ascent, stumbling over sudden steps as they peered into the dimness ahead. Runner Bean kept up a continual whine, which put everyone's nerves on edge. The cats bounded past the children and led the way their bright coats glowing in the mist.
After walking under two rusty signs, Charlie eventually found the words " THE PASSING HOUSE " carved in stone above a tall oak door.
"What are you going to say?" asked Emma as Charlie reached for the knocker, a large brass hand.
"I'll say 'Where's Billy?' That should be enough," said Charlie.
However, when the door finally opened after several knocks, Charlie's speech deserted him, for the man standing in the doorway gave him such a ferocious glare, it took his breath away
"What do you want?" the man asked tersely.
Charlie gulped and Fidelio said, "We'd like to see Billy sir."
"Billy?" the man looked outraged. "Billy?"
"He does live here, doesn't he?" asked Emma.
"Go away," shouted the man. He began to close the door but Charlie put his foot on the threshold. At the same moment, Runner Bean saw a black cat dart across the hall behind the man. With a joyous bark, Runner Bean leaped after it, or rather he tried to, because something slammed into his nose and sent him howling backward.
"What did you do to my dog?" cried Charlie.
Usher de Grey kicked Charlie's foot away and slammed the door.