The Queen of Sinister

by Mark Chadbourn

'On the way across the plain up here, we met this scary woman, all black hair and wild eyes, and she said, The gods look after fools and lovers, so I suppose that covers all the bases.'

  'We followed you out of New Street Station,' Harvey said, 'once I'd convinced Thackeray what an idiot he was being to let you go—'

  'I didn't need much convincing,' Thackeray said shyly.

  '—but you were walking like a mad thing and we couldn't catch up,' Harvey continued. 'Nearly, but . . . then we saw you go through that big, blue, flashing doorway thing and ... well, I was ready to turn back then, but he hurled me through.' He glared at Thackeray. 'Bastard.'

  'The things we've seen.' Thackeray stared into the middle distance as the memories surfaced. 'A few times I thought we weren't going to get through

  Harvey blanched, looked at the floor.

  'There was one time, just before we got here, on this plain with cairns everywhere. Shit, I thought our number was up there. And then these freaky sand things dressed like samurai turned up and said we'd got safe passage ... and...'

  'And here we are,' Harvey said.

  Caitlin smiled. She was pleased to see them. 'So are you going to get me out of here?'

  'You bet,' Harvey said. 'I just hope the journey home isn't as bad. I don't think my nerves can take it.'

  As they walked towards the door, they talked, and Thackeray told Caitlin how they'd met Mahalia, Jack and Crowther when they entered the House of Pain. 'They said they were going to lose themselves out there somewhere,' Thackeray said. 'Lie low for a while ... find a little magic, they said. The old bloke looked really happy.'

  'They all did,' Harvey said.

  Caitlin told them the whole story of the plague and the quest, and at the end of it the full gravity of what had happened descended on her. 'I don't know what's going to happen,' she said, worried. 'The Brothers and Sisters of Dragons are the last line of defence against the Void. But I've failed ... I'm not one any more. If there isn't the right number, the whole system won't work!'

  'Ah, something will turn up,' Thackeray said.

  'How can you be so blasé about it?'

  'Well, you know ... things do turn up. That's life. That evil bastard ... the Void. It could be here tomorrow, but it might be a million years away. Why worry about it? If I sat around worrying about dying I'd never enjoy life. Don't think of it as a big threat. Think of it as a ... as a metaphor.'

  'Thackeray,' Harvey said wearily, 'I keep telling you, nobody likes a smart arse.'

  They reached the doorway and Caitlin hesitated, the cold in her limbs freezing her to the spot. Thackeray took her hand and led her across the threshold. Once she was outside, a faint flush of warmth eased into her heart. Slowly it began to drive the cold out.

  Before them, the Land of Always Summer stretched out, filled with wonder and magic, and somewhere, a place that would allow them to get back home.

  'Come on,' Thackeray said. 'Let's get out of Birmingham.'

  Table of Contents

  chapter one Crow Life

  chapter two Alone Again Or

  chapter three The Lament-Brood

  chapter four On the edge of Forever

  chapter five In the footsteps of Infinity

  chapter six Between the Viaducts of Dreams

  chapter seven Enchanted

  chapter eight Wildwood

  Chapter Nine Following the river to its source

  chapter ten A Small Death

  chapter eleven Birmingham

  chapter twelve Different Paths

  chapter thirteen In the Court of the Dreaming Song

  Chapter Fourteen Long memories

  chapter fifteen The Plain of Cairns

  chapter sixteen The House of Pain

  chapter seventeen The Queen of Sinister

  chapter eighteen Da Capo

  chapter nineteen Of Love and Other Things