Read Online Our Lady of the Streets (The Skyscraper Throne) by Tom Pollock - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Tom Pollock
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couldn’t possibly say, but there are six of us now who know, and that’s usually five more than can keep a secret for any length of time. Isn’t that right, dear seneschal?’ he added to Gutterglass with a waspish snap. ‘You’re our resident expert on secrets.’
Pen barely heard all this; she was focused on stalling the tremor in her limbs, focused on breathing in and out, slowly and regularly. ‘Forgive me?’ she whispered to Beth. She was still holding her.
‘
Of course, Pen. Always
,’ Beth answered.
‘Okay.’ Pen looked at Beth’s dad. His face looked bruised, swollen with grief, and to her shame she felt herself recoil from it.
‘I’m going to leave you and your dad to …’ She faltered. ‘I’ll be back upstairs afterwards if you want to talk.’
‘
No
,’ Beth said in her shushed tyre whisper. ‘
You won
’
t
.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘
You have to go, Pen
.’
Pen’s heart thudded in her chest. She pulled back against Beth’s hug and felt Beth’s concrete-textured fingers come away from the back of her neck. ‘Beth, I’m sorry, I really am. But it’s me – you can trust me. Please don’t do this.’
Beth looked puzzled for a moment, then her eyes widened in appalled sympathy. ‘
You think I
’
m
punishing
you? God, Pen, no! I would never … It
’
s just – you were right.’
Pen shook her head, not understanding. It was like there was a sudden loss of air pressure in the room. Beth sounded muffled; she could barely hear her.
‘
If She
’
s coming for you, you run. You said that, and you were right. But we can
’
t
.’ The light from Beth’s gaze fell on Petris, Ezekiel and Gutterglass in turn. ‘
We
’
re
of
the City, all of us. We have nowhere else to go
.’ Her gaze came finally back to Pen. ‘
But you do
.’
‘B, please don’t do this—’
But Beth’s right hand had already dipped into Pen’s pocket, quick as smoke, and now she held it out in front of her. Resting in the cross-hatched grey palm was a glass sphere, no larger than an ordinary marble. A ribbon of dark images twisted through the heart of it like a stormcloud. ‘
Take it to the Chemical Synod and sell it to Johnny Naphtha. Get your parents
’
memories back. Go to them. It’s time to leave us behind
.’
Pen just stood there, blinking and stammering and feeling like a fool and not managing to say anything.
‘
Go home, Pen
.’
Pen stared at her, shaking her head, not even in denial, just astonishment. ‘You are my home,’ she said at last.
Beth flinched, but didn’t look away.
‘B, I already made this choice.
‘
Make it again
.’
Pen felt sick and heavy, like she’d drunk liquid lead. ‘If I don’t,’ she asked, ‘what are you going to do? Have Petris throw me out?’
Beth didn’t answer. The muscles in Pen’s stomach locked up. She felt humiliated.
‘If you do this,’ she said, ‘I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to forgive you.’
Beth pursed her lips. She was weighing the threat, taking it perfectly seriously. ‘
If it will keep you alive
,’ she said at last, ‘
I can live with that
.’
‘Screw you, Beth,’ Pen mumbled around a throat full oftears. ‘You aren’t the one who’ll have to.’ She snatched Goutierre’s Eye from Beth’s hand and shoved past her to the door. She stumbled on the steps and the glass Eye clacked loudly on the stone as she put her hands out to catch herself. Blurrily, out of the corner of her eye she saw a little pile of cigarette ash and the ground-out dog-end of a roll-up, but she barely registered it. She pushed herself back up and with an angry burst of energy threw herself onwards.
CHAPTER NINE
‘Come now, My Lady, just one more time.’
Beth concentrated, focusing on the shapes in her mind: the human outlines, clad in a skin of concrete grey. She stretched out her hand towards the floor as though she could physically pull them out of it. The muscles in her arms trembled, beads of sweat stood out
Pen barely heard all this; she was focused on stalling the tremor in her limbs, focused on breathing in and out, slowly and regularly. ‘Forgive me?’ she whispered to Beth. She was still holding her.
‘
Of course, Pen. Always
,’ Beth answered.
‘Okay.’ Pen looked at Beth’s dad. His face looked bruised, swollen with grief, and to her shame she felt herself recoil from it.
‘I’m going to leave you and your dad to …’ She faltered. ‘I’ll be back upstairs afterwards if you want to talk.’
‘
No
,’ Beth said in her shushed tyre whisper. ‘
You won
’
t
.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘
You have to go, Pen
.’
Pen’s heart thudded in her chest. She pulled back against Beth’s hug and felt Beth’s concrete-textured fingers come away from the back of her neck. ‘Beth, I’m sorry, I really am. But it’s me – you can trust me. Please don’t do this.’
Beth looked puzzled for a moment, then her eyes widened in appalled sympathy. ‘
You think I
’
m
punishing
you? God, Pen, no! I would never … It
’
s just – you were right.’
Pen shook her head, not understanding. It was like there was a sudden loss of air pressure in the room. Beth sounded muffled; she could barely hear her.
‘
If She
’
s coming for you, you run. You said that, and you were right. But we can
’
t
.’ The light from Beth’s gaze fell on Petris, Ezekiel and Gutterglass in turn. ‘
We
’
re
of
the City, all of us. We have nowhere else to go
.’ Her gaze came finally back to Pen. ‘
But you do
.’
‘B, please don’t do this—’
But Beth’s right hand had already dipped into Pen’s pocket, quick as smoke, and now she held it out in front of her. Resting in the cross-hatched grey palm was a glass sphere, no larger than an ordinary marble. A ribbon of dark images twisted through the heart of it like a stormcloud. ‘
Take it to the Chemical Synod and sell it to Johnny Naphtha. Get your parents
’
memories back. Go to them. It’s time to leave us behind
.’
Pen just stood there, blinking and stammering and feeling like a fool and not managing to say anything.
‘
Go home, Pen
.’
Pen stared at her, shaking her head, not even in denial, just astonishment. ‘You are my home,’ she said at last.
Beth flinched, but didn’t look away.
‘B, I already made this choice.
‘
Make it again
.’
Pen felt sick and heavy, like she’d drunk liquid lead. ‘If I don’t,’ she asked, ‘what are you going to do? Have Petris throw me out?’
Beth didn’t answer. The muscles in Pen’s stomach locked up. She felt humiliated.
‘If you do this,’ she said, ‘I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to forgive you.’
Beth pursed her lips. She was weighing the threat, taking it perfectly seriously. ‘
If it will keep you alive
,’ she said at last, ‘
I can live with that
.’
‘Screw you, Beth,’ Pen mumbled around a throat full oftears. ‘You aren’t the one who’ll have to.’ She snatched Goutierre’s Eye from Beth’s hand and shoved past her to the door. She stumbled on the steps and the glass Eye clacked loudly on the stone as she put her hands out to catch herself. Blurrily, out of the corner of her eye she saw a little pile of cigarette ash and the ground-out dog-end of a roll-up, but she barely registered it. She pushed herself back up and with an angry burst of energy threw herself onwards.
CHAPTER NINE
‘Come now, My Lady, just one more time.’
Beth concentrated, focusing on the shapes in her mind: the human outlines, clad in a skin of concrete grey. She stretched out her hand towards the floor as though she could physically pull them out of it. The muscles in her arms trembled, beads of sweat stood out
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