Free The Bone Magician by F E Higgins Page A

could continue Mr Pantagus frowned. ‘Madame de Bona does not wish to be
     touched,’ he said sternly.
    The man flushed and stepped back immediately, apologizing.
    ‘Tell me, Madame, why won’t my chickens lay?’
    Madame de Bona fixed her empty sockets on the manand replied scornfully, ‘I do not answer questions
     about chickens.’
    The man looked beseechingly at Mr Pantagus, but he only shrugged sympathetically.
    After that, there followed a plethora of questions about a multitude of topics, generally the everyday concerns of citizens in a place such
     as Urbs Umida. There was laughter at her replies, gasps, nods and shakes of the head. By the end the atmosphere was as jolly as the tavern downstairs . Eventually Mr Pantagus held up his hand and the noise quieted and we
     stood hanging on his every word.
    ‘Just one more question,’ said Mr Pantagus finally. ‘Time is running out . Madame de Bona
     will soon be exhausted.’
    I thought it was Mr Pantagus who sounded exhausted. His voice, deep and throaty earlier, was strained. Before I could help it I heard
     myself say, ‘I have a question.’
    All eyes were on me and they lingered as usual, knowing that there was something different about my face, but not quite sure what .
    ‘Madamede Bona,’ I said carefully, ‘where is my father and why did he disappear?’
    ‘That’s two questions,’ muttered the man with the reluctant chickens.
    Madame de Bona took her time answering. The crowd was beginning to shuffle its feet . ‘Carpue
     boy,’ I heard someone say from behind and I felt my cheeks flush bright red, but I maintained a steady gaze at Madame de Bona.
    ‘Child,’ came the soft reply, ‘your father is alive and not as far away as you think. Keep searching and you will find
     the truth.’
    I was shaking. I wanted them to stop looking at me and whispering . At last, Mr Pantagus spoke.
    ‘My dear ladies and gentlemen,’ he said quickly, ‘there will be no more questions this evening . I should like to thank you all for coming to see us and we hope you will tell all your friends about us.’
    As if on cue, the skeleton sank slowly back down into the coffin, her bones giving one final rattle when her skull touched the wood. The
     crowd cheered and clapped loudly.The door behind them was opened and they shuffled out of the fragrant room into the not-so-fragrant tavern .
    I watched Mr Pantagus and Juno swiftly put the coffin together again. Then my view was blocked by people stepping on to the platform and
     examining the coffin. Out of curiosity I too went to look, but it was empty and there was no sign of the Bone Magician or the girl. I looked around the screen and saw a door in the wall. I tried the handle, the door opened on to a staircase and I
     descended to another door at the bottom. I stepped out into the alley that ran down the side of the Nimble Finger. The Foedus was to my left, to my right the thoroughfare over the Bridge.
    The alley was empty. In the fresh cold air I pondered what I had just seen and the answer I had been given. I could feel a resurgence of
     hope in my heart. Perhaps my father was still in the City after all. But with the hope came anxiety. If I did see him again, then I would find out the truth. But was that what I really wanted?

 
Chapter Fourteen

A Chance Encounter
    Out on the street Pin took his hat from his pocket and pulled it down over his ears, then raised the collar of his coat
     to meet it. Unfortunately there was a deficit of material in the middle, leaving the back of his head exposed. The cold gripped his skull like a vice. The warmth of the ale and the inn were long gone.
    ‘I cannot stay out in this tonight,’ he thought. ‘I shall be dead before morning.’
    Pin could not recall a winter this cold. Even the Foedus looked more sluggish than usual. He knew he had to keep moving. He set off, not
     knowing where he was going, but stumbled almost immediately on something hard underfoot. A potato. He hoped