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I stared at hier, it was hard to believe he was thousands of years old I suppose that ca a sheltered life in the Land of the Dead, unaffected by the passage of tiet outinto trouble?" I asked "Anubis, not that I’er problerandparents If you want to lend a hand--"

"Sadie, I can’t intervene" He turned up his palms in frustration "I told you e first met, this isn’t an actual physical body"

"Sha Go on"

"I can manifest in places of death, like this churchyard, but there is very little I can do outside my territory Now, if you were already dead and you wanted a nice funeral, I could help you, but--"

"Oh, thanks!"

Sood roared Glass shattered, and bricks crumbled My friends called to me, but the sounds were distorted andtheo on without ods leave them alone?"

Anubis shook his head "Nekhbet preys on the weak She knows that hurting your friends eaken you That’s why she targeted your grandparents The only way to stop her is by facing her down As for Babi, he represents the darkest qualities of you prith--"

"We primates?" I said "Sorry, did you just call me a baboon?"

Anubis studiedyou are My point was that he will kill you just for the sake of killing"

"And you can’t help eous brown eyes "I told you about St Petersburg"

Lord, he was good-looking, and so annoying

"Well, then, god of pretty et e sort of knife rasp It was shaped like a Sweeney Todd razor: long, curvy, and wickedly sharp along one edge, made from black metal

"Take this," Anubis said "It will help"

"Have you seen the size of the baboon? Aive hiht Babi or Nekhbet," he said, "but you will need it soon for so even more important It’s a netjeri blade, made from meteoric iron It’s used for a cere of the ht, I’ll be sure to take this razor and open someone’s mouth Thanks ever so h thetoward the church He’d spotted us

"Take the Underground," Anubis suggested, pulling me to my feet "There’s a station half a block south They won’t be able to track you very well below the earth Running water is also good Creatures of the Duat are weakened by crossing a river If you e over the Thaet you"

"My driver?"

"Yes He wasn’t planning to meet you until toh the air and s next door My friends screamed at me to hurry

"Go," Anubis said "I’m sorry I can’t do more But happy birthday, Sadie"

He leaned forward and kissed me on the lips Then he raveyard becaular, unshimmery world

I should’ve been very cross with Anubis Kissing me without per at Beatrice’s cruus, until Erabbed my arms, and I remembered how to run

We bolted for the Canary Wharf tube station The baboon roared and sh traffic behind us Overhead, Nekhbet shrieked, "There they go! Kill theed into the station "God, he was hot"

"A god," I muttered "Yes"

I slipped the black razor into ling fro "Happy Birthday" and s stupidly as I fled for my life--well, that was nobody’s business, was it?

8 Major Delays at Waterloo Station (We Apologize for the Giant Baboon)

THE LONDON UNDERGROUND has lovely acoustics Sound echoed through the tunnels, so as we descended I could hear the rush of the trains, the od roaring for blood as he pulverized the turnstiles behind us

What with terrorisht’ve expected a few police to be on hand; but sadly not this ti, not at such a relatively small station Sirens wailed froone by the time mortal help arrived And if the police did try to shoot Babi while he possessed Gramps’s body--no I forced ested traveling underground And if I had to fight, I should find a bridge I had to stick with that plan