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The two gentleestured for the Inspector to step into the elevator It was lined with dark green velvet and one entire as covered in s down, are we?’ asked the Inspector in a sentleman smiled, a cold smile that did not reach his eyes He reached up and his ar an extra couple of yards so he could press a button on the very top right-hand side of the lift

‘There?’ asked the Inspector, awed in spite of his fear He could feel the Will’s influence working away inside hi to help it now The words that got aould have to fend for theentlerille

One

IT WAS ARTHUR PENHALIGON’S first day at his new school and it was not going well Having to start teeks after everyone else was bad enough, but it was even worse than that Arthur was totally and utterly new to the school His family had just moved to the town, so he knew absolutely no one and he had none of the local knowledge that would rade had a cross-country run every Monday just before lunch Today And it was coements had been made by a student’s parents In advance

Arthur tried to explain to the gym teacher that he’d only just recovered from a series of very serious asthma attacks and had in fact been in the hospital only a feeeks ago Besides that, he earing the stupid school uniforrey pants with a white shirt and tie, and leather shoes He couldn’t run in those clothes

For so and chasing one another around – only the second part of Arthur’s cohtman

‘Listen, kid, the rule is everybody runs, in whatever you’re wearing!’ snapped the teacher ‘Unless you’re sick’

‘I am sick!’ protested Arthur, but his words were lost as so each other’s hair and trying to kick shins, and Weight his whistle

‘Settle down! Susan, let go of Tanya right now! Okay, you know the course Down the right side of the oval, through the park, around the statue, back through the park, and down the other side of the oval First three back get to go to lunch early, the last three get to sweep the gyle about Get back, Rick Ready? On ht Arthur But he didn’t want to stand out anyHe was already an outsider here, a loner in the , and he didn’t want to be He was an optiazed across the oval at the dense forest beyond, which was obviouslycould happen in there He could take a rest He could make it that far, no problem, he told himself

Just for insurance, Arthur felt in his pocket for his inhaler, closing his fingers around the cool, co metal and plastic He didn’t want to use it, didn’t want to be dependent on the medication But he’d ended up in the hospital last time because he’d refused to use the inhaler until it was too late, and he’d proht blast that was answered inboys sprang out like shotgun pellets, hitting one another and shouting as they accelerated away A bunch of athletic girls, taller and e, streamed past thear antics of the roups of boys or girls – never rees of enthusiasm After them came the unathletic and noncoh Arthur wasn’t particularly sure which category they each belonged to

Arthur found hie to walk He kneouldn’t be mistaken for soht backwards so he could face the walkers and berate thehtman ‘You will fail this class if you do not pick up your feet!’

Arthur looked over his shoulder to see if that had any result One kid broke into a shanored the teacher Weightust and built up speed He overtook Arthur and the ap on the serious athletes at the front Arthur could already tell he was the kind of gym teacher who liked to beat the kids in a race Probably because he couldn’t win against other adult runners, Arthur thought sourly

For three or htroup of actual runners, well ahead of the walkers But as he had feared, he found it harder and harder to get a full breath into his lungs They just wouldn’t expand, as if they were already full of soen he needed, Arthur got slower and slower, falling back until he was barely in front of the walkers His breathing became shallower and shallower and the world narrowed around hiet a decent breath and keep putting one foot approximately in front of the other

Then, without any conscious intention, Arthur found that his legs weren’ton his back on the grass Dimly, he realised hea break or is there a probleh soine siren, screa that he was definitely not okay But no words ca wheeze

Inhaler! Inhaler! Inhaler! said the screa siren part of his brain Arthur followed its direction, fu in his pocket for the metal cylinder with its plastic mouthpiece He tried to raise it to his mouth, but when his hand arrived it was empty He’d dropped the inhaler

Then someone else pushed the mouthpiece between his lips and a cool mist suddenly filled his mouth and throat

‘How ht Arthur That would get hih he’d probably be back in the hospital again, and another week or two convalescing at home

‘How many puffs?’

Arthur realised he hadn’t answered Weakly, he held out three fingers and was rewarded by twoto work His shalloheezing breaths were actually getting soen into his blood and to his brain

The closed-in, confused world he’d been experiencing started to open out again, like scenery unfolded on a stage Instead of just the blue sky rimmed with darkness, he saw a couple of kids crouched near him They were two of the walkers, the ones who refused to run A girl and a boy, both defiantly not in school unifor bands Arthur didn’t know, and sunglasses They were either super-hip and ultra-cool, or the exact opposite Arthur was too new to the school and the whole town to know