To my auntie and number one supporter: Jessie Corson MBE. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)

Contents

Dedication

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Six

Epilogue

Other AFTERWORLDS books by Barry Hutchison:

Copyright

About the Publisher

“ES, GABRIEL. WHAT is it?”

“I bring news, sir.”

“News? Of the book?”

“Of the book. We have tracked it down.”

“You have? Excellent. Where is it?”

“It’s... well, it’s down below, sir.”

“What? On Earth?”

“Somewhat further down below than that, sir.”

“Oh. Right. Yes. Of course. The blighters. No surprise, I suppose.”

“Not entirely unexpected, sir, no.”

“Right. Well, now we’ve found it, what’s happening? They going to send it back?”

“No, sir.”

“No? What do you mean, ‘no’? They’re not playing silly sods again, are they?”

“They have requested that we send someone down to collect it in person.”

“You must be joking! One of us? Down there? You must be joking!”

“Alas, no, sir. They’re quite adamant about it. If we want the book back, we have to send someone to pick it up. They assure us it isn’t a trap.”

“It sounds like a trap.”

“They assure us it isn’t.”

“If I recall, Gabriel, they’re rather fond of lying. Rather adept at it too.”

“Quite, sir. But if they refuse to send it back, I don’t see that we have much of a choice in the matter. They have us over something of a barrel on this one. We need that book. What with the... current situation.”

“Yes, yes. You’re right, of course. Bless it all, we’re going to have to send someone. But who?”

“I anticipated you might ask that, sir. If I may be permitted to make a suggestion...?”

“Speak freely, Gabriel.”

“What if we didn’t send one of us, sir?”

“What do you mean?”

“They didn’t specify whom we should send. They just said we should send ‘someone’.”

“I don’t follow.”

“If it is, as we suspect, a trap, then it would seem unwise to send one of our own marching in. Better, surely, to send someone from down below?”

“A demon? How would that work?”

“Somewhat less far below than that, sir.”

“A human. Hmm. He wouldn’t like that.”

“He isn’t around to make the decision, sir. You are. With all due respect.”

“True words, Gabriel. True words. But whom would we choose?”

“I have taken the liberty of choosing for you, sir, so that you may distance yourself from any subsequent... unpleasantness.”

“Good thinking. Good thinking. Excellent. Off the record, though, who did you pick? No names, just the basics.”

“Someone disposable, sir.”

“Yes. Yes. Well, aren’t they all? But capable, I trust?”

“Oh, my word, yes, sir. He’s capable. He’s most capable indeed.”