THE SKIN MAP

Thomas Nelson

Chapter One

Had he but known that before the day was over he would discover the hidden dimensions of the universe, Kit might have been better prepared. At least, he would have brought an umbrella.

Like most Londoners, Kit was a martyr to the daily travails of navigating a city whose complexities were legendary. He knew well the dangers even the most inconsequential foray could involve. Venturing out into the world beyond his doorstep was the urban equivalent of trial by combat and he armed himself as best he could. He had long ago learned his small patch of the great metropolitan sprawl; he knew where the things most needful for survival were to be found and how to get to them. He kept in his head a ready-reference library of street maps, bus routes, and time schedules. He had memorised the pertinent sections of the London Underground tube schematic; he knew the quickest ways to work, and from work to his favourite pubs, the grocers, the cinema, the park where he jogged.

Sadly, knowing all of this was rarely enough.

This morning was a perfect case in point. Only minutes before, he had stepped out the door of his flat in Holloway on a jaunt to accompany his girlfriend on a long-promised shopping trip. Oblivious to the fact that he had already embarked on a journey of no return, he proceeded to the nearest tube station, flapped his Oyster card at the gate, stormed down the stairs as the train came rattling to the platform, and leapt aboard as the beeping doors began to close. He counted off the first two of the four stops to his destination and was just allowing himself to imagine that all was running according to plan when he was informed at the third stop that the line was closed ahead for routine maintenance.

"All passengers must change," crackled a voice through tinny loudspeakers. "This train is terminated."

Joining the grumbling pack, Kit found his way once again to street level, where a special bus had been provided for tube users to continue their journey—but which was artfully hidden at the far side of King's Cross station. The fact that it was Sunday, and that Tottenham Hotspur was playing Arsenal, had completely slipped his mind until he glimpsed the waiting bus and the queue of Tottenham fans stretching halfway down Euston Road. Unwilling to wait, he quickly devised an alternative plan for meeting Wilhelmina: just nip across the road and take the Northern Line from King's Cross to Moorgate, then take the train to Liverpool Street, change to the Central Line, and get off at Bethnal Green; from there it would be a quick bus ride up to Grove Road. A brisk walk through Victoria Park would bring him to Wilhelmina's place on Rutland Road. Easy peasy, he thought as he dived back into the Underground.

Once again, Kit fished his Oyster card from his pocket and waved it at the turnstile. This time, instead of the green arrow, the light on the pad flashed red. Aware of the foot traffic already piling into him from behind, he tapped the card against the sensor again and was awarded with the dreaded "Seek Assistance" display. Terrific. He sighed inwardly and began backing through the queue to the scorn and muttered abuse of his fellow travellers, most of whom were dressed in football jerseys of one kind or another. "Sorry," he grumbled, fighting his way through the press. "Excuse me. Terribly sorry."

He dashed for the nearest ticket booth and, after negotiating an obstacle course of barriers and railings, arrived to discover there was no one around. He rapped on the window and when that failed ran on to the next window where, after a vigorous pounding, he managed to rouse the attendant. "My Oyster card doesn't work," Kit explained.

"It's probably out of money," replied the agent.

"But I just topped it up a couple days ago. Can't you check it?"

The agent took the card and looked at it. He swiped it through a terminal beside the window. "Sorry, mate." He pushed the card back through the slot. "The computer is down."

"Okay, never mind," Kit relented. He started digging in his pockets. "I'll put five pounds on it."

"You can do it online," the agent informed him.

"But I'm here now," Kit pointed out, "in person."

"It's cheaper online."

"That is as may be," Kit agreed. "But I have to travel now—today."

"You can pay at a machine."

"Right," said Kit. Down on the platform below, he could hear the train clattering in and he hurried to the nearest ticket machine—which, after repeated attempts, refused to accept his five-pound note, spitting out the limp bill each time. The next machine along was for credit cards only, and the last of three was out of service. Kit ran back to the booth. "The ticket machine won't take my money," he said, sliding the fiver through the gap in the window. "Can you give me coin? Or another bill?"

The attendant regarded the crumpled bill. "Sorry."

"Sorry what?"

"Computer's down."

"But I can see the money there," Kit said, frustration mounting. He pointed through the window to a change machine cartridge stacked with rows of coins waiting to be dispensed. "Can't you just reach over and get some money?"

"We're not allowed to take money out of the machine."

"Why not?"

"It's automatic, and the comp—"

"I know, I know," grumped Kit, "the computer's down."

"Try one of the other windows."

"But there's nobody at the other windows."

The attendant gazed at him pityingly. "It's Sunday."

"Yeah, so?"

"Reduced service on Sunday."

"No kidding!" cried Kit. "Why do you even bother coming to work?"

The attendant shrugged. Directing his gaze past Kit, he called, "Next!"—although there was no one in line.

Accepting temporary defeat, Kit made his way back up to the street. There were numerous shops where he might have changed a five-pound note—if not for the fact that it was Sunday and all were either observing weekend hours or closed for the day. "Typical," sniffed Kit, and decided that it would be easier, and no doubt faster, just to walk the three or so miles to Wilhelmina's. With this thought in mind, he sailed off, dodging traffic and Sunday-morning pedestrians in the sincere belief that he could still reach Mina's on time. He proceeded along Pentonville Road, mapping out a route in his head as he went. He had gone but a few hundred paces when he began to experience the sinking feeling that he had become completely disoriented and was going the wrong way—something that had happened to him before around the no-man's-land of King's Cross. Realizing that he had to head north and west, he turned left onto Grafton Street, tooled along avoiding a barrage of roadwork, and quickly reached the next street north—an odd little lane called Stane Way.

So far, so good, he thought as he charged down the narrow walkway—really, nothing more than an alley providing service access for the shops on the parallel streets. After walking for two minutes, he started looking for the crossing street at the end. Two more minutes passed ... He should have reached the end by now, shouldn't he?

Then it started to rain.

Kit picked up his speed as the rain poured into the alley from low, swirling clouds overhead. He hunched his shoulders, put his head down, and ran. A wind rose out of nowhere and whipped down the length of the blank...