“Oo live, in Oxford, tians—take kids and sell em to turks for slaves. And on Port Meado t comes out from t Godstow. I he Gobblers....”

    “ts s ion Board, dont they?”

    Lyra felt Pantalaimon tremble suddenly, but  be and a butterfly, didnt seem to notice.

    “Gobblers?” said t a peculiar name! hem Gobblers?”

    Lyra  to tell ories so frig the man was already speaking.

    “From tials, dyou see? General Oblation Board. Very old idea, as a matter of fact. In ts o to be monks or nuns. And tunate brats es.

    Means a sacrifice, an offering, somet sort. So taken up  business....As our little friend probably knoalk to Lord Boreal?” o Lyra directly. “Im sure o meet Mrs. Coulters protegee....ts  daemon.”

    ed to get rid of Lyra so t alk more privately ell t easily. But t seemed, ill interested in Lyra, and slipped ao talk to her.

    “Stop a minute....s your name?”

    “Lyra.”

    “Im Adele Starminster. Im a journalist. Could I  word?”

    t only natural t people so talk to her, Lyra said simply, “Yes.”

    tterfly daemon rose into ting about to left and rigtered doo er said, “Come to t.”

    te spot of Lyras; it overlooked t time of nigs across on ttering brilliantly over tions in ter of tide. A line of barges ug moved upriver. Adele Starminster sat do to make room.

    “Did Professor Docker say t you ion er?”

    “Yes.”

    “ is it? Youre not er, by any chance? I suppose I should know—”

    “No!” said Lyra. “Course not. Im ant.”

    “ant? Youre a bit young, arent you? I t you ed to s she like?”

    “S things were changing.

    “Yes, but personally,” Adele Starminster insisted. “I mean, is sient or w? Do you live s se?”

    “Solidly.

    “ sort of things do you do? how do you help her?”

    “I do calculations and all t. Like for navigation.”

    “A was your name again?”

    “Lyra. I come from Oxford.”

    “er pick you to—”

    Sopped very suddenly, because Mrs. Coulter herself had appeared close by.

    From tarminster looked up at ated ering around ell t t supposed to be at ty at all.

    “I dont knoer very quietly, “but I s out es, and t again. No up very quietly,  making a fuss, and leave. I mig w you here will also suffer.”

    Mrs. Coulter seemed to be c: a  smell, like ed metal, came off  somet earlier, but noed at someone else, and poor Adele Starminster o resist. ing, and to be unable to stand fully uprig as and out of tco he swooning daemon in place.

    “ell?” said Mrs. Coulter to Lyra.

    “I never told ant,” Lyra said.

    “ was she asking?”

    “Just about .”

    As s, Lyra noticed t Mrs. Coulter  her daemon.

    be? But a moment later t ook ly to her shoulder.

    At once s ease again.

    “If you come across anyone else ed, dear, do come and find me,  you?”

    t metallic smell  again, and t of oter smiled at Lyra in a  seemed to say, “You and I understand t o greet some ots.

    Pantalaimon was whispering in Lyras ear.

    “ of our bedroom. hes been spying.

    ter!”

    Lyra felt t t rue, but t it.   professor been saying about to find  no sooner s dress for tapped tly to  . t took no more t ly done t iced. But it left Lyra feeling anxious and exposed.

    Saking place, ening to tions around erested in taste of tails s alloo try, and increasingly fretful. S a anyone cil t  to say:

    “Miss Lyra, tleman by to speak to you.  know.”

    Lyra looked up across tly at , he nodded and beckoned.

    Un more interested now, s across.

    “Good evening, c daemons mailed tered in t from t-glass lamp on the wall nearby.

    “Good evening,” said Lyra.

    “er of Jordan?”

    “Very hank you.”

    “I expect to say goodbye to you.”

    “Yes, they were.”

    “And is Mrs. Coulter keeping you busy?  is seaching you?”

    Because Lyra ronizing question ruts of fancy.

    Instead s Rusakov Particles, and about tion Board.”

    o become focused at once, in t you could focus tern. All tention streamed at her fiercely.

    “Suppose you tell me w you know,” he said.

    “ts in th,” Lyra said. She was feeling reckless now. “Like Dr. Grumman.”

    “Go on.”

    “t togram o  least, not so much.”

    “Did Mrs. Coulter sure like t?”

    Lyra ated, for t lying but somet practiced at it.

    “No,” ser a moment. “I sa one at Jordan College.”

    “ to you?”

    “ really s to me,” Lyra admitted. “I  passing and I sa. And taken by tion Board. But—”

    “ picture?”

    “My Uncle Asriel.”

    “hen?”

    “ time.”

    “I see. And ion Board?”

    “Yes. But I didnt  t from  here.”

    ly true, s.

    he innocence she had.

    Finally he nodded.

    “ter must o  work.

    Interesting. aken part yet?”

    “No,” said Lyra.  ? Pantalaimon ray .

    “And old you he children?”

    “No, s told me t. I only just kno its about Dust, and theyre like a kind of sacrifice.”

    Again, t  exactly a lie, s; s Mrs.

    Coulter old her.

    “Sacrifice is ratic ting it. s done is for to Mrs. Coulter s  to take part, and o bring tter.

    Im very pleased.”

    er . Sely back and urned ao talk to someone else.

    Salaimon could sense eaced to go ao ed to leave t; sed to go back to Jordan College and tle saircase to find Lord Asriel—

    And as if in anso t last o talking nearby ext of o a canape from te on table. A man in a bishops purple was saying:

    “...No, I dont troubling us for quite some time.”

    “And where did you say he was being held?”

    “In tress of Svalbard, Im told. Guarded by panser-bj0rne—you knoures!  escape from to be a t is t I really the way is clear, very nearly clear—”

    “t experiments  I al Dust is an emanation from tself, and—”

    “Do I detect trian heresy?”

    “ used to be a heresy—”

    “And if e the dark principle—”

    “Svalbard, did you say?”

    “Armored bears—”

    “tion Board—”

    “t suffer, Im sure of it—”

    “Lord Asriel imprisoned—”

    Lyra urned aly as talaimon, s into y  once.

    “ell?” she whispered, and he became a goldfinch on her shoulder.

    “Are o run away?” he whispered back.

    “Course. If  no, s not notice for a while.”

    “he will.”

    Pantalaimon meant Mrs. Coulters daemon.  of  ill h fear.

    “Ill figime,” Pantalaimon said boldly. “I can c.

    Ill c be able to keep ime Ill win, youll see.”

    Lyra nodded distractedly.  s out  being seen?

    “Youll o go and spy,” ss clear, heres no one looking...”

    S, dark against t in the corridor.

    Mean clotuffed some more into one of ted t very afternoon. Mrs. Coulter s, and alt it lavisill several sovereigns left,  of t before tiptoeing to the door.

    Last of all ser in its black velvet clot abominable monkey found it?   old  better! Siptoed to to t t of ts alking loudly, laug flusory, tinkle of glasses; and tiny mot her ear said:

    “Now! Quick!”

    So t door of t. A moment after t s quietly s, and alaimon a goldfincairs and fled.