“Hello?” said Effie. “Are you okay? Do you need help?”

“We all need help,” came a female voice. The dark shape moved, shook itself and sat up.

It was the woman from the market. The one who had reminded Effie of her mother. Effie had given her eight pounds and then had her first experience in the Flow. Well, this was handy. This was another chance to—

“Oh, I see,” the woman said, nodding. “Now you consider me some kind of convenient portal. I’ve met your type before.”

“No,” said Effie. “That’s not it. I—”

“I’m very cold,” said the woman pointedly.

“Here,” said Effie. “Have my cape. I don’t mind.”

The woman accepted Effie’s school cape. Now Effie shivered before her in the snow.

“That’s better. Now, do you have any more money?” asked the woman.

“No,” said Effie. “Only my friend’s money. I have to buy incense.”

“Incense. Pah!”

“It’s actually quite important, so . . .”

“More important than getting back in the Flow?”

“I can go in the Flow whenever I want.”

“Oh, you can, can you? Sorry, girly. That’s not how it works. And I think you know it.”

It was true. Ever since she’d lit the candle in the library, Effie had felt the Flow retreat from her somehow. She still had all the power it had given her, of course, but where before she’d sensed it as another dimension right next to her, so close she could just step into it at any time, it now seemed unreachable, like it was on a different plane of existence entirely. Did the Flow hate her too? Had she done that wrong, just as she did everything else wrong?

“Oh, stop feeling sorry for yourself,” the woman said. “I thought you wanted to help me? Or do you actually just want to use me to increase your power?”

Why was this woman saying these things? She wasn’t being very friendly, all of a sudden. And she wasn’t in the slightest bit grateful to Effie for giving her the cape. She was just being horrible. Effie suddenly wanted nothing more to do with her. She didn’t want to help her at all. She didn’t actually care if she—

Effie took a deep breath. Blinked slowly. Whatever horrible things the woman was saying, she still looked small and helpless at Effie’s feet. She was grumpy, but then wouldn’t you be grumpy if you had to sleep out in the snow? Effie again thought of her mother. She always used to be snappy when she had a headache. She didn’t mean it; it was just because she was in pain. Effie crouched down.

“Can I get you some food?” she said. “Or find you a place to stay?”

“You could give me that ring,” the woman said.

“What?” said Effie. “Which ring?”