Chapter 9. An Offer Hard to Refuse

Lyra didn't want to get up. Her body ached, every movement sending shooting pain through her muscles. She hadn't given her body a physical shake-up in a long time, and now she was paying for it.

Yesterday, she hadn't even had the strength to bathe. She had collapsed on the sofa by the entrance and fallen asleep in her clothes.

This was becoming a habit, she thought.

Opening one eye and then the other, she noticed Nyrhl sitting quietly in front of her, looking at her curiously. Lyra closed her eyes and buried her face in the pillow.

"No, no, no," she wailed under the pillow. The freezing spell had dissipated recently, as Nyrhl had only been able to cause minor damage: rearrange the logs in the fireplace, sprinkle ash all over the rug, leave tracks on the floor and armchairs, and eat the curtains.

Lyra sat up, looked at him again, and saw that he was mesmerized by her hand. Lyra also looked down and saw the bracelet Rosie gave her