“We’re early,” she said as she buckled her seatbelt.
“I doubt Guild will care too much,” Skulduggery responded, his sunglasses in place over his scarf and his hat pulled low. “He’s looking at close to 300 years for his part in the Vanguard assassination and the cover-up. I don’t think ten minutes is going to make that much of a difference to him, to be honest.”
“Why do you think he asked for us anyway? Surely there are friendlier faces to see him off?”
“You would think so, wouldn’t you? Maybe he wants to thank you again for saving his family. Or maybe he has something to tell us.”
“A secret?”
“Confidential information perhaps. He is Grand Mage, after all.”
“Was.”
“Oh,” Skulduggery said. “Yes.”
“I wonder who’ll take over. I wonder who’ll want to. In the past three years one Grand Mage has been murdered and the other sent to jail. Who’s going to want that job?”
“There will always be people who want power, Valkyrie. Never underestimate greed.”
They stopped at a set of traffic lights and a group of lads stared at the Bentley until it moved off again.
“Sometimes I wish you could drive a less noticeable car,” she sighed.
“I can,” Skulduggery said. “I just choose not to.”
“You know, I was thinking …”
“Never a good start to any conversation.”
“Shut up. But I was thinking, maybe you should ask China to whip you up a façade tattoo, the same way she did for Ghastly. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about your scarf and sunglasses.”
He shrugged. “I’m considering it.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Really?”
“If she can do it, why not get it done?”
“What kind of face would you have? Would it be yours? Your own one, I mean. The one you used to have?”
Skulduggery was quiet for a moment. “That face is dead,” he said eventually. “Bringing it back would be …”
“Painful?”
He looked at her. “I suppose.”
She nodded, then smiled. “Seeing you with a face would be weird. Do you think you’d have hair?”
“Oh yes. Hair is a must.”
“Would you have a moustache?”
“Why would I have a moustache?”
“I’m not sure. What about your ears?”
“I’d have ears too, yes.”
“I can’t imagine you with ears.”
A few minutes later they pulled into the parking lot behind the Waxworks Museum and got out of the car. They walked to the museum door.
“I’m with Fletcher,” Valkyrie said quickly. Skulduggery turned his head to her and didn’t say anything.
“We’re together, kind of a boyfriend/girlfriend thing,” she continued, all too aware of how stupid she was sounding. They walked through the museum corridors.
“Well?” she prompted. “What do you think? Do you have an opinion on it? Are you going to say something?”
“Yes,” he said at last.
He nodded to the wax figure of Phil Lynott, who told them they were expected, and Skulduggery led the way down the steps. Detective Pennant greeted them at the bottom and told them to wait in the Meeting Room while he brought Guild to them. They started walking again and Skulduggery spoke.
“Valkyrie, ever since you brought me back I’ve been distracted. My concentration hasn’t been one hundred per cent and my focus is … lacking. I knew there was something between you two, but I didn’t see it. I needed you to tell me. Who knows how all this might have gone if I hadn’t been so distracted?”
“The Faceless Ones hunted you and tortured you,” she said. “That would distract just about anyone.”
“But I can’t afford to be distracted any more. Darquesse is coming and we need to be at our sharpest. Somehow, for some reason, you are intrinsically linked to what is going to happen.”
“Ghastly’s mother was a Sensitive,” she said. “He told me about this just before you went through the portal. She looked into the future and saw you and me fighting a creature of darkness. Ghastly said it was unimaginable evil – the world on the edge of destruction.”
“Sounds a lot like what Finbar and Cassandra are seeing.”
They arrived at the Meeting Room and walked in. It was empty. Valkyrie took a deep breath and forced herself to continue speaking.
“Every vision we’ve been told about so far,” she said, “they all end the same way. I die. I just want to be strong enough to save everyone else. I want to save my family.”
Skulduggery looked at her.
“So this,” she said, “what’s happening and what’s going to happen, this isn’t your fault. You can’t control everything and not everything is your responsibility. At Croke Park you said something about how you don’t want to drag me around after you just so I can die beside you. I wanted to tell you then, but I didn’t have the words and I didn’t have the time. I’m here because I choose to be. You save my life. I save yours. That’s how we work.”
“Until the end.”
“Until the end.”
He stepped closer to her. “Thank you for saving me,” he said softly, and wrapped the bones of his arms around her. Valkyrie smiled and hugged him back.
They parted as the door opened and Pennant led Thurid Guild in. Guild’s hands were shackled before him.
“He’s all yours,” Pennant said and left them.
“You’re early,” Guild said. “Does the idea of my impending incarceration make you so eager you couldn’t wait for the appointed time?”
“It’s good to see you too, Thurid,” Skulduggery said. “Are you ready to go?”
It looked like Guild was going to come back with another sarcastic remark, but then his face tightened and he nodded. Suddenly Valkyrie was feeling sorry for him. He was a man who had only been trying to do the right thing, and because of it, he was going to be taken away from his family and he’d probably never see them again.
They walked out, Guild between them, passing sorcerers who averted their eyes from the former Grand Mage. Valkyrie didn’t feel right. This was too much like being an executioner, walking the condemned man to the chamber.
“How long before the Sanctuary is up and running again?” Skulduggery asked.
“A few more days,” Guild answered, sounding relieved to be given the opportunity to talk about something other than his future. “Most of the artefacts have been returned to the Repository and some departments have already resumed work. The inmates will be taken back to the Gaol tonight, under heavy security of course. Not that they mind. I expect they’re quite appreciative of any opportunity to be out of those cages. At least I won’t be in a cage when I’m in prison.”
“Good man,” Skulduggery said. “Keep looking on the bright side.”
Guild glared