The Faceless Ones (Skulduggery Pleasant - Book 3) (5 page)

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fingers closed over her wrists. The Hag was too strong for her.

And then something moved toward them, and Valkyrie saw Skulduggery, shooting through the water like a torpedo. He was right beside them before the Hag even realized he was close.

The Hag tried clawing at him, but Skulduggery took hold of Valkyrie's wrist, the wrist that the Hag had released, and Valkyrie was yanked free.

She clutched Skulduggery tight, feeling the water part in front and boost them from behind. The Hag was after them, her body undulating as she gave chase, her face furious. She drew close and reached out, but Skulduggery veered, taking them into the murky depths of the lake, and then they rolled, changing course, heading back, passing right by the Hag, who screamed her rage in escaping bubbles.

The lake bed was close as they passed over it, and getting closer. Valkyrie could have reached out and touched the pebbles and the rocks and the silt and the sand.

And then Skulduggery kicked upward and they burst free of the water, rising high through the

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air and falling now, falling to the tree line. Then there was a screech, and the Sea Hag erupted from the churning waves behind them and grabbed Skulduggery, her thin arms encircling his waist, pulling him back under.

Valkyrie dropped, grabbing for a tree branch. She couldn't hold on. She hit the ground and grunted, barely aware that her hands were cut and bleeding, lacerated by splinters.

She groaned and moved her head slightly to look back at the water. She couldn't see Skulduggery or the Hag, and the ripples were already spreading out and dying, as if the lake was trying to hide what was going on beneath its surface. Valkyrie rolled over, her dark hair hanging in front of her face, and got up slowly, grimacing when she saw her hands.

The corpse was still standing in the water where they had left him, probably waiting for the Hag to come back and reclaim what she saw as hers. Valkyrie started moving. The corpse had helped them, and they'd promised to return the favor.

She ran along the edge of the lake, slipping every now and then, coming too close to the water for her liking. Even so, the Hag didn't jump out at her, didn't snatch her as she passed. Skulduggery

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was probably kicking the hell out of her. At least she
hoped
he was.

She got back to the corpse, breathing hard, holding her hands away from her body because they were starting to sting.

"Hey," she said. "Come on out of there."

He shook his head. "I can't move on my own. I've spent the last fifty years at the bottom of this lake. I don't think I can even remember
how
to move."

"In that case," Valkyrie said, "I'll come and get you."

"Thank you," said the corpse.

Valkyrie stepped into the lake. The waters here were calm. No sign of the Sea Hag--which meant that either Skulduggery was keeping her busy or she was lying in wait for Valkyrie to step within easy reach. Valkyrie walked in up to her knees, then her thighs, and when she was waist-deep, she thrust herself forward and swam.

So far, so good. So far, no hands grabbing her and pulling her under.

She reached the corpse and looked up at him. "How do I get you down?"

"I'm afraid I don't know," he replied.

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She took a breath and plunged her head underwater. He wasn't standing on anything. It was as if the lake itself was keeping him upright.

She surfaced and reached out to try and pull him down. The moment she touched his skin, the lake stopped holding him. He splashed down.

"Sorry," he said.

"It's okay," Valkyrie responded, hooking her hand under his chin. She fought the urge to shiver as her hand closed over his ice-cold, mottled flesh, and she swam back to land, taking him with her. Her feet touched the bottom. She held him under the arms and started dragging him out.

"Thank you for doing this," he said.

"We owe you."

"It was horrible, in that lake."

"We'll find you a nice dry grave, don't you worry."

He managed to twist his head and look back at her. "If the Faceless Ones return, the world will end. Please promise me you'll stop them."

She gave him a smile. "Stopping the bad guys is what we do."

The moment his feet left the water, his head

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lolled forward and he stopped talking. He was just a corpse once again.

Valkyrie kept dragging him until they were well clear of the lake, and then, very carefully, she laid him down.

She was drenched, she was freezing, her hands were cut and stinging, she had muck and dead flesh under her fingernails, and she needed to wash her hair as soon as humanly possible.

Something was happening in the middle of the lake. She looked closer, saw a ripple, moving fast, something breaking the surface. Skulduggery rose up out of the water until he was standing. He skimmed across the lake, hands in his pockets, like he was waiting for a bus.

He slowed as he neared and then stepped onto land.

"Well," he said, "that takes care of
that."
He waved a hand, and the water lifted from his clothes, leaving him dry.

Valkyrie scowled. "You still haven't taught me how to do that."

Skulduggery picked his hat off the ground and brushed off the dirt. "You're the one insisting that

52

lessons on fire and air manipulation are more important than lessons on water. You can't really blame me for how much you resemble a drowned rat, now can you?"

"I'm sure I could manage it," she said grumpily. "How's the Hag?"

He shrugged. "Regretting her life choices, I imagine. I see you've rescued the corpse."

"Yes. He's dead."

"Corpses usually are."

"I mean he's not talking anymore."

"Then there is nothing left to do except honor his wishes. We'll carry him to the car, trying very hard not to be seen by any passersby, and take him with us back to Dublin."

She nodded. Bit her lip.

"What?" Skulduggery asked. "What's wrong?"

"Well, I don't mean to sound disrespectful or anything, but it might be weird, being in a car with the remains of a dead man...."

"You
do
realize that I'm the remains of a dead man too, don't you?"

"I know, yeah, but... you don't smell."

"You make an excellent point. Don't worry, we'll put him in the trunk. Now then, do you want

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to take his arms or his legs?"

"Legs."

Skulduggery picked the corpse up, hands under the armpits. Valkyrie took hold of the corpse's ankles and lifted, and the right leg fell off.

"You can carry that," said Skulduggery.

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Five

***

Tracking the Teleporter

The Bentley parked near the tenement building where China Sorrows kept her library. Skulduggery had insisted, as part of her ongoing training, that Valkyrie dry herself, and although she had done her best to lift off the lake water, she hadn't quite managed to get all of it. Patches of her clothes were still slightly damp, and her hair stank.

"I'm a mess," she grumbled as she got out of the car. "I hate seeing China when I'm a mess. She's always so immaculate. How does my hair look?"

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Skulduggery activated the car alarm. "You have a twig in it."

Valkyrie yanked the twig out and scowled in pain. She glanced at the trunk of the car as they walked. "Where are you going to bury the body?"

"I know a place."

"You
know a place?
Do you bury lots of bodies there?"

"A few."

"That's kind of creepy. What about the guy who killed him? Batu? Have you ever heard of him? "

"Never."

"Maybe the Teleporter murders have nothing to do with Trope Kessel's murder."

"And the fact that they've all been killed the same way?"

"Could be coincidence."

"So you're not worried then? You're not concerned about the threat of the Faceless Ones coming back?"

She pursed her lips.

"Valkyrie?"

She sighed. "I just wish you didn't have to be right all the time."

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"It
is
a burden. But the question becomes: Why was there a fifty-year gap between the first murder and the other four? What has our Mr. Batu been doing for those intervening years?"

"Maybe he was in prison."

"You're thinking more like a detective every day, do you know that? There are some people who owe me favors--I should be able to get a list of recently released felons."

She sighed. "This would be a lot easier if we were still with the Sanctuary."

As they were walking into the tenement building, they bumped into Savien Eck, a sorcerer Valkyrie had met only twice before. He was carrying a large book under his arm. It was bound in leather and looked old. He held it tightly against his side and nodded distractedly.

"Afternoon, Skulduggery. Valkyrie."

All three of them climbed the stairs.

"What's that you've got there?" Skulduggery asked.

"A book. A book for--for China. She wants it. She said she'd buy it off me."

"Is it expensive?"

Eck's laugh was as sudden as it was desperate.

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"Oh, yes. Oh ... oh, yes. Quite rare, this one is. Priceless, I'd say."

"And what is the going price for a priceless book these days?"

"A lot," Eck said decisively. "I'm not going to be a pushover, you know? You see these other people, and the moment they see her, they forget about money, or a fair deal, and all they want to do is make her happy. Well, not me. I'm a businessman, Skulduggery. This is business."

By the time they reached the third floor, Eck's teeth were chattering. Skulduggery knocked on the door marked library , and a thin man opened it and beckoned them inside. Eck's legs gave out a little, but he managed to stay upright, and they followed him through the labyrinth of bookcases until they came to the desk.

China Sorrows, hair as black as sin and eyes as blue as sky, saw them coming, rose from her chair, and the most beautiful woman in the world smiled.

Savien Eck fell to his knees, held the book out before him, and whimpered, "I adore you."

Skulduggery shook his head and left Valkyrie's side to peruse the bookshelves.

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"Savien," China said, "you're so sweet." The thin man took the leather-bound book from Eck's trembling hands and placed it on the desk.

"Now, about payment..."

Eck nodded quickly. "Yes. Payment, yes."

"How are you, by the way? You're looking well. Have you been exercising? "

He smiled weakly. "I like to jog."

"It definitely shows," China said, eyes narrowing appreciatively.

Eck whimpered again.

"I'm sorry," China said, giving a light laugh and appearing flustered. "You have a tendency to distract me. Back to business, if I can keep my mind on the job for more than three seconds. We were talking about payment."

"You can have it," Eck said in a strangled voice.

"I'm sorry?"

Eck rose off his knees. "I give it to you, China. It's my gift. There's no payment necessary."

"Savien, I couldn't
possibly--"

"Please,
China. Accept it. Accept it as a token of my, of my ..."

Valkyrie was impressed by how large and hopeful China could make her eyes.

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"Yes, Savien?"

"... my
love,
China."

China pressed a delicate finger to her lips, like she was struggling to hold back a torrent of passion. "Thank you, Savien."

Eck bowed, swayed slightly, and turned. Judging by his smile, he was outrageously, deliriously pleased, and he hurried back the way they'd come. The thin man followed along behind to make sure he didn't stumble into anything.

"That,"
Valkyrie said, "was disgraceful."

China shrugged, resumed her seat, and opened the book. "I do what I must to get the things that I want." She used a magnifying glass to examine the pages more closely. "You look like you've been swimming, Valkyrie," she said, without raising her head. "And what happened to your hands? All those little cuts look sore."

"I, uh, I hit a tree."

"Well, I'm sure it had it coming."

Desperate to steer the conversation away from her appearance, Valkyrie asked, "What's the book?"

"It's a spell book, written by the Mad Sorcerer over a thousand years ago."

"Why was he called the Mad Sorcerer?"