Skulduggery Pleasant: Mortal Cole (42 page)

“Kenspeckle hated vampires,” Valkyrie said softly.

“I took every last one of the vials. I didn’t think he’d mind, now that he’s dead. I read his notes too, so I know how to make my own.” Caelan’s eyes closed. “I can feel it. It wants to get out. It doesn’t understand why it can’t.” He looked at Valkyrie. “I don’t have to be the monster. For you… For you, I can be normal. I can be human.”

“If this is how you’re going to live, you have to do it for yourself, not for me.”

He smiled again. “You’re my reward.”

“No, Caelan, I’m not.”

“Not yet, maybe. I have to prove myself. I’m willing to do that.”

“Listen,” said Valkyrie, “I’m trying to be as clear about this as I possibly can. I don’t want to be with you.”

“I can hear how fast your heart beats every time you look at me.”

“Well,” she muttered, “that’s hardly fair.”

“You are a strange girl, Valkyrie Cain.”

“And I’ve got a Skeleton Detective waiting for me outside.”

“You’d better get back to him, then. I’ll see you soon.”

Valkyrie thought he might step closer, try to kiss her, but instead, he just smiled. She walked away, and tried to ignore the fact that she was disappointed.

She didn’t tell Skulduggery about Caelan. She got in the Bentley, told him the zombies had already escaped, and they drove back to Haggard.

“It’s not over,” said Valkyrie.

“What isn’t?”

“This whole Darquesse business. I didn’t stop it, did I?”

Skulduggery hesitated. “It doesn’t look like it, no.”

“No one else remembers what they did when they were possessed, but I do. I remember more and more all the time. The Remnant wasn’t controlling me, it just… opened a door. Those people who died. I did that.” She took a breath, and let it out slowly. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to start crying or anything. If I had been in control, it wouldn’t have happened. Obviously, I wasn’t in control.”

“I’m glad you realise that.”

“But now we have proof, right? That there is something in me capable of doing everything we saw in that vision. So what are we going to do about it?”

“What do you suggest?”

Valkyrie looked straight ahead, at the road. “You could kill me.”

“I have no intention of killing you, Valkyrie. Something turns you. Something triggers the change from the Valkyrie Cain we all know and tolerate to Darquesse, evil witch-queen of Dublin.”

“It’s going to be something tragic, isn’t it?” she said. “Something awful happens to me or to someone I love, and I go nuts and seek revenge on the whole world.”

“That’s a possibility.”

“Any idea what this awful, tragic event might be?”

“I don’t know. But whatever it is, I’ll be looking out for it, and so will you. When it comes, we’ll be ready.”

He dropped her off at the pier, and she gave him a wave and watched him drive away. She took out her phone as she hurried to her house, making sure the reflection was still out at a neighbour’s party.

According to the message it had left her, it was standing in the corner not talking to anyone. The party itself was a complete flop, with no one being in the mood to make merry. Valkyrie, however, managed a smile at the thought of walking through her own front door for once, and letting the reflection be the one to climb up to the window.

She felt bad about the Cleavers, forced to keep watch out here in the freezing cold. Their van was parked on the far side of the road, with the engine off so as not to arouse suspicion. She had never engaged a Cleaver in conversation, had never even heard one speak, not really, but she approached the van anyway. She could sneak them out a couple of coffees if they needed warming up, and possibly give them some straws so they wouldn’t even have to take their helmets off. She didn’t know if they even drank coffee. She doubted it.

The front of the van was empty, so Valkyrie rapped lightly on the side door. The windows were darkened. When there was no sound from inside, she frowned. There were three Cleavers stationed here – one stayed with the van at all times, and the other two took regular patrols around the area. She gripped the handle. To her surprise it wasn’t locked. She slid the door open. Three Cleavers lay dead inside.

She turned and ran to her house. She slipped on the road and fell, rolled, lunged up and kept running. She jumped the low wall around her front garden, landing in the shadows, staying out of the light that shone from the living room window. The fire was roaring and the TV was on.

Valkyrie saw her mum and dad chatting, and her knees went weak with relief. But they were talking to someone, a woman in jeans and a heavy sweatshirt. Valkyrie didn’t recognise her until she turned her head to laugh. Valkyrie ran into the house and burst through into the living room. They all looked round, surprised at the dramatic entrance.

“Hi, Stephanie,” Tanith said.

“H
eat,” Valkyrie’s mum said. “Heat!”

Her dad got up, hurried out into the hall. She heard him close the front door to stop the draught, but couldn’t take her eyes off Tanith. “What are you doing here?”

“My car broke down,” Tanith smiled. “I remember you said you lived here, so I thought I’d stay somewhere warm until my lift arrived. Are you OK? You look like you’re in shock.”

Her dad came back in. “Born in a barn, were you? I
swear to you, Tanith, I don’t know where she gets it from.”

Tanith laughed. “Don’t worry, Des, she’s exactly the same in school. I may only be a substitute teacher, but I’ve been around long enough to know that Stephanie swans in and out of class expecting doors to close all by themselves.”

They all chuckled, except for Valkyrie.

“Tanith,” Valkyrie’s mum said, “were you caught up in this Insanity Virus thing? Wasn’t it awful?”

“Oh, Melissa, it was. My neighbour got it, actually. He went nuts. Didn’t hurt anyone, thank God, but it was so scary. Just like the reports on TV. He’s fine now, though.”

“It was an attack,” Valkyrie’s dad said. “Something like this just doesn’t happen in nature. I bet you that whoever did this was using Ireland as a testing ground. It’ll be America next, you wait and see. Or London.”

His wife shook her head. “Some people are saying now it was hallucinogenic drugs pumped into the water supply. They’re even saying it started out as a prank. A
prank
!”

“I’m sure you’re right,” Tanith said, nodding. “But it was terrifying. I stayed home the entire time – there was no way I was setting foot outside.”

“Wise woman.”

“Oh, excuse me,” Tanith said, taking out her phone and reading the screen. “My lift is here.”

“That was quick.”

“That’s the good thing about boyfriends – they come when you call. I’m not too sure how to get back to my car, though. It was on
one
of these roads…”

“Oh, I’m sure Steph won’t mind walking you back.”

“No problem,” Valkyrie said. “You ready to go now? Let’s go now.”

Tanith stood up, and smiled again. “So eager to get a teacher out of her house. Des, Melissa, thank you so much for your hospitality. Hopefully I’ll see you at the next parent-teacher meeting.”

While her parents said their goodbyes, Valkyrie ushered Tanith out of the house.

“If you’re going to set me on fire,” Tanith said quietly, “you might want to wait until we’re around the corner.”

Valkyrie glanced back. Her dad was on the front step watching them go. After another few moments of letting the heat out, he closed the door.

Immediately, she stepped away from Tanith. “Why are you here?”

Tanith kept walking, forcing Valkyrie to keep up. “We’re friends, Val. I just wanted to drop in, say hi.”

“Ghastly’s an Elder. He’s getting everyone to figure out a way to help you.”

She smiled. “Why would you think I need help? Look at me – don’t I seem happy to you?”

“You’re a Remnant.”

They were around the corner now, out of sight and heading down to the pier.

“And we Remnants are happy creatures,” Tanith said. “So Ghastly’s an Elder, is he? Well, I’m glad. I wouldn’t have liked to see him spend the rest of his life in that little shop, never making any new friends. Maybe now he’ll meet a nice girl, settle down…”

“He loves you.”

“He
is
a sweetheart.”

Valkyrie stopped walking. “What do you want, Tanith?”

Tanith turned to her. “I’m here to tell you that I’m not going to kill your folks. That’s what you’re worried about, isn’t it? Well, you don’t have to be. I had a perfect opportunity to kill them, right there, and I didn’t. The fact is, I’m going to leave your family alone.”

“Why?”

“I’ve been a few people these past few days. I’ve been Finbar, Shudder, Tesseract. I have to say, though, and I’m not being biased, that I prefer being me. I prefer being Tanith. I’m just
prettier,
you know? And I smell nicer.

“But when I was Finbar, I saw that vision of you, in the future, and I got so excited. I started thinking of all the different ways we could help. First we were worshipping you, then we tried possessing you, and that didn’t work. Have you talked to any psychics lately? They’re still having dreams about Darquesse, did you know that? Whatever you did, Val, it didn’t change anything. You sealed your name, but that just means you decide to kill the world all on your own, with nobody controlling you. It means you kill your own parents, of your own free will.

“So now you see why I don’t want any harm to come to your folks. I want you to get there naturally – I want things to happen as they’re meant to happen. And that means your parents stay alive and stay healthy, right up until the moment you kill them.”

“And what are you going to do?” Valkyrie asked. “You’re just going to sit around and watch?”

“I’m not the sitting around type now, am I? I’ll be getting into all sorts of trouble, don’t you fret. I’ll be guiding you, nudging you. Every so often I’ll give you the occasional push,
just to keep life interesting, to make sure you’re not straying too far from your path.”

“I will never become Darquesse.”

“You already did, Val, for three minutes, and it was beautiful. And I understand it now, why she turned on my brothers and sisters. Darquesse is indiscriminate about who she kills. She is a true, pure force of destruction. The next time she comes out, I don’t plan to be anywhere nearby.”

“I’ll die first,” Valkyrie said. “I’ll kill myself.”

“No,” said Tanith, “you won’t.”

“I’d rather die than hurt my family.”

“But you won’t kill yourself. You don’t have it in you.”

“You don’t know what I have in me.”

“But we’re all going to find out.” Tanith smiled. “How is
my
family, by the way? My
other
family?”

“The Remnants are trapped and locked away. We’re finding somewhere new to keep them. You’ll never find them.”

“Maybe I will, maybe I won’t. But that’s all yet to come, isn’t it? We have all that to look forward to. For the right now, though, for the here and now, the most we can do is enjoy the time we have left.” She held out her arms. “Hug?”

Valkyrie stayed where she was, and eventually Tanith dropped her arms.

“You really need to lighten up, you know that? I’ve lightened up completely, now that I’m sharing this mind. Now all I want to do is have fun.”

“Tanith,” Valkyrie said, “please. We’re your friends.
I’m
your friend. I love you like a sister.”

“And I love you, Val. I really and honestly do. Back when I was me, alone in here, without the Remnant, you were my favourite person in the whole world. I would have died for you. And now that the Remnant’s here with me, I love you even more. Now I’d kill for you.”

Valkyrie couldn’t help it. Tears came. “I know you don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“No,” Tanith smiled gently, “I really, really do.”

“I want my friend back. I want my sister back. I don’t want you to be the enemy.”

“Oh, Val, in a few weeks, you’re probably going to have a
proper
sister, a
real
sister. Then you won’t need me any more. And I’ll be OK. I’m good at making friends. Speaking of which, would you like to meet my new boyfriend?”

The wall beside her cracked and crumbled, and Billy-Ray Sanguine stepped through. Valkyrie moved back instinctively, but he barely paid her any attention. Tanith turned to him and they kissed, and Valkyrie’s insides went cold. That act, the
simple act of a kiss, was more powerful than any violent demonstration. Tanith was gone now. She was lost.

“Don’t look so upset,” Sanguine said, and Valkyrie realised he was grinning at her. “I’ll look after her.”

“Thanks, sweetie,” Tanith said, resting her head on his shoulder. “Will you be all right to get us out of here?”

“So long as you have some more of that painkiller, honey bunny.”

Tanith dipped into her pocket, came out with a leaf that Sanguine put into his mouth and chewed. “OK,” he said. “I’m ready.”

Valkyrie watched them step back against the wall. Thousands of tiny fractures spread outwards behind them. Sanguine went first, the wall sucking him in.

“We’ll come after you,” she said.

“I know you will,” said Tanith. “What are friends for? Oh, and Val? Happy New Year.”

The wall swallowed her, too, and Valkyrie was alone.

T
esseract couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about – it really wasn’t that cold. Russia was cold. Parts of Siberia were especially cold. Ireland, during the winter, was practically tropical.

He was looking forward to going home. He’d spent far too long here, had been delayed time and time again. But now his return journey was close. All he needed to do was take care of one last piece of business, and then he could put Ireland behind him.

He had been watching the Torment for days, but the old man
never allowed himself to be caught outside alone. Syc and Portia were always with him, and occasionally Madame Mist joined them for a stroll through the streets of Roarhaven. Tesseract wasn’t keen to take them all on again, so he watched and waited.