What is Love?

Skulduggery and Valkyrie were in a parking lot sitting in the Bentley watching for . . . whatever they were supposed to be watching for. Valkyrie's attention went to the sun that was setting on the horizon ahead of them.

Suddenly a question popped into Valkyrie's head and she asked, "Skulduggery, do you love me?"

Out of the corner of her eye she saw his head tilt sharply in her direction. He was silent a moment. Then he shrugged and said as though he were discussing the weather,"'Love is a sweet tyranny, because the lover endureth his torments willingly.'"

"If I wanted a fortune cookie I would have stopped at the Chinese restaurant down the road for dinner instead of the Italian."

"But I like Italian." Skulduggery mumbled.

"But you don't even eat! I-," she stopped, took a deep breath, and said calmly, "Just answer the question."

"I care about you," he said with all humor gone from his deep velvet voice. "I care about you a lot. You know that, or else I wouldn't keep risking my neck out for you." He shrugged again looking ahead out the front window. "You got my right head back on my shoulders-"

"Literally," she interrupted.

"-and I owe you for that."

"You owe me a lot."

"Yes."

"Cause I've rescued you a lot."

"Yes."

"And I mean a lot."

"Y . . . yeah."

They fell into silence again.

When the sun had disappeared completely below the horizon, Valkyrie spoke up, "What about you car? Do you care more about me or the Bentley?"

Skulduggery banged his head against the back of his seat with a sigh.

She continued. "I mean, I love the Bentley, too, almost as much as you, but . . . you know, it's just a car."

Skulduggery's jaw dropped as he flashed his head in Valkyrie's direction. Then he leaned forward and caressed the car dashboard. "Shh, it's alright, dear, she didn't mean it."

"Oh my god," Valkyrie covered her face with her hand, shaking her head. When she recovered she said, "I'll take it as a 'yes,' anyway."

"Hm? Sorry?" Skulduggery asked while he faced her in the dimness.

"That you love me," she explained.

She could tell he was smiling when he asked, "Why do you need to know? Isn't it enough I risk life and limb for you?"

"Number one: technically you're not living so that complicates the whole 'risking your life' thing. Number two: I'm a woman. Women need that assurance."

"Okay," he laughed, "what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Do you love me, Valkyrie Cain?" She could hear the smile in his voice.

She rose her eyebrow at him and very slowly turned in her seat until she faced him completely, "Skulduggery?" she said.

"Uh, Valkyrie?" He replied looking at her out of the corner of his eye sockets. He sank into his seat as though preparing for Valkyrie to spring at him.

She looked at him, her mouth upturned in a small smile. Then she replied, "I went to hell and back for you."

"And then what did she say?" Tanith asked after Skulduggery relayed the whole story to her. They were sitting in the old Hibernian Cinema while Valkyrie was in the kitchen eating Italian with Ghastly and Fletcher.

"Nothing," Skulduggery said with a shrug. "She said nothing else, and I just sat there and stared at her like an idiot."

"Hm," Tanith mumbled squinting in thought.

"What?" He asked.

She stared at the space next to where Skulduggery's ear would have been. Then she blinked and looked at him. "Come to think of it, she has rescued you a lot."

His shoulders slumped over with a sigh. "You have got to be kidding," he whispered to himself.

Tanith rose her brows, her eyes wide. "I mean, a lot."

"Tanith," he snapped, "pay attention."

"What do you want me to do?"

"You're a woman, well, a seventy year old woman with the maturity level of a toddler and the attention span of a puppy. You tell me what she meant."

Tanith grumbled crossing her muscled arms over her chest. "Isn't it obvious?"

Skulduggery tilted his head away from Tanith, and he asked slowly, "So would that be a 'yes'?"

"That would be a 'hell yes.'"

"Ah."

"Come on, seriously, how can you not know?" Tanith stood jutting her hip out and placing a hand on it, reminding Skulduggery very much of a pouty four-year-old. "Everybody knows women need assurance." She spun on her heel with the balence of an acrobat and walked away.

Skulduggery watched her leave. He watched the door she disappeared behind. And some more he watched, all the while his mouth hanging open; if he had a face his eyebrows would have been raised. He scoffed, shaking his head.

"Women," he said gruffly. He stood quickly and left the theater, joining the others in the kitchen.