China's taxi drew up to her destination and she paid the driver. She was sad to see him drive away. He'd been nice. Not fawning or declaring undying love, but nice. Almost avuncular.
What was she doing, thinking like this? China was never supposed to need anybody. That was the way she worked.
Frowning to herself, China approached a grubby little tattoo parlour with peeling paint on the door. Inside she could hear people arguing. She entered the building and walked across a carpet so thick with dust that it actually changed the colour of her shoes.
She'd tried her best to look beautiful again. She'd washed her hair in the communal bathroom at the end of the hall that morning, done her makeup and thrown on a new jacket. Even so, her face glowed white under the makeup and her coal-black hair lacked its usual lustre.
"My wife wanted daisies!" roared a burly customer, grinding his thick knuckles. "She specifically asked for a chain of yellow daisies trailing down her arm, and what did you give her?"
The tattooist was Finbar Wrong; a powerful Sensitive, but a physically weak man. He eyed the other man's muscles nervously.
"Uh," he said. "Yellow daisies?"
"They might have been yellow, mate, but they were NOT daisies. They were dandelions."
Finbar shrugged. "Well, the, um... the thing is... Well, they're both flowers, aren't they? They're both kind of pretty."
"They're WEEDS!" the customer exploded. "You put weeds on my wife's arm! What kind of sodding garden do you have?"
"Uh, I don't know. It's been a while since I've, uh, been out the back. I could have a look now, if you want."
"NO, I DON'T WANT!" The customer leaned over and picked up Finbar by the straps of his vest.
China delicately cleared her throat, and they both looked round. The customer immediately dropped Finbar, who landed in a heap, beating some dust out of the carpet in the process.
"Not disturbing you, am I?" China said, trying a smile.
The customer was staring. "Er... no?"
"Then by all means," she said, "carry on."
Finbar was looking at her now.
"No, you're, er, you're all right," the customer insisted. "I'm Thaumaturge Stout."
"China Sorrows," China reciprocated. "Not to be rude, but could you and your muscles please step out of the room while Finbar and I chat?"
Stout blinked. "Yeah, sure. Anything you say."
China smiled graciously. Still got it, she thought, watching him stomp outside.
Finbar was getting up, beating the dirt off his bony frame. "I thought you might come here at some point," he said. "To be honest, though, I thought you'd be here earlier, asking if the Skul-Man was going to kill you."
"Perhaps he's still deciding how to do it," China said, raising an eyebrow. "Do you know why I'm here now?"
Finbar smirked. "Guess."
"Excuse me?"
"Do you think I know or not? Guess."
"Finbar Wrong, I don't have time for this. Have you seen any visions about Tanith Low?"
The smirk dropped from Finbar's face. "Tanith Low?"
China could feel her patience fading. "Tanith Low."
"Does she by any chance live on Drury Lane?" offered Stout, loitering in the entrance. A glower from China sent him scurrying away again, shamefaced.
"I have had one vision about her, actually," Finbar said. "I think she'll be in Ireland some time in the near future, but I don't know exactly where. Sorry."
Now they were getting somewhere. China leaned forward over the counter. "Did you see anything else? Was Sanguine with her?"
"Er." Finbar scratched his head. "No, not really. Why did you want to know this?"
China was about to tell him, to confide in him. Then she remembered her rule about not trusting anybody. She shook her head. "That doesn't matter," she said. "I have some information. Thank you for confirming it."
"Oh right," Finbar said, sounding faintly pleased. "So, is this something I should tell the Skul-Man?"
"I'll tell him myself, thank you, Finbar."
"Oh. But..." He scratched his head again. It looked like he had a mosquito bite. China hated those. "I thought you two weren't speaking. Like, you had a falling-out or something. That's why he's coming to me so much these days, for visions, new leads, all that kind of stuff."
"Really?"
"Yeah. You know, I think my visions are generally starting to come in stronger, you know? Ever since that one about Darquesse pricked my mind, I've been seeing other things clearer. somebody offered me a job at the Sanctuary. I told them thanks, but no thanks. That woman Elder gives me the creeps. I can't stand spider people. No offence to spider people, but I had a bad experience once with a daddy-long-legs, and now any insect that looks a bit-"
"Thank you," China said, cutting him off. "If I need you again, I will call you. Oh, and about your customer... try telling him they're marigolds."
China went home, removed the makeup and looked at her face again. She wasn't happy. Perhaps a facade tattoo would be a good idea. All she needed were the right tools and she's be able to do it.
Then she looked at the letter.
The information was rightly Ghastly's. He had loved Tanith, after all, and it was his search. But telling Skulduggery about it now would give him time to work out a plan. He was good at his job - the best, probably. And it would give her an excuse to talk to him, to explain a few things.
Well, not explain. But there must be something she could...
China sighed. She'd been on this thought loop for months. If she was going to talk to Skulduggery, she was going to have to stop thinking about it and just do it.
...Perhaps it would be better to practise on somebody who hadn't known her so long, who held less of a grudge. The more she thought about that, the more it seemed like a good idea. Valkyrie Cain. There were things she couldn't explain to Valkyrie, but it was a start. And then Skulduggery could know the whole truth.
Valkyrie hated being in hospital. She hated lying still in a bed all day while her friends continued to save the world. Tanith had been the same, always itching with unused energy whenever she wasn't right in the middle of the action.
Valkyrie had been beaten up by a Sea Dragon. That was annoying. Having dispatched twelve or so vampires, she'd been smacked in the face by a giant fish. She'd never even seen a Sea Dragon before. It was probably like an eel, but scalier and with more teeth. It was definitely big, though, from what Valkyrie had seen. Big and blue.
A few beds away, Clarabelle was dancing to some upbeat pop music and chewing gum. She was having a great time. Unlike Valkyrie.
"Are you going to keep that colour?" Valkyrie asked, nodding at Clarabelle's azure blue hair.
"I don't know. I'm not sure if Nye likes it. If any hairs come out while I'm seeing to a patient I can spot it better. Nye found one of my hairs in a patient's stomach. It wasn't pleased. I was only looking. I've never seen a pancreas from the inside before."
"Right."
Clarabelle fluffed her blue hair thoughtfully. "I might dye it white next time, like Professor Grouse had. Then I can use washing powder instead of shampoo."
Valkyrie didn't know how to respond to this, so she didn't. "Is Skulduggery visiting today?"
"I don't think he has an appointment for the Sanctuary hospital. It's OK, though. He's probably out there doing something really important."
Valkyrie sighed and sank back against the pillows. "Yeah."
Across the ward, there were footsteps. Valkyrie strained her eyes to see who it was and saw China Sorrows, as beautiful as ever, walking towards her. The walk was different, somehow, but the smile was the same as ever.
"Good afternoon, Miss Cain," she said.
Valkyrie shrank into the covers as Clarabelle looked curiously on.
"I thought you didn't make house calls," Valkyrie said.
"I don't. You don't need my sympathy anyway. I was wondering if you knew where Skulduggery was."
"I don't think he wants to see you."
"But I want to see him. Now be a good girl and tell me where I might find him."
Valkyrie bristled. China had patronised her like this once before. Valkyrie wouldn't let her do it again. "If you don't leave right now, I'm going to have the cleavers escort you out."
Clarabelle nodded. "It's not like you have an appointment either. I think."
China clicked her heels. "Listen to me, Valkyrie. There are things I need to tell Skulduggery. Some are to do with a case he might be interested in, some are not. But you have to understand that this is a matter of urgency. We don't have much time left."
"Whatever you have to tell Skulduggery," Valkyrie insisted, "you can tell me."
"You'd be surprised," China replied, all of the humour gone from her voice.
All of a sudden a look of surprise came over Clarabelle's face, as if she'd just worked something out without meaning to. "You're wearing a false face."
China blinked. "What?"
"Once I put on a lot of makeup for a first date," Clarabelle reflected thoughtfully. "To make myself look pretty. But then he didn't recognise me." She shrugged and put her music back on.
Valkyrie looked closely at China. Her skin did look a little waxy. But China wouldn't need to use a false face unless...
Unless it wasn't China.
"Deactivate that face," Valkyrie ordered.
China sighed. "Must I, dear Valkyrie?"
"I need to know that you're who you say you are. Get rid of it now."
China nodded slowly and brought a hand up to her collarbone. She tapped at the symbols that were etched there, and the facade flowed away.
Valkyrie stared. It was China all right. But she'd changed since their last meeting. The kicks that Eliza Scorn had driven into China's nose has bent it out of shape. Her lip has a scar running down it. Another ran under her eyebrow. One cheek was grazed skin. And she was pale and thin, and her eyes were dark.
"Oh my God," Valkyrie breathed.
"Mortal policemen took me away," China explained without emotion. "Mortal doctors tried to repair the damage. But it did no good. I have been broken. People are staring at me in a very different way now." She coughed. "Do you know why Scorn was blackmailing me?"
"She wanted you to help bring back the Church of the Faceless," Valkyrie said, remembering what she'd been told. "That didn't happen, obviously. But that's not going to make me change my mind. I'm not telling you where Skulduggery is."
China leaned into her. Valkyrie could smell cheap perfume and bleach.
"Valkyrie," she said. "I have been an ally to you for some years. I've been Mr. Pleasant's ally for even longer than that. There are things you don't know. What you do know is that I have foregone again and again my neutral standing to allow good people like you to do their job. This is just another one of those instances. Let me speak to Skulduggery. I'm certain he can handle it."
Valkyrie tried to stare out those pale blue eyes, but they just glinted back like polished steel. She sighed.
"He's at Gordon's house. Talking to him about that sea dragon off the coast of Haggard. Don't tell him I sent you."
China smiled thinly. "Thank you." She turned and left, ducking past Clarabelle, who was dancing away again.