After letting out a sob, the girl in the closet heard the door opening down stairs, light footsteps made their way up the stairs slowly. In the closet the girl held her breath, eyes wide and frozen with the horror of who it could be.
When the footsteps reached the top floor and started to make their way towards the door to the room she was hiding in, she knew. It was him. Letting her breath out, she wiped her tears away using the sleeves on her shirt. Right when the door open to the room she was hiding in she remembered the crumpled note in her hand, stained with her tears. The door to the wardrobe opened and revealed the same man that saved her eight years ago; he still wore exquisite suits and matching top hat everyday since.
"Valkyrie. Oh my, what happened now?"Skulduggery Pleasant asked, worry threaded his voice.
"He's coming for me" She could barely speak those four words before tears welled up in her chocolate eyes and her voice cracked.
Skulduggery's eyes found the note, tightly gripped by her right hand. Walking to where she sat curled in on herself, he knelt, grabbing her hands he brought her up so she was standing then wrapped his boney arms around her small, delicate frame.
"It's ok Val, he won't get you, I'll be here. I'll keep you safe" Skulduggery murmured to her as she buried her face into his chest, tears staining his shirt and jacket, but he didn't mind.
"I remembered that night again, When he came..."Her voice trailed off, he knew what she meant. The night Sanguine came and murdered her parents in front of her. The night he took her in eight years ago. Her twelfth birthday had past a months ago, that was also the day she received the first note.
"Val you are safe. Between Tanith, Ghastly, China, Bliss and me no one is going to hurt you and if they did, they will regret the day they were born ok?"Skulduggery's velvet voice reassuring her as his hands rubbed her back in circles whilst slowly rocking her from side to side. The way he always did to calm her down.
"Better?"
"Yeah, Skul?"
"Yes?"
"Can... Can you teach me to ... you know...fight and stuff? Please?
"Hmm ... well I guess between me and Tanith we could but do you really want this Val?"Skulduggery replied, hands on her shoulder and eye sockets staring intensively at her.
"Yes, I don't want to have to rely on you or Tanith or Ghastly to come to my rescue, I want to be able to stand up for myself"
"Alright then. You know Tanith has been bugging the heck out of me to teach you combat skills? Now maybe she'll be less annoying" Skul said trying to cheer Valkyrie up.
Valkyrie cracked a smile at the thought of Tanith.
"There's my girl!"Skulduggery cheered and grabbed her hand dragging her out of the room down the stairs and to the car.
"Where are we going?" Valkyrie asked
"To see Tanith and Ghastly"
"Oh yay" Valkyrie replied, a smile on her face. She sat silently but inside she was screaming at Skulduggery to drive faster.
"Ok were her-" Skulduggery was cut off by the door on the Bentley slamming shut.
Valkyrie ran up to Ghastly's shop door, throwing it out of her way and ran inside, right past Ghastly himself and straight to Tanith's room upstairs.
When Valkyrie ran into Tanith's room she found the older girl on her bed painting her nails a blood red colour.
"Tanith Tanith Tanith Tanith, guess what?"
"whoa girl chill, whats up?" Tanith ask, raising an eyebrow at the energetic girl bouncing before her.
"I get to learn how to fight!" Valkyrie screamed so enough Ghastly, down stair could probably hear.
Tanith Screamed with Valkyrie, jumping up and down around her room .