Chapter 3 – Valkyrie has just turned Twelve
For her twelfth birthday, Stephanie wanted to see her friends and she was refused. So, she tried to ask her friends, via a letter through Gordon, to see her. Gordon read it and obviously refused, and they had had an argument. It seemed so petty now, to have had such a silly argument when she now knew that he just wanted to make sure she had every chance to do everything and anything in the world, but it hurt that she couldn't at least see them over lunch or go one walk with them.
At Gordon's funeral, she had wept her eyes out, the only one crying. She had overheard the rest of her family in the parlour of their home, Gordon and Stephanie's home, chatting ideally about who got the fortune, who got the house, who got the kid. She had screamed at them and then had to sit in the car with them looking ashamed of themselves going to the burial site. They tried to comfort her, but the damage was done. Honestly, she was more upset about the argument she and Gordon had had weeks ago and apologised for than she was that she was at the funeral of the last person that cared solely for her being her. At least if they hadn't had the argument her screams wouldn't be the last big event they'd had. Maybe it would have been something good.
She had seen her six friends in the corner, all in black suits and looks of genuine upset on their faces but hadn't dared go up to them. Gordon hadn't wanted that. She fiddled with the priceless emerald necklace Wolf had sent her after she had won a dance competition a few months ago. She wanted a hug so damn badly.
The wake was a little easier as the coffin was out of sight and it felt a little more final. She had been told by her Grandma, who had picked her up from the police station after Stephanie had called the police to report Gordon being dead in his study and thus taken in temporarily since she was a minor, that the funeral was being taken care of by Gordon's friends. The reading of the will was part way through the wake though only a few of them were going to that.
Stephanie was led by her Grandma out of the wake after a wonderful meal at a fancy restaurant, Gordon's favourite – she'd ordered his favourite, no one else had – and into a small back room where a short man with massive pores all over his face stood with a hunch back and awkward smile. She looked at her grandma over her shoulder and the woman shrank away a little.
She's been very harsh and vocal about Gordon earlier. Stephanie, Ireland had found, was much louder and shoutier than anyone had previously known.
She sat at one of the chairs, purposefully not looking at the others in the room. The door was closed. She took a deep final breath. This was it. Then it was over, and she could go back to her life. She was a fighter. She could do this.
She looked at the man squarely, but he avoided her steely gaze and went for the least harmful and most excited participant, Beryl.
Times were rough for this little man.
"Can we start now?" She quipped. "I want to get back home soon."
"Yeah, we have things to do today," Fergus frowned at him.
Stephanie glared at them and bit her tongue.
"Erm, yes, that is everyone after all. Firstly, allow me to offer my deepest condolences to you, Gordon's friends and family. I understand this is a–"
"Can we please skip this part?" Fergus asked. "I want to know who gets the boat? The house?"
"The royalties," Beryl joined.
"The fortune."
"Of – of course," he said, adjusting his glasses and looking at his paper. "To my dear brother Fergus and your beautiful wife Beryl, though we have not always agreed or, indeed, enjoyed each other's company, I have always respected your steadfast ability to ignore great details. I wish I could have seen the world through your eyes sometimes. To thank you for your company as children and through the years since, I leave you this, in hopes you have enjoy it as much as me."
The man brought out a small box. They stared at it before slapping each other's hands and Beryl snatched it up. She opened it and went deadly white.
"What is it? A pin number? A key? A bar of gold? Wife, show me!" Fergus worried.
"A broach," she said faintly. "He gave us a broach."
Fergus looked sick. "What else do we get? Come on man, there has to be more!"
The little man wet his lips and Stephanie glared more at her least loved uncle. "I'll have to read on. To my long-standing friends, Ghastly Bespoke, Anton Shudder, Erskine Ravel, Saracen Rue and Dexter Vex, I have a little advice. Remember that though you may all wish for different things, different futures, what we all really need far simpler than we believe, and these other aspirations will not achieve as much as you think. I found that in my, albeit short, life that all I thought I wanted to possess and worked hard to make happen was not what I needed in my heart. I hope you achieve what took me so long to find and can find the brotherhood I feel you have begun to forget."
Stephanie looked at them slowly, her eyes softening. She knew they had once been soldiers. War had not been kind to them, and she had learned a lot about PTSD and other soldier things when she was at school once. She hoped they found what they needed too. They hung their heads to mull their late friend's advice over.
"And to my perfect niece, Stephanie Edgley. When I saw you in the hospital for the first time, I fell in love. I loved you and always have since the moment I saw your little feet in the air and refusing to let anyone dress you. The nurse said you were the strongest newborn she'd ever seen and you certainly never lost that trait. I am so, so sorry that you have had to lose both your parents and now myself. I never wanted this to happen. You wanted me to be there so badly, and I know I have made mistakes and I worry that I made a massive one it not allowing you to see our friends. I hope that I make up for it here. I know this is what you need. I leave you, firstly, some advice: The world is a darker, more beautiful place than you think. Even some butterflies are poisonous. So I hope you take to heart my warning to be tough, but never rough. To be quick but never dismissive. To be upfront but never horrid. To be blunt but never enjoy the pain. To fight harder, tougher, stronger, smarter and with more wit than anyone else, but never forget your heart and those you shelter in it. You are my daughter in soul. I want you to make me proud. You always have before. And, with every expectation you will be the bluntest, sharpest, meanest woman to rule the world, I leave you my fortune, my home, my villa, my boat, my car and every asset and net worth to my name, including all the royalties from my work to receive upon your eighteenth birthday. Don't spend it all at once."
Stephanie tried to memorise his words. She wanted to make him so proud. She nodded at the man to continue before her relative could make an argument.
"And finally, to my dearest friend Skulduggery Pleasant, some more advice. Use your eyes. I know what you need and want, and it is all in front of you. Grasp it and never let go. Take it down kicking and screaming. And remember, my niece is a lot more hard-headed than you think. I leave you sole custody of her to raise as your own and to take on as many adventures as you can. She will be the Dead Men's prodigy. The greatest force this world has seen. She'll need her brothers-in-arms and you, her father-in-arms, to make it through this world. She loves you all so much."
The man lowered the paper and Stephanie stared at the man in shock. All of them were staring at her. The minutes dragged on. Fergus and Beryl launched out their seats and slammed the door behind them at some point. The will-reader left after a while too and Stephanie could only stare at the wall.
"Well, that happened," she said quietly, looking slowly at Crow who was standing in the corner. Crow. Father. Dad. Oh God. She'd only ever thought of any of them as friends, brothers maybe. "Hi."
Panda stood up slowly and stood behind Crow. He placed his scared hand on his shoulder. "Congratulations. It's a girl."
Wolf jumped her and pulled her into a hug. "I have a sister! Look, a little baby sister! I always wanted one. How did he know?"
"Gordon's pretty great like that," she murmured. "I should probably – I don't – I'm sorry."
She felt the first tear fall down her cheek and had almost made it to the door when thin arms wrapped around her and pulled her into a wide, cold chest. She tried not to sob.
"I always wanted a little girl," Crow whispered. "I hope you know you're going to be incredibly spoilt."
She hugged him back and her laughter joined her sobs.
He carried her to the car and set her in bed after she had passed out, exhausted, on the ride home.
I hope you are all enjoying the story so far ;) I haven't said anything until now as I wanted to get to this part when Steph and her boys are together. This is a long story, though I hope it doesn't feel slow. From now on it will be adventures and fun, promise! No more death! Please tell me what you are enjoying, or your predictions on what will happen, it makes me excited knowing what you, the reader thinks! :)