The sun had come up early, sending its bright rays of light through the window and over the still sleeping Valkyrie. She pulled the covers up over her head, trying to block out the blinding rays of light. She then felt someone shake her shoulder gently.

"Go away, it's Saturday," she mumbled.

"Come on, get up Valkyrie. You can't sleep all day," Skulduggery said, still shaking her.

"Yes I can," she mumbled back. She then felt a pair of cold arms slip under her and lift her out of bed.

"No," Skulduggery said smiling, "you can't." He then dropped her on the bed. Valkyrie glared at him.

"Fine," she mumbled, "I'm up."

* * *

The library was peaceful, everyone either still in bed or downtown shopping. Valkyrie liked having the library to herself.

She walked around the shelves, looking for a book about the mansion. She turned the corner and bumped into Skulduggery.

"Oh there you are," he said, trying to keep Valkyrie from falling over, "I've been looking for you. Mr. Bacon said he might have some information that might be useful to us."

"I thought you were with Mr. Bacon?" Valkyrie asked, raising her eyebrow at him. Skulduggery looked to the floor and coughed nervously.

"I…had other business to attend to," he mumbled. Valkyrie rolled her eyes.

"Right," she said, grabbing his tie and pulling him toward the doorway, "Let's go see Mr. Bacon."

* * *

"I found these documents in an old chest when I was cleaning out the attic of this place," Mr. Bacon said, dropping a pile of folders and stray papers on his desk. "I believe these go all the way back to the Cudahy family. They were the ones who built this place and it was their servant girl who died here."

Valkyrie eyed the stack, not looking forward to going through it all.

"So, this is like…receipts, bills, employee registration, stuff like that?" Valkyrie asked.

"Yes, plus journals, diaries, and other personal items including this." Mr. Bacon pulled a thick, leather bound book from the middle of the stack. "The diary of the servant girl, filled out to the very day she died."

He handed the diary to Valkyrie. She flipped open the book and skimmed through the neatly-written pages.

"I believe," Mr. Bacon said, walking around to sit at his desk, "that this will be helpful to your investigation, so it is yours to take."

"Thank you Mr. Bacon," Skulduggery said. "Now to get it all upstairs…"

"I could call someone to help you carry it," Mr. Bacon said, "Perhaps Clarabelle…"

"That's ok Mr. Bacon, we can handle it," Valkyrie interrupted, "Come on Skulduggery, grab half and lets get started."

Skulduggery rolled his eyes and sighed deeply. "Fine, let's go."

* * *

"There are even pictures in here," Valkyrie said, picking up a time-worn photo of the mansion. She was sitting on the bed, surrounded by the files from the pile. Skulduggery was sitting in a chair, flipping through the "guest book" from the mansion a couple years back.

"Find anything useful yet?" asked Valkyrie.

"Nope, nothing," Skulduggery replied, throwing the registration book back on the bed.

"I never did ask, did anything happen last night?" Valkyrie asked, blushing slightly at the memory of last night.

"No, it was quite a peaceful night actually…except for you," Skulduggery muttered, looking toward the floor.

"What do you mean?" asked Valkyrie, eyeing him suspiciously. Skulduggery shifted uncomfortably.

"Well, you seemed to be…quite…disturbed while you were sleeping."

Valkyrie felt her face go flush. "Like how, exactly?"

"Well, you were tossing and turning, moaning in your sleep…" He got up and walked over to the bed and sat down in front of her, avoiding the litter of papers. "Is something bothering you, Valkyrie?"

Valkyrie hesitated. 'Should I tell him,' she thought. She felt his cold hand stroke her cheek. She looked into his gray eyes.

"You know you can tell me anything," he said.

"I know," whispered Valkyrie, enjoying his touch on her cheek. 'I can't tell him,' she thought, 'not yet.'

"I'm fine Skulduggery," she said, taking his hand in hers, "Really."

Skulduggery smiled and leaned over to hug her. Valkyrie relaxed in his embrace. She took in his smell of…age. Not like old in age, but like wisdom and experience like an old book full of wondrous knowledge.

Skulduggery pulled back and smiled at her again. "Come on," he said, getting up and walking back to his chair, 'We have work to do."

Valkyrie nodded and picked up Abigail's diary and opened to the first page.

* * *

It was about 11o'cloack when Valkyrie looked at the clock. She stretched and looked around for Skulduggery, but he wasn't in the room. She shrugged and started to pick up the papers on the bed and stack them back up.

She scanned the papers as she picked them up: electric bills, receipts, transfers of ownership, and several other pieces of useless information. As Valkyrie sifted through the paper, an old picture of the mansion caught her eye.

The picture was taken in front of the mansion, but it was smaller. There were eleven people in the picture, four adults and seven children. Two of the adults were dressed as servants.

Valkyrie turned the photo over and read the scriptive writing on the back:

The Cudahy family

June 23, 1906

Mr. and Mrs. Cudahy

The Cudahy Children

Mary Anne and Abigail

Valkyrie flipped it back over and looked at the two servants. They were both quite young, about Valkyrie's age. One had long, light colored hair that was tied back into a ponytail, while the other had dark colored hair that was put up in a loose bun.

Valkyrie guessed that was Abigail. The other servant looked vaguely familiar to her, but she didn't know why. She sighed and stuck the picture into Abigail's journal.

She finished stacking and then set the pile down on the floor. Valkyrie looked around the room, deciding on what to do next. She walked over to the window and looked down.

It was a beautiful day. The sun shined down as it neared noon. She saw a carriage of people arrive from downtown, carrying bags of clothing and fudge. She smiled as she thought of what she was going to do.

She walked over to Skulduggery's suitcase and pulled out a wad of American cash. 'Besides,' she thought as she stuffed some money in her pocket, 'It's been a long time since I had fudge. I'm sure Skulduggery won't mind.'