A couple hours later, and everyone had calmed down, they were gathered at the big table in the living room area, a bowl of heated tinned soup placed before them.
"We need a plan. The ball is in three days and we can't just not go. We need to get Ravel. As well as, we need to come up with a plan of how to kill Macon before Hades drags Ezra and Dexter down." Skulduggery said, eating a spoonful of tomato soup. Everyone nodded, thinking of ways to accomplish the tasks.
"Getting Ravel will be easy. China will make sure there's very little to no security there. Because if we don't get him then China will be skinned alive and she wouldn't allow that to happen." Saracen said. Dexter nodded. "That's what I thought. Ezra and I air walk in, I bomb a wall to break the magic binding and then we leave and come back here." He said.
"Then we throw him in a closet." Ghastly grumbled.
"I have an odd feeling that Macon's men won't let them into the ball. They want us for something, even if it is to kill us, they wouldn't let someone else have the honor." Dexter said.
"Great, two out of the three problems are sorted. Now the big one. Macon." Skulduggery said.
"I did some research on that actually. Someone as powerful as that needs to be killed with a silver dagger. It has jewels on it, centuries old. I think I have a photo of it somewhere…" Ghastly said, checking his pockets. But Valkyrie pulled the silver dagger from the back of her waist band. "This one?" Ghastly's eyes lit up. "Yes!"
An Awkward silence descended as they all thought for a moment. Something had actually gone their way. Skulduggery frowned.
"This is a new sensation. This never happens. What do we do?" Dexter asked.
"Go before the luck runs out," Ezra said.
Ten minutes later, Dexter and Ezra were in gear (bombs were involved, after all), and getting ready to go. Dexter was holding a small black cylinder that exploded upon impact. Ezra grabbed his hand, nodded to the group, took a deep breath, closed her eyes, heard the wind roaring and opened her eyes to a gasp.
There he was. He was a lot hairier than he was before. He was in pristine white clothes, in a white room, with bright white lights. He shielded his eyes from them as Dexter threw the bomb against the wall opposite the door. As it made impact, it went off, and as it went off Ezra grabbed Dexter's hand and Ravel's collar as the door opened and cleavers swarmed in but all that was lift was a gust of wind and then they were back in the bunker, Ravel falling to his knees and Dexter and Ezra lurched back, like he had the plague. He scrambled back, rubbing his eyes aggressively. He moaned and looked up, and his face was a mixture of horror and regret and guilt. Ghastly looked disappointed. Not mad, or upset, but utter disappointment. Anton looked like he had already come up with seventy-two ways to kill Ravel in that moment and Saracen looked empty. Like he had just watched something horrible happen and he knew it would happen but couldn't stop it.
"What?" Ravel asked, his voice thick from its time being dormant. Anton took one step forwards and drove his foot up, into Ravel's chin. Ravel lurched back and collapsed, sprawled on his back. He didn't get up. Skulduggery and Dexter picked him up put him on a couch. Ezra was moving her hands in an endless fidget and she looked for something to do, so she grabbed the plates and bowls for lunch and brought them to the kitchen. Valkyrie followed her, as Skulduggery, Dexter and Saracen sat around the table. Ghastly went to the tailors and Anton disappeared to his room.
"What do we do?" Ezra asked as she dove her hands into the warm soapy water with a sponge, going about cleaning the bowls. Valkyrie picked up a towel and began the process of drying them as Ezra passed them. Valkyrie shook her head. "I honestly don't know." She said.
"We can't trust him," Ezra replied sadly.
"No, we can't. Can you be in the same room as him?"
Ezra shrugged. "I don't know."
"You're the best of us Ezra. I would have done what Anton did. He's a horrible, terrible man. He is a traitor, and a liar and he god knows what else he is."
"What do we do after the dance? Presuming we come back. What do we do then?"
"Hell if I know."
Ezra pulled the plug on the sink and took the towel from Valkyrie when she was done to dry her hands. She was frowning.
The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. Until Ravel woke up, that was. He groaned at sat up, disturbing the game of poker that was currently going on. Everyone turned to look at him. He sat up slowly, rubbing his jaw. He squeezed his eyes shut then opened them again.
"How are you alive?" He asked.
"None of your business," Anton replied curtly.
"How am I still alive?"
"If we killed you, we would be just as bad as you," Ezra said, her hand fidgeting again.
"So it was you?" Ravel chuckled. "Knew you loved me." He said standing up and walking over on shaky legs. Ezra stood too, refusing to be overlooked.
"I don't love you."
"If that were true, I'd be dead."
"I'm engaged."
Ravel's face fell. He seemed genuinely surprised.
"To who?"
Dexter stepped up behind Ezra, resting his hands gently on her shoulders. Not in a possessive way, more of supporting way. Ravel's face changed to rage.
"Dexter Vex?!" He spat. "You're going to marry that sorry waste of space?!"
Ezra took a deep breath and said in a low, threatening voice that only Skulduggery and herself could do.
"Dexter Vex didn't lock his friends up. Dexter Vex didn't betray his partner. Dexter Vex didn't tear the Dead Men apart. Dexter Vex didn't place the blame for his immature, childish, idiotic actions on me because of his death-defying love."
"You could do so much better," Ravel said, but he was paler.
Then Ezra broke her own rule.
A loud crack echoed throughout the bunker as the back of Ezra's hand connected with Ravel's cheek. His face whipped around, then he gawked at Ezra.
"That's not for you to decide." She said, then walked away, Dexter's hand in hers. Ghastly walked by Ravel.
"You're sleeping on the couch." He said. The rest of the Dead Men left, leaving Ravel on his own yet again.
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