Requiem: Chapter Fourteen...
Thank you for all the reads and for the two lovely reviews I've had, I'm so pleased to see them :) Here's the next chapter for you all :)
oO0Oo
"You can uncover your eyes now." Skulduggery was laid down with an arm crooked over his face as Valkyrie got changed for bed. He tucked the arm behind his head as she crawled under the sheets, looking up at the ceiling.
"It's strange to be in a bed," he said after a moment. "I normally meditate in a chair."
"There aren't any chairs."
"I know that. We've established that already."
"Then why mention the chair?" He turned and looked at her for several seconds before speaking again.
"You are so annoying."
"You were the one that asked me to be your partner. I've told you before that you signed up for this."
"Do I have the option to go back on my request?"
"Sorry, no refunds."
"Damn." She chuckled, more relaxed than she'd been a few minutes ago. She was tired enough that she felt her eyelids drooping. She yawned, and Skulduggery leaned over to the wall lamp and switched it off. The darkness only served to make her more tired. "Go to sleep, Valkyrie."
"Night," she mumbled, turning over as her eyelids betrayed her.
oO0Oo
She woke as it was starting to get lighter outside, warm beneath the blankets. It took her a minute to recognise the hotel room as she blinked groggily. Her pillow felt weirdly solid. And was it breathing?
"Good morning." Skulduggery's voice was bright, and very close. She lifted her head to find she'd grabbed him in the night. "I didn't have you pegged as a cuddler." She blushed, drawing a chuckle from him as she shuffled away.
"Why didn't you push me off?" she asked, mortified.
"I only came around a few minutes ago myself." He grinned. "Also I tried but you wouldn't let go."
"Sorry," she said sheepishly. He chuckled.
"Don't be, it doesn't bother me. Although if you wanted to cuddle you could've just asked." She hit him with her pillow, drawing another laugh from him.
"If you tell Tanith about this I'm going to donate your bones to a museum."
"That's not very nice."
"If you don't tell Tanith you have nothing to worry about."
"Valkyrie, calm down. It isn't a big deal. I won't say anything."
"You mean it?"
"Cross my heart and hope to die."
"You don't have a heart."
"I know."
"And you're already dead."
"I know that too." She scowled at him. "I promise I won't tell her." He sat up and ran a hand through his hair. "We should get ready. Emmet will be starting his day soon."
"Where do we start?"
"The Sanctuary have said he will be near the local school in the next hour. Perhaps he has a child that goes there."
"Why would somebody with a kid risk everything to steal magical objects from willing sellers after spending his life deliberately concealing himself in the mortal world?"
"I'm not sure. In all honesty I'm not hopeful about this suspect either. The current Sanctuary Detectives are woefully underwhelming."
"You can say that again." Skulduggery turned away as she slipped out of her pyjamas and pulled on a jumper and some jeans. "I miss wearing protective clothing."
"Unfortunately they would have you recognised in no time."
"And what will you be wearing today?" she asked, turning back to him.
"If you would stop watching me I could show you." She rolled her eyes and looked away. She heard the quiet rustle of fabric and a couple of minutes later he told her she could look. When she turned around he was stood in a red t-shirt and a black zip-up hoodie. His black jeans were skinny and his shoes were designer.
"You know, for someone who literally owns nothing but suits, you're pulling out some pretty impressive wardrobe changes."
"You can blame Ghastly for that. He gathered some things he thought would work and insisted I bring them with me." He pushed his hair back from his face in its usual sandy side-parted wave.
"It's super weird that you wear the casual look so well. It makes you look younger."
"Are you saying I usually look old?"
"Not old. Older. There's a difference." She paused. "Although usually you look like a skeleton, so technically you could look like a fifty year old and I'd never know."
"Does this conversation have a point?"
"Not really."
"Can we end it then?"
"I can see you're in an excellent mood today."
"I'd be in a better mood if I thought this investigation was going to go anywhere." He tugged at the front of his shirt, frowning at the thin fabric as he adjusted it.
"What makes you think it won't?"
"There seems to be no obvious reason why these people have been chosen as suspects, other than the fact that they were sighted near the most recent crime scene." He sighed. "I despair at the state of the Sanctuary's investigative capabilities."
"You despair at it? That's a strong word. I mean annoyed yeah, I get that. Irritated. Irked, maybe."
"When have you ever heard me use the word irked?"
"Okay, vexed then." He considered the word for a moment, then nodded.
"Vexed. That fits. We'll go with that one." Valkyrie rolled her eyes and activated her facade before sweeping her new red curls into a high ponytail and slipping into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Once she managed to squeeze round the door and was standing back in the main room she nodded to her partner.
"Right, I'm ready. Let's go."
oO0Oo
"It's not him, is it?"
"I'm afraid not," Skulduggery replied, watching Emmet Slight as he hurried along with a large backpack slung over his shoulder. They'd assumed he'd be dropping off a child and then heading off to work. That was not the case.
"He's fifteen. He's literally a fifteen year old kid." Emmet bounded into the school gates and disappeared inside as his mother leaned out the car window and called out a goodbye before driving away.
"I think we can safely discount him for now. We should concentrate on our third and final suspect before abandoning this ridiculous wild goose chase and doing what Arbiters do."
"And that is?"
"Punching people in the face and arresting the bad guys," Skulduggery said with a smile.
"That sounds like much more fun." She sipped her coffee, her eyes on the school gates from the cafe they sat in across the street. "So we know McCleaver and Slight are pretty much guaranteed dead ends. That leaves Magnus."
"It does. Percival Magnus eats dinner at the best restaurant in town three nights a week. That's where we'll be starting our chase."
"Can't we go find him now?"
"Why bother searching all over for him when we know where he'll definitely be tonight?"
"Fine," she grumbled. "What do we do until then?"
"I'm not sure."
"Stake outs are way more boring than I thought."
"Who told you they were fun?"
"You did."
"Did I? I don't remember that."
"You literally said it on the drive from Haggard."
"Are you sure it wasn't a figment of your imagination?"
"Why would I imagine you saying it?"
"I don't know. That's between you and your subconscious."
"You're such an idiot." She finished her coffee and got to her feet. "Come on, if we're stuck here for the day we might as well do something."
"Where are we going?"
"To the cinema."
"Why would we be going there?"
"Because there's a new zombie movie I want to see and you owe me popcorn for lying about how fun stake outs are."
"But I hate zombies," he said, wrinkling his nose.
"Tough." He refused to move for a moment, and then he sagged and followed her. She grinned as she listened to him grumble something about her being bull headed.
oO0Oo
"You have terrible taste in movies," Skukduggery said for the fifteenth time. Valkyrie rolled her eyes and continued drying her damp hair with the world's worst hairdryer. "Why won't you let me lift the moisture out of your hair? It'll take much less time."
"Do you always repeat the same things over and over again until someone punches you?"
"Usually."
"Dork." He was standing by the TV, looking exceedingly handsome in an elegant black three piece suit and a crisp white shirt, fiddling with his cuff links. He looked anything but a dork even without the facade. She was pleased to see the familiar his cheekbones of his skull.
"You're staring at me again."
"It's just weird to see you back in a suit after looking like a boring normal for two days," she lied. "And it's been a while since you've gone without the facade."
"It feels like home. I miss my hat." He fastened his tie with expert hands as she finished drying her hair. It fell in soft waves around her shoulders, though it wasn't shiny like her actual hair and she didn't like the red.
"I can't believe I have to wear those stupid shoes again," she moaned. The strappy black stilettos sat in the corner, staring at her.
"I'm sure I don't need to remind you that once upon a time something possessed you to buy them, which means at one point you liked them."
"That was before I had to actually wear them."
"Shoes are meant to be worn. It's their whole raison d'etre. Why else would you buy them?"
"I thought they looked nice," she shrugged. "Now I hate them."
"You and your shoes have a complicated relationship," he muttered. She shrugged and stood up, smoothing down the off-the-shoulder black dress she'd brought with her. It was the only dress she owned and it was uncomfortable and tight all the way down and too short, but it looked perfect for a posh restaurant. She wore her hair loose to hide the multiple piercings in the ear of the facade.
"Do you think the tattoo looks out of place?" she asked, gesturing at the ink down her arm.
"No. It actually looks nice."
"You sound surprised."
"I am. I don't like the facade. It isn't you."
"You wear one every day," she answered.
"Yes, but that is my only face. If I had an actual face of my own I would prefer to use it. I was pointing out that you look nicer without the facade but you ruined it."
"It's not my fault you're terrible at complimenting people," she snorted. He tapped his collarbones and the facade flowed up over his skull, hiding the hollow eye sockets and gleaming teeth. She felt a slight tightening in her chest as she realised she missed seeing them.
"I'm excellent at complimenting people. I'm so subtle that people rarely realise I'm even doing it."
"That's because your bad at it. Usually you'd expect somebody to know when you're being nice so they can thank you."
"I prefer my way." She snorted, tugging on the stupid shoes and pulling the hem of her skirt down again. "I can't wait to get my trousers and jacket back on."
"Unfortunately you're going to have to wait." He checked the time. "We should leave or we'll miss our reservation."
"How did you know which table to book?"
"I just booked one as close to the best table in the house as I could. Magnus is the owner, it makes sense that they'd seat him well in his own restaurant." He opened the door for her as they left, making sure to lock it behind them before offering her his arm and guiding them outside. They passed a few people in the hallways that paid them no mind, and Valkyrie settled into the smooth leather passenger seat of the Bentley.
"I love this car," she said with a sigh.
"So do I."
"You should let me drive it."
"Absolutely not."
"But I'm your partner right?"
"Yes."
"And we're friends?"
"Yes."
"So that means you trust me?"
"I trust you with my life, but I do not trust you with my car."
"I'm a great driver."
"You're not driving my car."
"Spoil sport." The Bentley cruised through the streets with ease as they lapsed into silence. Eventually he pulled into a car park a few spaces away from a white Porsche with tinted windows and a private license plate that read 'M4 GNU5'. "Well, at least we know which car belongs to him."
"It seems subtlety is not his strong point."
"I'm not holding out much hope for this being our guy."
"Neither am I, but once we've discounted him we can take this investigation into our own hands and do it right."
"Sounds like a plan," she agreed.
"Shall we?" She took his arm again and they entered the restaurant together. The waitress at the door smiled.
"Hi there, do you have a reservation?" She had bright eyes and short hair, and Valkyrie didn't miss how her eyes lingered on Skulduggery.
"We do. It should be a table for two under the name Douglas Wilson."
"I have it right here. If you'd like to follow me." She beamed at him and led them to a table in a well lit area of the restaurant with a perfect view of the table where Percival Magnus sat and ate his steak opposite a woman with long black hair. "Can I get you any drinks? We have a wonderful dry reisling on the menu at the moment."
"That sounds lovely," Skulduggery nodded. He held out Valkyrie's chair for her like a perfect gentleman before taking his own seat.
"My question to you," she said, keeping her voice low, "is how are you going to hide the fact that you don't eat in the middle of a crowded restaurant?"
"They have dishes made for sharing," he answered with a shrug.
"In a place like this?" She looked around at the expensive silverware and crystal glasses.
"All restaurants usually do."
"That works out then, I guess." She leaned towards him as though she were deeply interested in him. "Can you hear what he's saying?"
"No, but I can lip read. He's talking about his car." Skulduggery's head tilted as he looked back at her. "The woman he's with a sorcerer."
"That's so interesting," Valkyrie said with a bright smile as the waitress returned with the wine and a pair of crystal wine glasses.
"Can I get you two anything to eat or would you like some more time?" She addressed them both but didn't actually look at Valkyrie at all. "My name is Sadie, by the way. I'm your server for the evening, so if you need anything at all you let me know." Skulduggery smiled, thanked her, and ordered whatever he thought Valkyrie would like from the menu.
"She definitely likes you."
"I know," he answered.
"She didn't even look at me."
"I saw that as well."
"You could get her number, you know." She didn't know why she said that. He tilted his head, watching her with an unreadable expression.
"I don't need her number. I have a date for the evening," he answered eventually. Valkyrie arched an eyebrow at him, ignoring the pleased little flutter in her stomach.
"And there was me thinking you'd jump at the chance to get a phone number from a pretty girl."
"You have a very low opinion of me."
"Nah, I just know you've been girlfriend-less for a long time," she winked. His lips twitched as he fought a smile.
"You are an idiot."
"And yet you choose my company repeatedly. Who's the bigger idiot?"
"Touche." His eyes shifted back to Magnus for a moment and she watched his expression change to one of alertness.
"What is it?"
"Believe it or not, I think the Sanctuary Detectives may actually have found the right man." Skulduggery leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table to bring their heads closer together. "He's discussing acquiring an item of interest this evening."
"Is she the seller? Do you think he's going to steal it from her?"
"I do. I think she's also his date."
"What makes you think that?"
"They just started kissing."
"Oh. Alright."
"I think he's going to take her somewhere quiet after the meal and that's where he's going to steal it."
"Weird that she's agreed to be his date when she knows he wants something from her. How does she know he isn't just interested in the magical object?" Valkyrie shook her head. "Some people are so naive."
"Indeed they are. Perhaps she was just lonely and he was nice to her. Either way, she definitely likes him because they're still kissing."
"You mean they haven't come up for air yet?"
"Don't look. You're terrible at being undercover." Valkyrie grinned at him as she turned back, and he arched an eyebrow at her. "What?"
"This is the fun part. This is much better than waiting for people to do things all day."
"We're still waiting for people to do things."
"Yeah but we're much closer to our goal and it's exciting. Let me enjoy it."
"You're a very odd person."
"Normal people are boring." The waitress arrived again with the food Skulduggery had ordered and Valkyrie wasted no time in trying it. She was starving.
"Can I get you anything else tonight honey?" Sadie actually looked up at him from beneath her eyelashes. Val swallowed her mouthful in time to see him raise his eyebrows. He reached across the table and twisted his fingers through Valkyrie's.
"Would you like anything else sweetheart?" he asked, a gentle smile on his face.
"Uh, no...no thanks." His green eyes were so intense that she felt her cheeks turn pink.
"Are you sure? It's my treat." His thumb stroked the back of her hand gently, and the waitress frowned in disappointment.
"I'm sure." She fought to keep her voice even.
"That's all then, thank you." He glanced up at the waitress before immediately bringing his attention back to his partner. Sadie backed away, obviously not used to being turned down. "You're blushing."
"I'm not," Val answered immediately, taking her hand back.
"You are."
"I'm not."
"I had no idea my natural charm was too much for you," he grinned.
"Shut up." She sipped the wine just for something to do. She hated wine. "I feel bad that you're spending loads of money on food that will be half eaten and wine that I won't drink."
"Why? I'm not poor."
"I know that. I still feel bad though."
"There's no need." They sat and chatted for a while. Valkyrie ate some more but left the wine. Skulduggery of course didn't eat or drink anything, though nobody seemed to notice. Eventually he paid the bill when he saw Magnus and his date make a move.
"Let's go," Valkyrie said when she saw them get up to leave. They waited until the pair had walked a few metres before following them out to the car park. Skulduggery draped his arm around Valkyrie's waist as they walked and she leaned into him, working hard to keep up the ruse of a happy couple as they tailed their suspect.
Magnus reached his car and stopped to chat to his date, so they did the same. It was cold. Valkyrie missed her coat. They tried to stay hidden among the car park shadows as they stood close by, sticking to the far side of the Bentley. They managed successfully, until Valkyrie's shoe touched a stone and it rattled over a grate on the ground. She panicked as Magnus followed the sound, spotting the rock and following its path back to them. Their cover was about to be blown if he saw them standing in the dark watching him.
She had no idea what the hell she was doing as she grabbed the front of Skulduggery's jacket and stretched up to press her lips to his. He grunted quietly in surprise, but caught on quickly enough. His arm came around her and he leaned into it like he meant it, his other hand reaching up to cup her face. He backed her up against the Bentley, seeming unmindful of marking the paint. Even though she knew it wasn't real, her heart thumped in her chest. He pulled her closer and she found herself forgetting about the criminal nearby. A soft sigh escaped her as Skulduggery parted his lips to deepen the kiss. She was surprised to hear a gentle groan come from him as her hand knotted in his hair. Oh, he was good. She couldn't believe how easily it came to him.
The sound of a car engine starting up caught her attention, though the kiss continued until the vehicle began to drive away. And then Skulduggery pulled back and she sucked in a deep breath, her head spinning. He blinked at her a few times, a mildly surprised expression on his face.
"Uh," was all he said.
"So that happened." Her voice trembled almost as much as her knees. She was still trapped between him and the car, one hand on the back of his neck. His hands were at her waist.
"We should probably follow Magnus," he said softly. His voice was rough.
"Probably." He took another minute to step back and let her go, and then he opened the door for her without looking at her before climbing into the driver's seat. The Bentley left the parking area and joined the traffic on the main road easily. The Porsche was gone but Skulduggery seemed to know where to drive. "Where are we going?"
"The local gardens. Magnus is taking his date there for a romantic walk." He paused, and she saw the bemused expression return to his face. "I would've appreciated some sort of warning, you know."
"I didn't want our cover to be blown," she mumbled.
"We could have ducked behind the car."
"I didn't think of that when it was happening. I panicked."
"I noticed." His head tilted as he thought it through. "I suppose it was the best course of action really. It stopped him being suspicious enough to come closer. If he'd recognised my car that would've been it for the case."
"This is weird isn't it?"
"Very weird."
"At least you were convincing."
"What?"
"The kiss." Her cheeks coloured again. "You were convincing enough that he believed it. I half expected you not to catch on and shove me away. I definitely didn't expect...that."
"You're surprised that I know how to kiss someone?"
"You've lived several hundred years without lips."
"It's not rocket science."
"You could've marked the Bentley's paint."
"I'm sorry?" He looked confused.
"You backed me up against the car. Didn't you care about the paintwork?"
"I do now," he muttered.
"You seriously didn't notice?"
"I was a little preoccupied by the fact that you were making out with me in front of a potential criminal." He sighed. "Let's talk about it later. We're here."
oO0Oo