Two

Not a Lot of Trust

Rose shook her head. "No way. We don't know even know you. We aren't about to get in a car with you, and let you take us with you to your hideout."

"How about we go with you to where you live, and then we can talk?" Valkyrie suggested.

"Rose," Lissa said. "If they're Strigoi then they can't get past the wards anyway."

"Who's to say they won't take us to the side of the road, kill us and dump us. Or pretend to get lost."

"What else can we do? We saved your life," Valkyrie asked.

"Maybe it was only to kill us later." Rose argued.

"I threw fire. Can your Strigoi do that?" Valkyrie argued back.

"Futher proof we can't trust you. I drive, or we don't come. Or I call back up."

"My car is a 1954 R-type Continental Bentley, one of 208 ever made. It is fitted with climate control, satellite navigation and a whole lot other modern conveniences. I'm not about to let you drive it. If it recieves so much a scratch, it will fall apart. Call for back up. Meanwhile this is getting annoying."

Valkyrie knowing what he was about to do, said, "we don't want to scare them," even as Lissa frowned and asked "what?" Skulduggery reached in and touched his collarbones, and his facade melted away. Lissa screamed as his skull gleamed in the darkness. Rose snapped around to look at what Lissa was screaming about, and she froze. "Oh, is that what you meant by not scaring them?" Skulduggery asked.

"Yes. But what did you mean, getting annoying? It doesn't normally."

"I don't know. Maybe it broken."

"Again?"

"Again."

"Are you dead?" Lissa gasped. She reached out past Rose, who stood in front and pushed her arm down.

"Do I look dead to you?" Skulduggery asked. No answer. "Your right," he nodded. "Should I put it back up?"

"How are you alive? I mean dead alive? I mean dead but alive?"

"Like this? Long story. One I don't like telling often. I don't like repeating myself."

"But you haven't told us the story," Rose siad, obviously confused.

"But I've told Valkyrie and that's enough for me." Skulduggery said happily.

"If you're not Strigoi, then what are you?" Rose demanded.

"I would like to know that myself." A tall man with a Russian accent said. He wore a long leather duster and had brown hair in a ponytail. He walked aournd and stood infront of Lissa.

"Another one. Please tell me, are there anymore coming?" Skulduggery asked.

"No, but if I really believed you were Strigoi, would I tell you truth?" The tall man asked.

"I'm Detective Skulduggery Pleasant, and this is my partner, Detective Valkyrie Cain." Skulduggery said.

"Dimitri Belikov." Dimitri said. "I ask again, what are you?"

"Oh, is that what you said? I thought you asked who we were," Skulduggery said.

"We're mages, or sorcerers." Valkyrie said.

"You're a magician?" Rose asked sceptically.

"No," Valkyrie scowled. "Magician do tricks at birthday parties. Mages do magic. Skulduggery's an Elemental. He manipulates the four elements, fire water earth and air."

"There are five elements though." Rose interrupted.

Valkyrie glared at her. "I am a Necromental. I use the Elemental Magic as well Necromancy, which is death magic. There are also Adepts, who can have any kind of power, like changing form or reading minds."

"Thast kind of confusing." Lissa said.

"Yeah, but not really." Valkyrie smirked.