"Fieldtrip," Skulduggery announced happily.

Valkyrie blinked at the ceiling of the Bentley, disoriented. She hadn't realized she had fallen asleep, and she allowed herself a moment of embarrassment before she sat up. They were at the Sanctuary. As soon as the sun bouncing off of the Sanctuary's façade hit her eyes, she groaned and sank back down into her seat.

"Fieldtrip?" she repeated.

"You're getting very good at that." Skulduggery shut off the car.

"Good at what?"

"Repeating what I'm saying. You're like a parrot. It's great for my self-esteem, I have to admit it." He looked at her. "Notebook."

Valkyrie stared back, refusing to ask the question. The silence stretched.

Finally, "Notebook?"

Skulduggery nodded. "You deserve a cracker."

"Notebook?" she snapped, sitting up. The sun hit her cheek like an open oven. "What notebook?"

"The one you're lying on. The notebook that could be considered 'evidence.' That notebook."

Valkyrie looked down and cursed. "Oh. Oh, shit. I remember now." She arched her back in the seat and pulled the notebook from under her. She smoothed out the pages. "What did I do to this thing?"

Skulduggery shut the car off. Valkyrie groaned again. She watched Skulduggery get out, wait a brief moment for her to follow, then move off. She waited as long as she possibly could before she opened the door and followed after him into the Sanctuary.

The notebook was as blank as before. She ran her hands over the paper, observed the thickness. Skulduggery must have watched her from the corner of his eye.

"It's a regular notebook."

"But it's like it's brand new." Valkyrie frowned. "But it's not. Look, the pages are wrinkled—not from me, and there are stains from coffee. She definitely used it. Do you think Mr. Murderer erased whatever was there before he left?"

"Not enough time."

"He had at least twelve hours before the neighbors reported the smell."

Skulduggery led the way to the science wing. "There are dozens of documents the murderer would have had to gone through. As of right now, pre-research—"

"Again?"

Skulduggery looked at her and tilted his head. "What are you talking about?"

Valkyrie shrugged.

"As of right now, pre-research, we don't know anything that could go through that amount of paper and delete all traces. To be perfectly honest, I've never heard of anything like this."

"Maybe it's like a book-burning?" Valkyrie held open the door for Skulduggery to pass by her into the lab. "Modern day version?"

"The Necromancers would have no reason to want to hide this information. It's been almost two decades since the Necromancers were disbanded. I doubt they even have the resources to hear about anyone like Beleaguer, let alone get someone to her, murder her, and destroy all her research."

"It might be a colleague."

Skulduggery put his hands on his hips and surveyed the lab. There were a few whitecoats ghosting around the tables, but most people seemed to be off in search of cooler corners.

"Authors aren't known for being the most bloodthirsty of types. Notebook?" He held his hand out, and Valkyrie obliged. "I love fieldtrips."

Skulduggery settled himself down at a lab bench. Valkyrie stood behind him, watching as he flicked through the notebook to a clean page. He examined it, head tilting this way and that. There were various tools scattered about—untouched from where Skulduggery had left them last—and he picked up a tweezer, lifted a page.

"Wow," Valkyrie breathed.

"Your voice distracts me," Skulduggery mumbled.

"Wow, it's a page."

"Appreciate this lesson on observation."

"I'm appreciating the notebook, Skulduggery."

Skulduggery flicked to the next page, repeated the process with the tweezer. Valkyrie watched him for as long as she was able.

"You're fidgeting."

"I'm bored. What are you looking for?"

"Indents from previous writing."

"Oh."

She watched him. Her stomach growled.

"Valkyrie, you may be one of the most interesting and brilliant people I've known, but you can also be one of the most annoying people I've ever had the pleasure of standing directly behind me and breathing on my neck."

"Sorry my eyes can't detect minute scratches in the—Convivial." Valkyrie blinked as the other woman passed by, head down, walking quickly. Valkyrie watched her leave the lab, barely opening the door before slipping out. "What is she doing here?"

"You remembered her name. You've made a friend."

"Shut up. I'll be right back."

Valkyrie walked through the lab, hips bumping the abandoned chairs. By the time she reached the door, Convivial had disappeared down one of the corridors. Valkyrie guessed right. She glanced down the hallways as she passed, and it was by pure chance she caught sight of Convivial's hair.

"Convivial!" Valkyrie called, hurrying after.

The sensitive stopped at a junction, looked around for a panicked second, turned to face Valkyrie. Valkyrie slowed, suddenly unsure, held up a hand in weak greeting.

"Haven't seen you in a while."

Convivial smiled, strained. "Valkyrie!" she said, voice high. "You saw me the other day."

Valkyrie's mouth twisted as she tried to remember the past few days. Was it yesterday or the day before she had lounged with Alice in the pool? This week or last she had seen her sister's tattoo? Since the nightmare?

Valkyrie blinked. "I guess so. How've you been?"

"Good. I've been—I've been having some headaches." She reached up and touched her temple. "Some friends in the labs have been helping me figure some things out. It's been… confusing."

Déjà vu danced around the edges of Valkyrie's mind. "Hey, when did we last—" Her phone rang, and Valkyrie held up a finger as she answered. "Valkyrie Cain."

"Valhalla!"

Valkyrie smiled. "Finbar."

Convivial inched away, and she nodded quickly to Valkyrie before dashing away. Valkyrie watched her retreating, ducking around another corner. She retraced her steps towards Skulduggery.

"Valkyrie," Finbar said, voice distant and smile in his tone. "Valkyrie, it's been an age! Man, the kid's been missing you like crazy. He's always askin' about you, wondering where his aunt Valkyrie's been."

"I'm not his aunt."

"Hm? Oh, no. That wouldn't make much sense, would it? You're like, what, around fifty? My parents would be mortified. So would Sharon's."

"I'm nowhere near fifty."

"Your mind, though. Old soul, that's what I would bet. Like, total old soul. Your soul's seen some things." Finbar reflected on Valkyrie's soul for a moment. "But the kid doesn't believe in souls. He's all about the physical, you know?"

"I've never met your son."

Valkyrie stuck her head into the lab, checked on Skulduggery. He hadn't appeared to move. She leaned against the wall outside the door. She could be doing something useful, but it had been awhile since she and Finbar had talked.

"Not in-person, but in your dreams, maybe. Not that he would believe that." Finbar laughed. "He's the most serious kid I've ever met. He wants to be an accountant. He nearly gave Sharon a heart attack when he told her where he wanted to go to college."

Valkyrie grinned. "Why did you call?"

A pause on the other end. "I was returning your call."

"I didn't call."

"Mm, no, you called. Left a message on the answering machine. Something about… about… George?"

"I don't know a George."

"And something about nightmares."

Valkyrie opened her mouth and shut it. "When did I call?"

"Uh, man, I dunno'. Maybe a week ago? Thought you were going to visit, but you never showed. Sounded like that on the message." Finbar hummed. "Is everything all right?"

"Yeah. Fine. Tired, no sleep, hot. Murders. The same." Valkyrie rubbed her eyes with her free hand.

"You should visit," Finbar said, and something banged in the background.

Valkyrie's heart jumped to her throat. "What?" she asked quickly.

"Visit. I feel like something will happen."

Her first reaction was to make an excuse—any excuse, perhaps a family function, work, but she pushed that silly part of her away. Some stupid thing she dreamed, a nightmare, one of many she hadn't been aware she had been having, maybe just now in the Bentley. Stupid, stupid.

Overreacting.

"Sure. I'll see when we're free."

Valkyrie hung up. She stared at the opposite wall for a long moment, tried to recapture that fear. Her jacket was annoying her, and she shrugged out of it, folded it, unfolded it. Whatever she had just been thinking of escaped from her, and a headache pounded against her eyes.

"Ugh."

She rested against the wall, neck pressed against the cool tile, heat making her head swim. Her muscles ached, but besides the workout with Skulduggery earlier, what had she—

"Are you okay?"

Her eyes snapped open, and she stood straighter. "Yes, sorry. How long was I standing here?"

Skulduggery shrugged. "Twenty minutes. I came to find you when you didn't reappear with a sandwich. How did the chat with Convivial go?"

"Who?" Valkyrie asked, shoving her arms back in her jacket.

"Janet."

"Oh. Fine, I guess. She's weird. She's scared of me, I don't know." She tied back her hair, and she felt a little better with the air on her neck. "Finbar called. I guess I left him a message last week. He wants us to visit."

"You don't want to?"

Valkyrie looked up sharply. "What? No. No, it's just with the new case. And the heat. His kid wants to be an accountant." She closed her eyes for a second. "Anything on the notebook?"

"It was written on, but I can't make out the text. Back to square one. Who, what, why, how." Skulduggery was still. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, voice soft. "You were dreaming in the car."

"Nightmare?" Valkyrie asked.

Skulduggery hesitated, stepped closer. "We don't have to take this case. If you're not feeling up for a murder, there have been rumors of a break-in to the London Sanctuary. Rumors about a cult in America. We could take a trip to cooler weather, if you want. A dragon cited somewhere in Russia."

Valkyrie smiled. "I'd be up for a dragon."

"It could try to eat you, too."

"It's just not making sense, this whole case. I want it to. I want to figure it out. But leads? We don't have anything. We'll have to ask her family, friends. Read her previous words, figure out some connection." Valkyrie frowned. Her stomach rumbled.

Skulduggery looked at her.

…

Valkyrie grinned. "Three scoops, please. Mint, mint-chocolate chip, chocolate. Waffle cone."

Skulduggery paid the man, and Valkyrie took her treat and gave it a long lick. They wandered away from the stand, and there was nothing better than the cone in her hand.

"Oh, I needed this." She took a bite, winced at the brainfreeze. "I think it even got cooler out. They say it's going to rain within the next week. Finally, some good news."

"You have ice cream on your nose."

Valkyrie was too busy devouring. Skulduggery's façade raised an eyebrow, and they sat on a bench and watched the queue grow and ebb. Valkyrie recognized a few of Alice's friends, and she and Skulduggery moved farther away.

It was nice here. It was lightly wooded, but close enough to the road so there was a steady stream of people. In the early-evening, the crowd had grown. Children ran around the trees, faces covered with filth. Picnic benches scattered around. It smelled like earth and summer.

Valkyrie had almost forgotten places like this existed. It reminded her of the pier, the beach, people relaxing and enjoying one another's temporary company.

"I cannot believe you ate that whole thing."

Valkyrie crunched on the cone. "It was really good."

"The whole thing. I didn't think anything outside of a cow could eat something of that size."

"Why a cow?"

"Cows have four stomachs."

Valkyrie frowned. "Are you saying I remind you of a cow?"

"I think a dissection would be in order, if you wanted an accurate answer. I assumed you only had one stomach, but I could always be wrong. I've seen you eat whole pizzas."

"That was one time! I hadn't eat in like, two days! Let it go."

"It was a whole pizza. That's almost as disturbing as three scoops of ice cream. You sicken me."

Valkyrie laughed, and Skulduggery smiled back at her.

Her phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Valkyrie? It's me, Zalla. Zalla Dane, Beleaguer's—her, I was her girlfriend."

Her mirth evaporated. "Yes. Is everything all right?"

Skulduggery touched her shoulder.

There was a breath from the other side. Valkyrie couldn't decide if it was sad or angry, but it made her heart twist. "Is everything okay?"

"Something happened. Everything is gone. Gone, all of it." A sob that didn't seem to connect with the dead words. "Where did it all go?"

"What happened?"

Silence, muffled, a hand over the receiver.

"Zalla, I need you to answer."

"The research—I figured that was gone for a reason. But not all of it. Not all of it. Why, why, why? What did she do? Texts, even the letters."

Valkyrie swallowed. "What happened?"

"Everything she's written is gone. It's like she was never here."

As she cried, all Valkyrie could do was look at her phone.

Omg, I took too long to update this. But we have fun things coming up. Woo!

Thought, theories, comments-all welcome!