Standard note: sorry for any missed errors!
"I don't know that we should be baiting them with Valkyrie," Tanith said, looking between everyone seated at the dining table in Gordon Edgley's mansion. "Skulduggery, I'd have thought you out of anyone would be questioning the safety of all of this."
"Of course, I have considered it," Skulduggery replied, "but I know this is the best answer we've had. I think baiting them with a controlled environment with us ready to strike back is better than them attacking Valkyrie on any given day in a random location."
"True," Tanith nodded. "Where would we do it?"
"It should be in Roarhaven somewhere," Ghastly replied. "Not near the sanctuary though."
Valkyrie sat back and let the three of them discuss options. Clearly her opinion was not valid nor wanted on the matter of putting her body on the line. Maybe this was what she should have expected from the beginning. Are all lives expendable so long as it's not one of their own?
"We can call Fletcher Renn," Ghastly added and received a frustrated groan from Skulduggery in return.
Tanith laughed. "Skulduggery, you need to get over this dislike for Fletcher. I hate saying it, but he is an asset."
"I know," Skulduggery replied. "It's just… his hair. The way it just sticks up and how it's just there… on top of his head."
Valkyrie sighed. "Why are we discussing some boy's hair?" She asked. "Does it have powers or something?"
"No," Tanith replied. "Skulduggery is just impatient. You'll see."
"Do you know what I see?" Valkyrie sat up, the cold tone in her voice chilled the air. "I see the three of you discussing 'plans' and making jokes, for what? I am perfectly capable of handling myself, but I don't take kindly to people treating my life like it's nothing better than a bag of rubbish. Now, if you'll excuse me I'll be upstairs. Feel free to show yourselves out."
"Valkyrie…" Tanith called as Valkyrie disappeared from the room.
Skulduggery shrugged. "She's right," he stated. "She doesn't understand us yet. We are still strangers to her and I suppose joking about this isn't really… right."
"Since when do you care about the feelings of others when you open your mouth?" Ghastly asked.
"Since I found someone who could make a significant difference to our world," Skulduggery replied.
"Or someone who's is just like you."
"Or that," Skulduggery answered. "I'm going to talk to her."
XxXxX
"Skulduggery seems… different," Tanith said when Skulduggery was out of earshot.
Ghastly smirked and nodded. "Valkyrie Cain is a mystery even Skulduggery can't solve. She's independent and challenges him. I think Skulduggery is so used to people relying on someone like him, even if they don't like to admit it. That's also why he has so few friends. We are the one's who consider ourselves capable and while Skulduggery is an amazing sorcerer, we know our own worth. I think others are happy to have him take on everything because he is so smart and powerful. With Valkyrie though, he's finally met his match. She would happy to continue doing things by herself without help, and I think that intrigues Skulduggery. She is certainly an interesting young girl."
"You like her," Tanith smiled.
"I am still wary, but he trusts her, and I trust him. I do like her and think she is just a girl who wants to do things the way she has always done them, but you can never be too careful these days."
"I like her," Tanith replied definitively. "All it took was that day with her before the ball/dance thingy we went to. She's weird and funny, but there's something about her. She's strong. I can see it even if she doesn't know it yet."
Ghastly stood from the table. "You're right. Let's go up and make a plan to finish this thing."
As they walked upstairs they heard Skulduggery calling out to Valkyrie and then a knock on the door. "I checked every other room," he said when he saw them appear from the staircase. There was no answer, so he slowly creaked the door open.
"Well?" Tanith asked.
Skulduggery's shoulders sagged, "she's gone."
"Gone?!" Tanith pushed past him and into the room. The window was open, the curtains swaying in the breeze. "Through the window… what the hell?"
Skulduggery was already halfway down the stairs when he muttered to himself, "doors are for people with no imagination."