LITMIR.BIZ

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      “Fine,” Fletcher responded grudgingly.

      “Guild, you might want to call in some of your operatives – try to get in touch with Davina Marr again. We could cover a lot more ground with her and a few Cleavers.”

      “Let’s try to get this done without her,” Guild said.

      “You’d be willing to risk 80,000 lives just to protect your secret?” Shudder asked.

      “I told Anton the truth about the Vanguard assassination,” Skulduggery said.

      Anger contorted Guild’s features. “You had no right to discuss that matter with anyone!”

      “Anton’s one of us,” said Ghastly. “He’s not going to use your past indiscretions against you. None of us are. Which is why you trust us to go after Scarab’s gang and not Davina Marr.”

      “I knew Vanguard,” Shudder said. “He was a good man. And yet I can understand Meritorious’s decision. I don’t agree with it, and I don’t like it, but I understand it. Your secret is safe with me, Grand Mage.”

      Guild nodded curtly. Valkyrie could see that he didn’t like the fact that they now had something to hold over him. From what she knew of the man, he didn’t strike her as someone who would be comfortable with trusting other people. By not revealing a secret that could bring him down, each one of them was doing him a favour and he knew it.

      They reached the door to the escalators. To their left was a window over the Conference Centre, another Executive Box, an elevator and two wooden doors that stood open wide. Standing in that doorway, a smile on his face, was Dreylan Scarab.

      They all stopped – Guild out in front, Valkyrie beside Skulduggery, Fletcher and Shudder to her right, Ghastly to her left. Scarab didn’t look at all alarmed.

      “Aren’t you a motley crew?” he said. “Detectives and desperadoes. Outlaws and agents. And so many of you. However can I hope to prevail against your combined might?”

      “Give us the bomb,” said Guild.

      “You have the bomb.”

      “The other bomb.”

      “Ah,” Scarab smiled. “You figured it out, eh? Of course, you realise this isn’t going to end without a battle. You have your motley crew. I have my Revengers’ Club.”

      “They seem to have deserted you,” said Ghastly.

      Scarab shook his head. “We’ve lost a couple along the way, but the big players are around. This is all part of our lovely little plan, you see. Everything we’ve done, it’s all about revenge. And when it comes to revenge, timing is everything.”

      Skulduggery stepped past Guild. “Scarab, you’re under arrest. Hand over the Desolation Engine, give yourself up and I swear you will get a fair trial.”

      “You slap those cuffs on me and I’ll be dead before I get to a cell and you know it. The Grand Mage will have me killed. He might very well have you killed too. And your friends. We know too much, don’t we, Grand Mage?”

      “The Detective is offering you a peaceful way out,” Guild said. “I suggest you take him up on it.”

      “You prepared to give me a fair trial too, Guild?”

      “Of course.”

      Scarab laughed. “For a born liar you’re not very good at lying. You’d organised a little welcoming party for my release, hadn’t you?”

      Guild narrowed his eyes. “This is getting us nowhere.”

      “A nice band of specially chosen Cleavers, waiting for me when I got out of prison. Lucky for me the warden is no fan of yours, so he let me out a few days early.”

      “Take him down,” Guild said to Skulduggery.

      “Want to know a secret?” Scarab said with a grin. “I think the American Council is kind of hoping my little revenge plot succeeds. And the Russian Council didn’t tell you that Billy-Ray had freed Dusk, did they? Seems to me a lot of folk are hoping I succeed. Everybody who’s anybody wants you dead.”

      Guild stalked forward, clicking his fingers and summoning flame. “If you want something done,” he muttered.

      “Oh, good,” Scarab said. “The fight.” He turned and ran, and Guild ran after him.

      The elevator door opened behind them and Valkyrie whirled round to see Dusk and Springheeled Jack stepping out. They brought up their silenced sub-machine guns and opened fire.

      She dived, glimpsed Ghastly pulling Fletcher to the ground, and an instant later they had disappeared. Shudder dodged behind a pillar. Valkyrie looked at Skulduggery, but he was just standing there, hands out, and she saw the bullets appearing in front of him, coming into view as they slowed.

      The gunfire cut off and she peeked out. Fletcher and Ghastly had materialised behind the enemy, and Ghastly had his arm wrapped around Jack’s throat. Fletcher grabbed Dusk and they both vanished. Jack squirmed free and kicked out, catching Ghastly across the jaw. Ghastly pushed at the air and the gun flew from Jack’s hands. Ghastly smashed a fist into him and kept on pummelling. Three punches sang in a short, sweet rhythm, the fourth knocking Jack’s hat off his head. Jack stumbled away, straight into Shudder, whose elbow cracked against Jack’s chin. Jack wobbled and went down.

      “Stop hittin’ me!” he cried. “This is hardly fair, now is it? Two of you against me?”

      “You’re the one who came at us with a gun,” Ghastly said, standing over him.

      “But that was for a giggle,” Jack tried. “I wasn’t aimin’ at you, I swear.”

      Valkyrie looked back and saw Skulduggery running to catch up with Guild and Scarab.

      “Besides,” Jack continued, “we accomplished what we needed to.” He looked up at Ghastly. “Are you usin’ a new face cream or somethin’? You look different.”

      Shudder frowned. “What did you accomplish?”

      “You got one unpredictable element in your little team,” Jack told them with an exaggerated sigh. “The kind of power that could mess up everythin’. It was our job to take that power out of the equation.”

      Valkyrie paled.

      “Where’s Fletcher?” asked Ghastly.

      Jack grinned. “He should be right—”

      A fist of cold granite hit Valkyrie and she went tumbling. Shudder went to leap over her at Dusk, but Dusk threw Fletcher’s limp body into him. They went down in a heap and Jack sprang, his knee smashing into Ghastly’s face, then he leaped off him and landed behind Valkyrie.

      He grabbed her, his hot breath in her ear. “I got someone who’d like to talk to you.”

      He shoved her at Dusk, who swatted her hand away as she brought it up. He didn’t waste time with talk, or threats, or anything as mundane as enjoying the moment. He just sank his jagged teeth into her neck.

       45 SEARCHING FOR SCARAB

      or a time there was just the pain and the feel of her heartbeat thumping loudly and quickly. And when the pain stopped and her eyes refocused, Valkyrie saw Dusk holding her at arm’s length. His lips were red with her blood, but his eyes were narrowed in confusion.

      The window behind him exploded and Caelan came through, slamming into Dusk and lifting him off his feet. Valkyrie stumbled backwards, tripping over Fletcher’s unconscious form and falling. Dusk seized Caelan and threw him into the wall, but Caelan came back with a snarl.

      Valkyrie’s

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