LITMIR.BIZ

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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.

      

      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 hand pressed against the wound on her neck. Her blood was warm. She felt it trickling between her fingers. She glimpsed Caelan and Dusk fighting, and even from that one glimpse she could see that Caelan was completely outmatched. No matter how fast he moved, he couldn’t hope to match the speed of a vampire like Dusk.

      She lay flat. She was thirsty. Her thoughts were muddled. She turned her head in time to see Caelan drop to the floor. He didn’t get up. Dusk slipped back to the side of Springheeled Jack.

      Ghastly and Shudder closed in, forcing Jack and Dusk to retreat towards the elevator. Jack grinned. Dusk stepped back behind him.

      “Careful,” Jack said, “we don’t want to hurt each other, now do we? I mean, who knows? After today, we’ll probably be fightin’ on the same side.”

      “I’d ask you what it is you’re talking about,” Ghastly said, “but I really don’t care.”

      “Oh, come now, ain’t it obvious? What do you think will happen when over 80,000 people are murdered live on air by a bomb that could only be described as magic? People are goin’ to know, ain’t they? They’re goin’ to believe in magic and they’re goin’ to believe in us. No more hidin’ for yours truly. I’ll be free to walk about on street level, do what I want, kill who I want … It’ll be a little slice of heaven.”

      “That’s why you’re doing this?” Shudder frowned. “To reveal magic to the world?”

      “That’s why I’m doin’ it, yeah. The others have their own reasons. They want the Sanctuary destroyed; they want the confusion of every sorcerer around the world scramblin’ for a piece of what’s left … I don’t know, I didn’t really ask them. We’re not what you might call a friendly bunch. Ain’t that right, Dusk?”

      “That’s right,” Dusk said from behind him. “But I don’t care about the Sanctuary or the war you’re hoping will start.”

      Jack nodded. “Dusk’s motives are pure. He’s only interested in revenge. So, mate, did you do it? Did you bite her?”

      “I did,” said Dusk.

      “Then has your thirst for revenge been sated?”

      “Not quite,” Dusk said. “Valkyrie Cain was only one of the people I sought revenge upon.”

      “Really? You didn’t tell me that. Ah well, I suppose this is what you get when you don’t talk, am I right? You get surprises. So come on, Dusk, who else is on your list?”

      “You are.”

      Jack frowned and turned as the elevator doors closed and Dusk was lost to sight. Suddenly alone, Jack turned back to Shudder and Ghastly just as they attacked.

      Valkyrie forced herself up, one hand at the wound on her neck, and she ran. The wound was burning, but there wasn’t much blood loss. She followed the corridor and took a left, jumping over the unconscious body of another security guard. Skulduggery came running back

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