There it was. The self-righteous arrogance and smirk that identified a Sensitive from a mile away. This was how Billy-Ray had expected a mind-reader to behave. It was the first truly snide and offhanded comment Gabe had made regarding Billy-Ray's own thoughts, and while that part was amusing, Billy-Ray still reserved a particularly scornful look for Gabe's retreating back.
The way everyone kept dodging his next question was worrying, though. First Pleasant, and now Gabe? Mind you, Gabe had apparently seen firsthand some of what Billy-Ray planned to do upon meeting her again, so maybe that wasn't so hard to understand, but... why all the secrecy? What happened to her? Was she actually dead, or did something even worse happen?
A thought gripped Billy-Ray, and he had no idea how to feel about it. What if... what if Cain had somehow ended up on the wrong side of the portal? What if she was stuck over in the Faceless Ones' dimension right now?
Well, she deserved whatever she got over there, obviously, and the idea did fill Billy-Ray with a certain glee. The Faceless Ones would have a whole array of dastardly punishments Billy-Ray, for all his experience in mercenary activities and assassinations, couldn't even begin to imagine.
But... that was the point. It wouldn't be him doling out the punishment. It wouldn't be a proper revenge. It wasn't any fun. Billy-Ray wanted the black holes of his nonexistent eyes to be the last thing Valkyrie Cain saw before she slipped away.
"Takes one to know one," he murmured with a frown. Despite himself, Billy-Ray began hoping it wasn't quite as serious as the Faceless Ones, his reputation as a sociopath be damned. "Sure you're not replacin' her? Seems like the skeleton has a thing for lost puppies."
~~
Crimes committed by sorcerers against mortals? Leaving aside the use of the word 'mortals,' which sent a shiver down Father O'Reilly's spine, it was a petrifying thought. Good to hear that plenty of sorcerers were selfless enough to guard against it, and to punish those who committed such crimes. Pleasant... Skulduggery Pleasant... sounded like a good man.
But sorcerers were human too, Father O'Reilly reflected while Solomon paused for a bite to eat. There would be criminals and people who worked for their own selfish gain, just like everywhere else in the world. He'd been starting to think of sorcerers as something beyond human, a step above, and the realisation caused him to feel slightly guilty. All were equal in the eyes of the Lord.
And then, as if to mock that very thought, Solomon continued his explanation.
His voice was calm, even, bland. The tone of a man who was numbly concentrating on the words he spoke, rather than the meaning behind them. Or maybe that was just Father O'Reilly's imagination. Either way, the sorcerer seemed unaware of the growing incredulous look on Father O'Reilly's face.
Silence descended upon them like a shroud when Solomon finished speaking. A heavy, stifling, uncomfortable silence. Father O'Reilly reached for the juice, changed his mind, had the tea halfway to his lips before he changed his mind about that too. The slice of fruitcake regarded him mockingly from its plate, promising an even worse time of it if Father O'Reilly tried to eat anything.
Had he thought about depths like a swimming pool? Or even, perhaps, a beach? Father O'Reilly had to revise all of that; he felt, very suddenly, like he'd appeared at the bottom of the Marianas Trench. The pressure on his mind certainly supported that theory.
He wanted to ask if all of this was normal. He couldn't even begin to. In fact, practically the only question that had even a minor chance of an explanation that wouldn't deepen the depth was one that Father O'Reilly still had trouble giving voice to. And when he did, it was louder than he intended. "A skeleton!?"
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The way everyone kept dodging his next question was worrying, though. First Pleasant, and now Gabe? Mind you, Gabe had apparently seen firsthand some of what Billy-Ray planned to do upon meeting her again, so maybe that wasn't so hard to understand, but... why all the secrecy? What happened to her? Was she actually dead, or did something even worse happen?
A thought gripped Billy-Ray, and he had no idea how to feel about it. What if... what if Cain had somehow ended up on the wrong side of the portal? What if she was stuck over in the Faceless Ones' dimension right now?
Well, she deserved whatever she got over there, obviously, and the idea did fill Billy-Ray with a certain glee. The Faceless Ones would have a whole array of dastardly punishments Billy-Ray, for all his experience in mercenary activities and assassinations, couldn't even begin to imagine.
But... that was the point. It wouldn't be him doling out the punishment. It wouldn't be a proper revenge. It wasn't any fun. Billy-Ray wanted the black holes of his nonexistent eyes to be the last thing Valkyrie Cain saw before she slipped away.
"Takes one to know one," he murmured with a frown. Despite himself, Billy-Ray began hoping it wasn't quite as serious as the Faceless Ones, his reputation as a sociopath be damned. "Sure you're not replacin' her? Seems like the skeleton has a thing for lost puppies."
~~
Crimes committed by sorcerers against mortals? Leaving aside the use of the word 'mortals,' which sent a shiver down Father O'Reilly's spine, it was a petrifying thought. Good to hear that plenty of sorcerers were selfless enough to guard against it, and to punish those who committed such crimes. Pleasant... Skulduggery Pleasant... sounded like a good man.
But sorcerers were human too, Father O'Reilly reflected while Solomon paused for a bite to eat. There would be criminals and people who worked for their own selfish gain, just like everywhere else in the world. He'd been starting to think of sorcerers as something beyond human, a step above, and the realisation caused him to feel slightly guilty. All were equal in the eyes of the Lord.
And then, as if to mock that very thought, Solomon continued his explanation.
His voice was calm, even, bland. The tone of a man who was numbly concentrating on the words he spoke, rather than the meaning behind them. Or maybe that was just Father O'Reilly's imagination. Either way, the sorcerer seemed unaware of the growing incredulous look on Father O'Reilly's face.
Silence descended upon them like a shroud when Solomon finished speaking. A heavy, stifling, uncomfortable silence. Father O'Reilly reached for the juice, changed his mind, had the tea halfway to his lips before he changed his mind about that too. The slice of fruitcake regarded him mockingly from its plate, promising an even worse time of it if Father O'Reilly tried to eat anything.
Had he thought about depths like a swimming pool? Or even, perhaps, a beach? Father O'Reilly had to revise all of that; he felt, very suddenly, like he'd appeared at the bottom of the Marianas Trench. The pressure on his mind certainly supported that theory.
He wanted to ask if all of this was normal. He couldn't even begin to. In fact, practically the only question that had even a minor chance of an explanation that wouldn't deepen the depth was one that Father O'Reilly still had trouble giving voice to. And when he did, it was louder than he intended. "A skeleton!?"