Apparently, Gabe didn't need Billy-Ray's guidance. He wasn't taking a single wrong turn now, and he'd stopped making chalk marks on the walls. The Texan frowned as he followed along behind, trying to work out how the Sensitive was doing it when even Billy-Ray got the hallways mixed up once or twice. Different senses? A different ability? He didn't deny being able to read minds, and certainly hadn't stopped from showing off, but maybe there was something else. Billy-Ray didn't know much about Sensitives, after all.
... Then again, he was dealing with a sorcerer from another reality. Who knew?
"I ain't." Billy-Ray smirked. "This part was my idea. Just slipped my mind. Too bad you're gonna have to miss it."
Well, the zombies hadn't been his idea, exactly, and that part would be less than fun. But if all went according to plan, the zombies wouldn't even need to enter the picture. And as the staircase came into view at the end of a long corridor ahead, Billy-Ray felt lighter than he had all day. Even the pain twinging in his stomach wound wasn't enough to dampen his mood; nor was handing Gabe over to Scarab, when that finally occurred. It wasn't until Billy-Ray had left the castle completely that he allowed himself to think about his destination; the Midnight Hotel.
~~
"Okay," said Fletcher as the world reappeared around them, a different patch of the same forest Skulduggery had been directing their Teleportations through for almost ten minutes now. "Seriously. What are we looking for?"
"A hotel."
"Why?"
"Because I've worked out why they took Professor Grouse. And hopefully we'll get to the hotel in time to stop them from carrying out that dastardly plan."
Fletcher groaned as no hotel became visible through the trees in front of them. He liked Teleporting, really. And if there was a way to help the Professor without storming into a bad guy's hideout, he was all for that too. He just didn't like appearing in new and random spots throughout a forest, endlessly and monotonously, while Skulduggery tried to work out a route of familiar landmarks so the Teleportation was even possible. It sapped all the fun and the enjoyment out of being able to appear anywhere in the world at once when you never left the same patch of stupid forest.
"Tell me we're getting close?" he begged, even as he resigned himself to another Teleport.
"Better than that," Skulduggery contradicted him, sounding pleased with himself. "It's right behind you."
Fletcher whipped around to follow Skulduggery's gaze - or at least, the direction in which Skulduggery's empty eye sockets were pointing - and, sure enough, a large building stood behind them, practically hidden by the trees. With multiple levels and large front doors, the building stood much too tall to be missed, and was yet somehow perfectly situated so that it blended into the foliage surrounding it. Fletcher took a moment to make sure his mouth wasn't hanging open, and then followed Skulduggery inside.
"The Midnight Hotel," Skulduggery told him as they stepped into the lobby. "Disappears every twelve hours, and reappears somewhere else in the world. The owner is an old friend of mine."
"Okay," Fletcher nodded. "Cool." Been there, done that. "And what are we doing here?"
"You'll see."
"This has something to do with the stolen soul catcher, doesn't it?"
Skulduggery didn't answer, and so Fletcher just sighed and looked around. It was amazing, what Valkyrie had to put up with. Twice already he'd found himself wondering why she didn't just walk out on the skeleton. But, he had to admit, there was something exciting about it all. The mystery, and the intrigue. Skulduggery had been a lot more friendly with him today, too. That might have worried Fletcher, actually, if he'd stopped to give it any real thought. But he hadn't, and so it didn't.
~~
Valkyrie, meanwhile, sat back in the black leather armchair and sulked.
Sulked. It was a word Skulduggery used. So no, Valkyrie wasn't sulking, she was... brooding. Thinking. Wondering what all of this meant, and where on earth her life was going to go from here. She still felt numb, but now that numbness was only on the outside of her body. The inside was taken up by a hot and burning anger she couldn't control; and it had felt, a little earlier, like it was singeing the ice cold ring on her finger. So, after she'd spent an hour calming herself down, she took off the ring and left it on her nightstand before taking a taxi to the Necromancer Temple, leaving her reflection in charge as always.
It still didn't feel real. None of it. Valkyrie wanted to believe she was just leaping to some horrible conclusion the others would laugh at her for. So what if Skulduggery knew a little Necromancy? He'd told her once before that he had a history with Necromancers. Necromancy was what killed him. Why was that simple explanation so hard to believe?
Because of the way Gabe reacted, and the shadows he'd made appear. And then how Ghastly reacted. And then, even more telling, even more chilling, was when Skulduggery didn't try to retaliate - didn't even question the blow.
It was information on Lord Vile Valkyrie was after now, but none of the Necromancers at the temple would give it to her. And then Solomon Wreath wasn't there, and he'd apparently been missing for far too long, and not answering his phone. Worried over his violent reaction to seeing Gabe yesterday, Valkyrie had volunteered to go find him. High Priest Tenebrae had agreed, after a little convincing.
And now, Valkyrie didn't know what to feel. Solomon's phone was in the empty flat, but there was no sign of him. With no other leads and no other ideas, Valkyrie had collapsed into the Necromancer's armchair and hadn't moved for the past half hour.
Abandoned. That was how she felt. Even Ghastly and Tanith walked out on them. Even Fletcher, once Valkyrie explained what had happened, left her there and Teleported back to them.
A part of her - a small part, but very vocal - was beginning to wish they'd never rescued Skulduggery from the Faceless Ones.
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... Then again, he was dealing with a sorcerer from another reality. Who knew?
"I ain't." Billy-Ray smirked. "This part was my idea. Just slipped my mind. Too bad you're gonna have to miss it."
Well, the zombies hadn't been his idea, exactly, and that part would be less than fun. But if all went according to plan, the zombies wouldn't even need to enter the picture. And as the staircase came into view at the end of a long corridor ahead, Billy-Ray felt lighter than he had all day. Even the pain twinging in his stomach wound wasn't enough to dampen his mood; nor was handing Gabe over to Scarab, when that finally occurred. It wasn't until Billy-Ray had left the castle completely that he allowed himself to think about his destination; the Midnight Hotel.
~~
"Okay," said Fletcher as the world reappeared around them, a different patch of the same forest Skulduggery had been directing their Teleportations through for almost ten minutes now. "Seriously. What are we looking for?"
"A hotel."
"Why?"
"Because I've worked out why they took Professor Grouse. And hopefully we'll get to the hotel in time to stop them from carrying out that dastardly plan."
Fletcher groaned as no hotel became visible through the trees in front of them. He liked Teleporting, really. And if there was a way to help the Professor without storming into a bad guy's hideout, he was all for that too. He just didn't like appearing in new and random spots throughout a forest, endlessly and monotonously, while Skulduggery tried to work out a route of familiar landmarks so the Teleportation was even possible. It sapped all the fun and the enjoyment out of being able to appear anywhere in the world at once when you never left the same patch of stupid forest.
"Tell me we're getting close?" he begged, even as he resigned himself to another Teleport.
"Better than that," Skulduggery contradicted him, sounding pleased with himself. "It's right behind you."
Fletcher whipped around to follow Skulduggery's gaze - or at least, the direction in which Skulduggery's empty eye sockets were pointing - and, sure enough, a large building stood behind them, practically hidden by the trees. With multiple levels and large front doors, the building stood much too tall to be missed, and was yet somehow perfectly situated so that it blended into the foliage surrounding it. Fletcher took a moment to make sure his mouth wasn't hanging open, and then followed Skulduggery inside.
"The Midnight Hotel," Skulduggery told him as they stepped into the lobby. "Disappears every twelve hours, and reappears somewhere else in the world. The owner is an old friend of mine."
"Okay," Fletcher nodded. "Cool." Been there, done that. "And what are we doing here?"
"You'll see."
"This has something to do with the stolen soul catcher, doesn't it?"
Skulduggery didn't answer, and so Fletcher just sighed and looked around. It was amazing, what Valkyrie had to put up with. Twice already he'd found himself wondering why she didn't just walk out on the skeleton. But, he had to admit, there was something exciting about it all. The mystery, and the intrigue. Skulduggery had been a lot more friendly with him today, too. That might have worried Fletcher, actually, if he'd stopped to give it any real thought. But he hadn't, and so it didn't.
~~
Valkyrie, meanwhile, sat back in the black leather armchair and sulked.
Sulked. It was a word Skulduggery used. So no, Valkyrie wasn't sulking, she was... brooding. Thinking. Wondering what all of this meant, and where on earth her life was going to go from here. She still felt numb, but now that numbness was only on the outside of her body. The inside was taken up by a hot and burning anger she couldn't control; and it had felt, a little earlier, like it was singeing the ice cold ring on her finger. So, after she'd spent an hour calming herself down, she took off the ring and left it on her nightstand before taking a taxi to the Necromancer Temple, leaving her reflection in charge as always.
It still didn't feel real. None of it. Valkyrie wanted to believe she was just leaping to some horrible conclusion the others would laugh at her for. So what if Skulduggery knew a little Necromancy? He'd told her once before that he had a history with Necromancers. Necromancy was what killed him. Why was that simple explanation so hard to believe?
Because of the way Gabe reacted, and the shadows he'd made appear. And then how Ghastly reacted. And then, even more telling, even more chilling, was when Skulduggery didn't try to retaliate - didn't even question the blow.
It was information on Lord Vile Valkyrie was after now, but none of the Necromancers at the temple would give it to her. And then Solomon Wreath wasn't there, and he'd apparently been missing for far too long, and not answering his phone. Worried over his violent reaction to seeing Gabe yesterday, Valkyrie had volunteered to go find him. High Priest Tenebrae had agreed, after a little convincing.
And now, Valkyrie didn't know what to feel. Solomon's phone was in the empty flat, but there was no sign of him. With no other leads and no other ideas, Valkyrie had collapsed into the Necromancer's armchair and hadn't moved for the past half hour.
Abandoned. That was how she felt. Even Ghastly and Tanith walked out on them. Even Fletcher, once Valkyrie explained what had happened, left her there and Teleported back to them.
A part of her - a small part, but very vocal - was beginning to wish they'd never rescued Skulduggery from the Faceless Ones.