'Well,' he said, 'that takes care of that.' He waved a hand, and the water lifted from his clothes, leaving him dry.
Valkyrie scowled. 'You still haven't taught me how to do that.'
Skulduggery picked his hat off the ground and brushed off the dirt. 'You're the one insisting that lessons on fire and air manipulation are more important than lessons on water. You can't really blame me for how much you resemble a drowned rat, now can you?'
'I'm sure I could manage it,' she said grumpily. 'How's the Hag?'
He shrugged. 'Regretting her life choices, I imagine. I see you've rescued the corpse.'
'Yes. He's dead.'
'Corpses usually are.'
'I mean he's not talking anymore.'
'Then there is nothing left to do except honor his wishes. We'll carry him to the car, trying very hard not to be seen by any passersby, and take him with us back to Dublin.'
She nodded. Bit her lip.
'What?' Skulduggery asked. 'What's wrong?'
'Well, I don't mean to sound disrespectful or anything, but it might be weird, being in a car with the remains of a dead man....'
'You do realize that I'm the remains of a dead man too, don't you?'
'I know, yeah, but... you don't smell.'
'You make an excellent point. Don't worry, we'll put him in the trunk. Now then, do you want to take his arms or his legs?'
'Legs.'
Skulduggery picked the corpse up, hands under the armpits. Valkyrie took hold of the corpse's ankles and lifted, and the right leg fell off.
'You can carry that,' said Skulduggery.
Chapter Five. Tracking the Teleporter
The Bentley parked near the tenement building where China Sorrows kept her library. Skulduggery had insisted, as part of her ongoing training, that Valkyrie dry herself, and although she had done her best to lift off the lake water, she hadn't quite managed to get all of it. Patches of her clothes were still slightly damp, and her hair stank.
'I'm a mess,' she grumbled as she got out of the car. 'I hate seeing China when I'm a mess. She's always so immaculate. How does my hair look?»Skulduggery activated the car alarm. 'You have a twig in it.'
Valkyrie yanked the twig out and scowled in pain. She glanced at the trunk of the car as they walked. 'Where are you going to bury the body?'
'I know a place.'
'You know a place? Do you bury lots of bodies there?'
'A few.'
'That's kind of creepy. What about the guy who killed him? Batu? Have you ever heard of him? '
'Never.'
'Maybe the Teleporter murders have nothing to do with Trope Kessel's murder.'
'And the fact that they've all been killed the same way?'
'Could be coincidence.'
'So you're not worried then? You're not concerned about the threat of the Faceless Ones coming back?'
She pursed her lips.
'Valkyrie?'
She sighed. 'I just wish you didn't have to be right all the time.»'It is a burden. But the question becomes: Why was there a fifty-year gap between the first murder and the other four? What has our Mr. Batu been doing for those intervening years?'
'Maybe he was in prison.'
'You're thinking more like a detective every day, do you know that? There are some people who owe me favors--I should be able to get a list of recently released felons.'
She sighed. 'This would be a lot easier if we were still with the Sanctuary.'
As they were walking into the tenement building, they bumped into Savien Eck, a sorcerer Valkyrie had met only twice before. He was carrying a large book under his arm. It was bound in leather and looked old. He held it tightly against his side and nodded distractedly.
'Afternoon, Skulduggery. Valkyrie.'
All three of them climbed the stairs.
'What's that you've got there?' Skulduggery asked.
'A book. A book for--for China. She wants it. She said she'd buy it off me.'
'Is it expensive?'
Eck's laugh was as sudden as it was desperate.'Oh, yes. Oh ... oh, yes. Quite rare, this one is. Priceless, I'd say.'
'And what is the going price for a priceless book these days?'
'A lot,' Eck said decisively. 'I'm not going to be a pushover, you know? You see these other people, and the moment they see her, they forget about money, or a fair deal, and all they want to do is make her happy. Well, not me. I'm a businessman, Skulduggery. This is business.'
By the time they reached the third floor, Eck's teeth were chattering. Skulduggery knocked on the door marked library , and a thin man opened it and beckoned them inside. Eck's legs gave out a little, but he managed to stay upright, and they followed him through the labyrinth of bookcases until they came to the desk.
China Sorrows, hair as black as sin and eyes as blue as sky, saw them coming, rose from her chair, and the most beautiful woman in the world smiled.
Savien Eck fell to his knees, held the book out before him, and whimpered, 'I adore you.'
Skulduggery shook his head and left Valkyrie's side to peruse the bookshelves.'Savien,' China said, 'you're so sweet.' The thin man took the leather-bound book from Eck's trembling hands and placed it on the desk.
'Now, about payment...'
Eck nodded quickly. 'Yes. Payment, yes.'
'How are you, by the way? You're looking well. Have you been exercising? '
He smiled weakly. 'I like to jog.'
'It definitely shows,' China said, eyes narrowing appreciatively.
Eck whimpered again.
'I'm sorry,' China said, giving a light laugh and appearing flustered. 'You have a tendency to distract me. Back to business, if I can keep my mind on the job for more than three seconds. We were talking about payment.'
'You can have it,' Eck said in a strangled voice.
'I'm sorry?'
Eck rose off his knees. 'I give it to you, China. It's my gift. There's no payment necessary.'
'Savien, I couldn't possibly--'
'Please, China. Accept it. Accept it as a token of my, of my ...'
Valkyrie was impressed by how large and hopeful China could make her eyes.'Yes, Savien?'
'... my love, China.'
China pressed a delicate finger to her lips, like she was struggling to hold back a torrent of passion. 'Thank you, Savien.'
Eck bowed, swayed slightly, and turned. Judging by his smile, he was outrageously, deliriously pleased, and he hurried back the way they'd come. The thin man followed along behind to make sure he didn't stumble into anything.
