Playing with Fire (Skulduggery Pleasant, Book 2) (7 page)

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I am not a nice person, my dear. I am not . . . one of the good guys."

"Then why does he still rely on you?"

"Because he himself has gone through change, and he is no hypocrite. He will not condemn me for my past actions, so long as I don't revert to the person I once was. The war with Mevolent changed everyone who fought in it. We each saw things in ourselves that we would rather not admit to."

"What did Skulduggery see?"

"Rage. His family was murdered in front of him, and when he returned from death, his rage came with him. For most, anger that fierce can burn only for so long. Skulduggery, being Skulduggery, is the natural exception. His rage stayed."

"So what happened?"

"He disappeared. If you want my opinion, I think he saw what he was capable of and he knew he had a choice-- to let that rage consume him, or to fight it. So he left. He was gone for five years. When he came back, the anger was still there, but there was something else-- a realization, I think. A new purpose. He was able to joke again, which was a welcome return, for he is one of the very few men able to make me laugh. Soon after, we

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received word that Lord Vile had fallen, and then Skulduggery himself brought down the Baron, and Mevolent's plans began to unravel."

"Where did he go? For the five years?"

"I don't know. We all thought he was dead. Dead
again,
you know. But he came back just when we needed him. That's one thing you can count on him for-- the nick-of-time rescue. He's quite good at it."

There was a knock on the door. They both stood, and from out in the corridor they heard a muffled voice, and then a loud thump.

China looked at Valkyrie. "Go into the bedroom," she said quickly. "Do not argue with me. Go into the bedroom and close the door."

Valkyrie did as she was told, but left the door open a crack-- just enough to see through.

She saw China pick up the telephone, and then the door to the apartment burst open and the slender man in the bow tie came flying through. He landed in a heap and didn't move.

A man stepped in. He looked to be in his fifties, with gray hair and a tightly cropped beard. His clothes were dark and vaguely militaristic, and his boots were polished to a gleam. He had a cutlass in his belt.

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"Hello, China," he said. "It's good to see you again."

"Baron Vengeous," China said slowly, and put the telephone down. "I dearly wish I could say the same. Why are you here?"

"You mean you don't know?"

"If you wish to return an overdue book, the library is across the hall. I think you will find the fine to be stern, yet reasonable."

"I'm here for you, China. Within a few hours I will have Lord Vile's armor, and the final missing ingredient will be within my grasp. It's time to take off this mask you wear, to end this charade. You need to take your place."

"My place is right here."

"We both know that's not true. You could no more turn your back on the Faceless Ones than
I
could. I have seen your devotion."

"My devotion, as you call it, has waned."

Vengeous shook his head. "You have sworn your allegiance to the dark gods. You cannot simply change your mind."

"I'm afraid I can, and I have."

Through the crack in the door, Valkyrie could see the anger seeping into the Baron's face. "You

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are their servant," he said, his voice low and threatening. "If
you
will not uphold the vow you made on your own, then I will do it for you. You
will
be there when the Faceless Ones return, even if it is just so you can be the first traitor they kill."

He reached for her, and China put her left hand flat on her belly and flicked her right, and every piece of furniture in the room flew at Vengeous.

Valkyrie stared, openmouthed, as tables and chairs and bookcases crashed into Vengeous at a terrible speed. They clattered to the floor and he staggered and fell, blood running down his face. China tapped her belly twice and gestured with her right hand again, sending everything-- the furniture and Vengeous-- skidding across the floor and slamming into the wall. Then another tap of her belly and another whip of her hand, and the furniture moved away, clearing a space around the Baron.

"You do not threaten me in my own home," China said, and sent the furniture hurtling back to him.

But Vengeous was quick, and he lunged forward, eyes flashing yellow. The table that was coming directly for him suddenly exploded into a hundred thousand splinters and he dived through

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them, escaping the rest of the furniture that impacted on the wall behind him.

He sent his hand into her chest and she pitched backward. She hit the wall and fell to one knee.

Valkyrie gripped the door, about to fling it open, but China looked up at Vengeous and her eyes narrowed.

"As my words draw closed, the circle binds, secures you to your fate."

Vengeous reached for her but hit something, an invisible wall. He tried to back off, but he only got a couple of steps before he hit another barrier. He looked down, looked at the elaborate carpet, and saw the circle hidden in the design.

"Clever girl ..."

"You didn't think I would install some security measures?" China said.

"Very, very clever."

His eyes flashed yellow.

"That's not going to work, my dear Baron. Symbols are my power.
Your
powers can't break that shield. You can't hurt me. But I can hurt you."

Vengeous looked down at the carpet again, saw some more hidden intricacies, symbols woven into the very fabric around the circle, symbols that were

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now pulsing with blue energy. Blood started to run from his nose.

"China," he said, struggling to keep his voice even, "you don't want to do this."

"Who are you allied with?" she asked. "Who ordered you set free? Who is behind all this?"

He barked out a desperate laugh that was cut short by the pain. "You've chosen the wrong . . . side here, woman. I wish I could ... I wish I could let you live to regret it. . . ."

Vengeous dropped to the floor. "I wish I had the time ... to make you beg ... to make you plead with me. I would have ... I would have made you
scream.
..."

"Fine," China said, crossing to the phone. "I suppose I'll have to call in the professionals."

"China . . .," Vengeous gasped.

She turned. "Yes, dear Baron?"

"You didn't. . . you didn't really think it would be that easy, did you?"

Dusk walked through the door. A man followed. The stranger had blond hair and wore a brown suit, a white shirt, and dark sunglasses. His cowboy boots were old and scuffed, and he was grinning.

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The carpet at his feet frayed and split, and he sank downward, disappearing into the floor. China dived for the phone, but Dusk darted in and shoved her back.

Valkyrie stared as the stranger's hand burst up through the floor at Vengeous' feet, grabbed him, and pulled him down. The floor sealed up behind him, and the symbols pulsed one last time, then returned to normal.

A moment later Vengeous and the stranger stepped through the wall beside China.

"Your hospitality used to be so much better," Vengeous said. His eyes flashed and China stumbled. Dusk picked her up.

"Don't let her touch anything," Vengeous told him. "She has symbols everywhere. Some are invisible. Some are even etched onto her body. Don't let her touch
anything."

Dusk grabbed both her wrists and wrenched her arms behind her.

Vengeous took out a handkerchief, used it to wipe away the blood on his face. "I expected more from you, China. When you left us, I thought you'd be back. No one could do the things you'd done and then walk away. I didn't think it was possible."

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She looked up at him, grimacing against the pain that was locking her arms straight behind her. "I found other interests. You can too. Stamp collecting, maybe."

Dusk twisted her arms and she gasped. The man in the sunglasses laughed.

Vengeous put the handkerchief away. "I can still be merciful, even if my gods are
not.
The girl, China. Valkyrie Cain. Tell me where she is, and I will let you live."

"Skulduggery doesn't care about her," China said through gritted teeth. "She's a hobby, nothing more. You won't be able to get at him through her."

"My mercy is on a timetable. Tell me where I can find her or I shall torture you until you
beg
to tell me."

"Okay," China said, "okay, I'll tell you." She nodded to the bedroom. "She's in there."

Valkyrie went cold, but Vengeous just shook his head sadly.

"China, I don't like this side of you, these
jokes."

"I've been spending too much time around Skulduggery. You remember
his
jokes, don't you, Baron? What else do you remember? You remember him arresting you?"

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"I remember almost killing him."

"Almost
wasn't enough," China said, and actually managed a laugh. "He's coming for you, you know. I hope I'm there when he gets you."

Dusk twisted, and China cried out in pain.

"Tell me where the girl is," Vengeous said, "or I will have your arms broken."

"Here I am," Valkyrie said, kicking the door open as the fire flared in her hands.

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Chapter Eight

BILLY-RAY SANGUINE

HER AIM WAS OFF on the first fireball she threw, and it missed Dusk. The second fireball, however, was on target, and it would have hit Baron Vengeous if he hadn't moved out of the way at the last moment. He was fast. Maybe even faster than Skulduggery.

"Cain," he snarled.

"Run!" China shouted, and Valkyrie obeyed.

She was out in the corridor before she glanced back, just in time to see China wave her hand. The door slammed shut, sealing the men in the apartment.

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She got to the stairs, heading down, when something grabbed her ankle and she nearly fell. She kept going, looking back in time to see a hand disappear back into the steps.

She reached the second floor, banged off the wall, and kept going down. The wall below her cracked and crumbled, and the man in the sunglasses lunged out. Valkyrie gripped the banister and jumped, using her momentum to lend force to the kick. Her boot slammed into his chest, and he hit the wall hard and bounced off.

At the first floor she almost tripped over herself, the man right behind her. She jumped the last few steps and ran out onto the street.

Cars were passing and people were walking. Too many innocent people who could be caught up in a battle they weren't ready for. She sprinted into the alley beside the tenement building. It was narrow and cut off from the sun. The other side led out onto a quieter road.

The man in the sunglasses was behind her, closing the gap between them to an arm's length. She barely kept out of reach.

Valkyrie dropped, and the man's legs crashed into her and he went flying over, losing his

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sunglasses in the process. He hit the ground and sprawled, and when he snapped his head to her, she saw that he had two small black holes where his eyes should have been.

She spun, ran back the way she had come, and glanced over her shoulder in time to see the man sink into the ground, straight down, like he was in an invisible elevator. When she had five paces left till she got to the street, the ground in front of her exploded and he surged upward. She fell back, trying to wipe her eyes clear of gravel and dirt.

"I don't see what all the fuss is about," the man said. He was American, and spoke with a strong Deep South drawl. "You're just a little girl."

She clicked her fingers, but he smacked her hand down before she could conjure a flame, then grabbed her. She felt something cold and sharp on her throat.

"Don't try that again," the man said.

He held a straight razor with a wooden handle, and as her vision cleared, she saw that the initials B.-R.S. were engraved on it. She raised her eyes. Up ahead, parked at the side of the quiet street, was a black motorbike. Tanith's black motorbike.

An old woman with a lined face and bad teeth

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stepped into the alley. She stared at them, then turned and hurried away.

The man shook his head. "See, that's the problem with ordinary, regular folk. They see somethin' freaky, somethin' scary, they run the other way. Y'know what that means, don't you? It means no one's comin' to help you. It means you're all alone."

And then someone coughed right behind them. The man looked around, and Tanith Low kicked him in the face.

He stumbled, and Valkyrie tore herself free, spinning around to keep him in sight as she backed off to the wall. He would have been handsome were it not for those awful black holes.

The man smiled. "And who might you be?"

"You first," Tanith said.

The man chuckled. "Very well. Billy-Ray Sanguine, master of all manner of unpleasant deaths and purveyor of cruel and unusual punishments, at your service."

"You're a hit man?"

"Not merely a hit man, darlin'. I am a hit man
deluxe.
I also do muscle-for-hire, and a nice little sideline in mercenary activities. I'm very, very