Skulduggery Pleasant: HELP

Chapter 3: Up in chains

Skulduggery was escorted to a holding room where he was sat at an interview table. Funny, he thought, only a couple of days ago I was interrogating someone in here. He looked sadly around the cold, dark grey room. He took in the metal table and the two metal chairs. He took in the dimly lit light bulb hanging on an rusty copper chain.

The door opened and Erskine Ravel, Ghastly Bespoke and Madam Mist walked into the room. They stood over trying to be intimidating but that wasn't going to work on him. He just didn't care anymore.

"Skulduggery Pleasant..." Ravel started. Skulduggery sighed. "Do you know why you're here?" 'Well, duh,' Skulduggery thought in his head.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Ravel asked leaning forward. Still, Skulduggery said nothing.

"Well?" Ghastly asked crossing his arms.

"Take him away," Ravel said standing up straight again. Six Cleavers surrounded Skulduggery and took him away with Ghastly leading up the front. They stopped at a heavy steel door, and walked into the room behind it.

"Skulduggery... you are hereby under the custody of the Sanctuary and are not to leave the cell you are  in. Do you understand?" Ghastly said fighting to hold back his tears of anger at his friend.

Skulduggery didn't say a word as the shackles were removed and he was left alone as the door slammed behind him. He slumped against the wall and fell to the floor tucking his knees up and putting his head in his hands. How on earth could this have happened to his precious Valkyrie?? Why? Gosh, his head hurt just thinking of her behind those surgical doors. He should have told her how he felt, she might never know now.

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About a week later the door opened and someone picked him off the floor and chained him to the wall. Another person was walked in and chained to the wall opposite him. It was pitch black and even Skulduggery couldn't see anything with his perfect vision. Oh wait, no he was wearing a blindfold. He slumped back against the wall and waited for them to leave.

In the depressing gloom, he heard a familiar groan, but he quickly dismissed the thought, I mean what criminal would be in the same cell as Lord Vile? Unless...

"Valkyrie?!" he said his head whipping around to the so called empty darkness behind him.

He was answered with a low moan.

"Valkyrie?!" he said louder this time.

"Hi," she called weakly from the corner.

"Oh my... Val, I thought you were dead!!" Skulduggery said as he tried to get rid of the blindfold, which was quite tricky when you were shackled to the wall.

He eventually managed to scrape it off and peered around until he caught sight of her, in the now, dimly lit room. He sighed with relief as soon as he saw her. Yes she was pale, and yes she was quite delicate looking but at least she was alive.

She looked at him nervously, and as soon as their eyes met she quickly averted his gaze. Why was she acting like this? Skulduggery thought.

Oh my gosh, I can't believe he loves me! Valkyrie's thought screamed in her head...