Skulduggery Pleasant: Raising Cain

Chapter 72 - Visitation

Skulduggery – Crow

Anton – Bear

Ghastly – Panda

Dexter – Wolf

Saracen – Weasel

Erskine – Snake

Solomon – Raven

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Chapter 72

Valkyrie didn't sleep much that night.

She kept waking from her nightmares, and each time, she'd work herself up until she was crying and felt sick, and fall asleep with tears on her cheeks, only to wake an hour or less later to repeat the painful dream of shooting Fletcher, shooting that innocent man, of Raven being stabbed. Nadia was a constant presence through it all as well. She'd dream of other people. But every time she closed her eyes her thoughts would be about her. Was she safe? Had she been affected? Had she been killed?

She went downstairs at barely six in the morning, giving up on finding any rest, and almost flinched at her own reflection. She was pale with almost black circles under her eyes, her hair flat and nasty looking. Even her clothes, clean, ironed and stored on hangers until moments ago, looked grubby on her because of how awful she looked. She barely had the energy to scowl at herself but she stood there and took that time to make sure she looked at herself with as much hatred and guilt as she felt and deserved.

After a moment to really feel that emotion, she went back to tired and numb and went to the kitchen.

Wolf and Weasel were there.

"Cub," Wolf said with a small smile. He had his arm over Weasel, massaging his shoulder one-handed and had his phone in the other. "You look like shit."

"I feel like shit," she said, looking at the food already on the table. Her stomach clenched with hunger but she only poured herself a glass of water and sat opposite them. "You don't. You never do."

"I know," he sighed. "I am truly cursed."

"You don't have to make jokes for me," she told him.

He lost his smile a little but he still looked at her with the kind eyes of a big, protective, loving brother. Weasel was smiling a little more, so much more genuinely than he did just a handful of years ago and it was lovely to see. His eyes were brighter. A little dimple was on his cheek. Having family around him so often had helped, it seemed, unlike the more erratic visits before. Plus he had Wolf now, again, so she supposed he felt quite good about himself.

"I just want you happy," Wolf said quietly.

She pushed her glass away from her a little and stared at the table. "Is Fletcher dead?"

"No," Weasel said immediately.

"He's in critical condition," Wolf added. "He's had an operation, but he needs another. Kenspeckle had someone else do some of the work to keep him alive while he worked on Solomon. Fletcher gets his second op in a few hours after Kenspeckle gets some sleep."

"How's Solomon?"

"Delicate but stable. Crow's still with him," Wolf said, tapping his phone on the table. "I've got to be honest, I didn't see that coming. He's hated that man since before I met him. I never knew they dated before his wife."

Valkyrie nodded, though she wasn't sure at what bit. She hadn't known for certain, though she had thought it was kind of obvious. "I'm glad he's okay."