Davina Marr led Scarab to a second van. She got in behind him, a Cleaver joined them and the van followed the other one away. Sorcerers filed into the stadium, their job being to cover up whatever needed to be covered up.

“Dusk and Remus Crux are unaccounted for,” Ghastly said. “Vaurien Scapegrace too, though I don’t really know if he counts.”

“I don’t know about Crux or Scapegrace,” Valkyrie said. “but Sanguine and Dusk are over their revenge thing.”

Skulduggery nodded and didn’t ask any questions. The questions would come later, she knew.

“Where’d you lot disappear to?” Fletcher Renn asked as he stepped out into the rain behind them.

Valkyrie turned, saw him there and the next moment she had her arms wrapped around him and her head on his shoulder. He laughed and hugged her back. He was soaking wet, but she didn’t mind.

Thurid Guild hurried out after him and made straight for Skulduggery. “My family,” he said. “Sanguine has—”

“They’re OK,” Valkyrie said, stepping away from Fletcher and composing herself. “They’re in Howth, around Nashville Drive.”

He looked at her, surprised. He was drenched too. “He let them go?”

“I let them go,” she said. “But I don’t think he was going to hurt them anyway. You’re the one they wanted to hurt.”

“What happened?” Shudder asked Guild. “Where’s the bomb?”

“Mr Renn teleported us over the ocean somewhere,” Guild said.

“I took this cruise once,” Fletcher said. “Thought I’d like it. It was boring so I left halfway through. But I needed somewhere safe, somewhere without any people, and that popped into my head. I teleported there, dropped off the Grand Mage and teleported away again.” He turned to Valkyrie. “Your window’s fixed by the way.”

She frowned. “You teleported into my room?”

“I didn’t mean to. I didn’t have time to think, you know? I just needed to get somewhere safe and I ended up there. No one saw me. Your room is still a mess though.”

She scowled and he laughed.

“The Desolation Engine detonated,” Guild said, picking up the story. “The blast left me unharmed, but I expect it vaporised every fish around me.”

“Better fish than people,” Ghastly said.

“Not if you’re a fish,” Shudder pointed out.

“I was in the water,” Guild continued, “and I tried to imagine what it would have been like to have detonated that bomb with all those people around. You saved over 80,000 lives today, boy.”

Fletcher’s smile kind of froze. “I…I hadn’t thought about it like that.”

“I owe you everything.”

“Uh…wow.”

“I owe all of you everything.”

“But mostly me,” Fletcher said.

“Scarab is still alive,” said Skulduggery. “Marr has taken him into custody.”

Guild’s face slackened for a moment. “Then she will learn the truth.”

“She might keep quiet about it,” Ghastly offered.