Neither option appealed to her, but as much as she despised the idea of walking for an hour in these shoes to get away from an attacker who may not even be there, she despised the idea of having her head cut off even more.

So she quelled her pride, turned, and stalked away through the trees.

Chapter 51 - Flirting Disastrously

Chapter 51
Flirting Disastrously

eople were dancing and chatting, talking business and politics and history, drinking wine and champagne and toasting fallen comrades. The house had been transformed from the quiet, safe place that Valkyrie came to when she needed respite to a glamorous ballroom of extravagance. As much as she appreciated the change, there was a part of her that couldn’t wait for the people to clear out and normality to return.

She waited until Gordon’s latest audience had moved away, and then she approached him before anyone else had a chance. “Enjoying yourself ?” she asked.

“Immensely,” Gordon said, beaming when he saw her. “I’d never met most of these people when I was alive, but I’d heard about them. I’d heard all the stories, all the legends. Some of these people, quite literally, saved the world.”

“Pretty impressive.”

He arched an eyebrow at her. “Don’t be sarcastic.”

“I’m not,” she laughed.

“For someone like you, who actually has saved the world, such a feat might lose some of its romance. But for me, a dead writer who just wrote about these things? It is still quite remarkable.”

“And humbling?”

“Well, maybe not humbling. I’d like to see any of these people write a best-selling novel. Then I’d be impressed.”

“Are you getting any ideas for more books?”

“My head is filled with ideas. If I weren’t hosting this shindig, I’d be composing words right this second. I swear, I haven’t talked to this many fascinating people since I made a surprise appearance at my fan club meeting. Do you think they’re enjoying it? Is there enough wine?”

“There’s plenty of wine, and those little canopies are lovely.”

“Canapés, my dear.”

“They’re a bit small, though.”

“They’re meant to be small.”

“They’d be more satisfying if they were bigger.”

“I think you’re slightly missing the point of canapés.”

“But all in all, yeah, everyone seems to be enjoying themselves.”

“I thought I’d find you here,” Skulduggery said, walking over. “I assume your detective instincts kicked in and you were going to ask your uncle about those men with the guns…?”

“Of course,” Valkyrie nodded. “Gordon. The morons in the masks. How did they get in?”