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Back Resurrection Save as PDF
Chapters (81)
  1. Title Page
  2. Copyright
  3. Dedication
  4. Epigraph
  5. Contents
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. 19
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. 24
  30. 25
  31. 26
  32. 27
  33. 28
  34. 29
  35. 30
  36. 31
  37. 32
  38. 33
  39. 34
  40. 35
  41. 36
  42. 37
  43. 38
  44. 39
  45. 40
  46. 41
  47. 42
  48. 43
  49. 44
  50. 45
  51. 46
  52. 47
  53. 48
  54. 49
  55. 50
  56. 51
  57. 52
  58. 53
  59. 54
  60. 55
  61. 56
  62. 57
  63. 58
  64. 59
  65. 60
  66. 61
  67. 62
  68. 63
  69. 64
  70. 65
  71. 66
  72. 67
  73. 68
  74. 69
  75. 70
  76. 71
  77. Glossary
  78. Dramatis Personae
  79. Keep Reading …
  80. The Skulduggery Pleasant series
  81. About the Publisher

“I’m just asking because if it’s an actual place, with people and a royal family and stuff, then your girlfriend was an actual princess.”

“Ex-girlfriend.”

“Yes, because that’s the point we need to be focusing on.” Valkyrie stood. “OK. OK, that’s a lot to take in.”

“The fact that my ex-girlfriend was one of the most dangerous people I have ever encountered, or the fact that I had a girlfriend?”

“Both, actually.” She nodded. “It’ll just take me a while to digest all this. But for now I’m ready to go back in. Unless you have any other bombshells about your past that you’d like to share …?”

“None that I’d like to share, no.” He went to the door and opened it. “After you,” he said.

33

They rejoined Melior in his kitchen. He frowned at Valkyrie.

“Are you OK?” he asked. “You’ve gone quite pale.”

“It’s been an eventful few minutes,” she answered, “but here’s the upshot. Abyssinia was super-powerful and used other people’s life forces to heal her injuries and grow in strength. She was finally defeated and chopped up into little bits. Her heart was cut out. Skulduggery, what happened then?”

“We took the heart back with us,” Skulduggery said, “put it in a box, put the box in a room and built a prison around it.”

“Coldheart,” Valkyrie said.

“Named after its first guest.”

“Coldheart Prison,” Melior said, straightening. “I heard them talking about that. They have it.”

Skulduggery tilted his head. “They have the prison?”

“They overthrew it two days ago. Which means they have the heart.”

Valkyrie frowned. “And what about the prisoners?”

“I don’t know what they’re going to do with them.”

“We put away some of those lunatics …”

“Could you do it?” Skulduggery asked. “Could you bring Abyssinia back if you just had her heart?”

“If she has this healing ability you described and I had access to the right type of energy, then … then probably, yes.”

An idea exploded behind Valkyrie’s eyes. “Could you do that to someone else?” she asked, and glanced at Skulduggery. “What about Ghastly?”

“Ghastly and Anton were cremated,” Skulduggery reminded her, and the excitement in her chest died as quickly as it had formed.

Then it sparked again. “What about Gordon? We could bring him back.”

“I can’t,” Melior said. “Resurrecting someone who’s died on my operating table – that’s one thing. But exhuming a corpse, bringing that back? I’m not prepared to do it, not if I have any choice in the matter. I’m sorry. I’m not here to play God.”

“We’re not asking you to resurrect everyone,” said Valkyrie. “Just a few. My uncle was such a good man and he was murdered. How is that fair? If it wasn’t right to kill him, then how can it be wrong to bring him back?”

“Valkyrie,” Skulduggery said quietly.