“Torture,” Skulduggery said. “But after what Ravel’s been through, mere torture would be a blessing. He’ll be interrogated. He’ll eventually tell Mevolent everything he wants to know about our reality. And if Mevolent has a Shunter on staff, and there’s no reason to think he doesn’t, that could spell trouble for us.”

“You think Mevolent would invade?”

“Possibly. The last time he received a visitor from our dimension, it was Darquesse, and she proved to be quite a threat. Mevolent’s not the type to sit around and wait for trouble to strike.”

“And what if they didn’t catch Ravel?” Valkyrie asked. “How do we find him, then?”

“He knows about this place. He’s read the reports. He knows the layout of the city, and how to get in.”

“You think that’s where he’s going?”

“He fought against Mevolent his whole life, but take the worship of the Faceless Ones out of the equation, and what do you have? What ties Mevolent and Ravel together?”

“They both want sorcerers to rule over the mortals.”

Skulduggery nodded. “The city’s the place for him – certainly somewhere to find like-minded individuals, if nothing else. Besides, he knows we’ll be coming after him. The city’s the best place to hide. If he went there of his own free will, we grab him, slap him around and drag him back. If he was brought there as a prisoner, we rescue him. Then slap him around and drag him back.”

“OK,” said Valkyrie, and wrapped her arm round him.

He looked at her. “Uh …”

She blinked. “What? We’re flying there, aren’t we?”

“Not with the Redhoods and the Sense-Wardens on high alert. We’ll be walking. It’s safer.”

“Oh,” she said, and took her arm back.

“If you want to hug me, you just have to ask,” he said.

“Shut up.”

“It’s sweet, actually.”

“Shut up.”

They started walking. When Valkyrie got too tired, Skulduggery carried her and she slept with her head against his chest. He was an unsurprisingly smooth walker. She only woke on the few occasions he had to hurry behind cover as a Barge passed overhead, or dodge behind a tree to avoid someone on the road.

The sun came up and he let her down and they walked together. Sometimes they talked. Other times they didn’t. The silence that would accompany them was comfortable and easy.

They got to Dublin-Within-The-Wall a little before midday. The wall that surrounded the city was gigantic, even by Roarhaven standards. They watched mortals in ragged brown clothes bring carts of goods in and out through the massive gates.

“If he came here himself,” said Valkyrie, “that’s how he got in.”

“He did come here himself,” Skulduggery said. “We crossed his tracks a few times on our way here.”

“You’re sure it was him?”