Not quite what Skulduggery was expecting, if he was choosing to be honest with himself - and he was. He'd attacked Ravel during the yard sale because the first thought to come to mind was that Ravel would try to recreate in Keeliai what he'd so nearly succeeded in doing back in their own world. It hadn't occurred to Skulduggery Ravel might want to use it on himself.

That was how it started, wasn't it? Somewhere during the war, Hopeless got his hands on a memory stone, and used it to give Ravel an easy way out. Then Hopeless was killed, and Ravel was left with nothing.

Could Skulduggery condemn that? He never had Hopeless to help him, and he'd ended up doing much worse.

"Do you think you'll do better here without your memory?" Skulduggery asked. The words didn't come out hard, or flat. Just mildly perplexed. "Why?"