The Lion Sleeps Tonight

He didn't have to wait long. "Valentine..." He took a deep breath, then said, "I'm alright, love. We're all alright. It's done." Not one slaver lived to tell the tale. Not one. He'd seen to that.

Though he'd prepared what he had been going to say in advance when it came time to say the words Valentine found that they feel right. He was forced to start over and take it moment by moment.

He sighed. "If you haven't already...I want you to find peace." Earnestly, he amended, "I want nothing more than that for you."

"And...from experience I know it can be hard to take something to heart unless you have physical proof of it." Hearing about something was different than seeing it firsthand. "So perhaps it is a bit macabre - and if this is too much we can go home - but I want you to know it's over. So I brought proof."

Valentine stood and walked over to the pile of heads. He snatched the top one off the pyramid and dropped it unceremoniously on the ground at his paws. She couldn't see them, but there was no way Rhythm would have missed the solid thud and squish as the head hit the ground. He named the head. "Toxic." Then grabbed another and dropped it beside the first. "I didn't get her name, but this is Toxic's bitch."

He eyed the pair and then said, "I think the bottom of the river is a good final resting place for these two. What do you say?"