Leave it for the devil to dress in red.

She showed up soon after Roxanne did—that is to say shortly after the repair shop opened—and that fact alone was enough to make Emmet's head spin. He ventured to ask if she'd been hiding under his nose all this time too, but Valerie didn't want to chit chat.

Like Roxanne she wasn't buying the repair shop shtick, though she didn't care about Emmet's secrets. She seemed to know exactly what his capabilities were and she had very particular requests for "custom orders", complete with detailed specifications. Among the things she wanted were a pressurized suit with detachable heavy boots, several directed energy projectors capable of melting steel and functioning underwater, and an RF signal jammer the size of a postage stamp.

In theory she was actually the ideal customer, save for... it really sounded like she was planning on infiltrating or perhaps robbing an underwater base. Emmet nearly told her he couldn't help, but she was offering cash. Several briefcases of cash. She wanted the items delivered to a specific warehouse out by the marshes and she didn't care for any signatures or receipts. She'd be back with more orders, she said, "depending on things."

And Emmet didn't see her again for six months. That's about how often she drops in, always with requests for three distinct gadgets. The second time around Emmet surmised that she was preparing to parachute into Siberia from low orbit... or launch herself from Siberia into orbit. "I have other suppliers," she said. "Focus on your own tasks."

By another coincidence she was in once on the same day Roxanne paid a visit. Emmet watched closely to see how they'd interact. Their only exchange was Valerie saying "I like your necklace."

Character design by  FortunataFox