CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR ─── ❛ reunions and riots ❜
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𝖂hen Stasiaj finally awoke the next morning, after the stressful night before, it was to Malkus' foot in her ribs, two of the girls across her legs, Ivarn clinging to her side and Celia lying with her head atop Stasiaj's heart. The Snake had tried her best not to groan in pain at the pointy elbows digging into her skin, and had then proceeded to untangle herself from the children.
Smiling, the teenager had changed quickly before waking the kids and eating breakfast with them. Then, they all disappeared to their work, scurrying through the tunnels to listen to secrets and gather information on Van Eck, Rollins and whatever Kaz's boss was up to.
Stasiaj, however, was hurrying through the western tunnels towards the bridge that Kaz was making the exchange on, Malkus following along behind. The stone walls echoed the sound of their footfalls, before Stasiaj stopped below the manhole cover that they needed.
Opening it slowly, Stasiaj leant down to boost Malkus up and onto the cobbles.
"You know what to do?"
"Get Crow Man, bring him here," Malkus nodded, as Stasiaj pressed a kiss to his head.
"Good boy. Stay safe," He nodded, before rushing off onto the main street as Stasiaj dropped back down and began the wait, worry curling around her heart and squeezing tightly. This couldn't go wrong. Stasiaj didn't know what she would do if it did.
She trusted Kaz's plan, but she didn't know how Van Eck was going to react and that put her on edge. Stasiaj didn't feel good unless she knew what was going on with everything, otherwise she felt out of control.
There was no sounds from above, as Stasiaj leant against the wall, drumming her fingers against the wall, her nails clicking rhythmically.
"Miss Stasiaj," She turned, seeing Ivarn come running towards her, his boots thudding along the stone. "Stasiaj!"
"What is it?"
"The Shu..." He trailed off, panting. "The Shu are planning an attack to get Grisha."
"Don't tell me now and on this bridge," Stasiaj whined, anger and worry curling inside of her like a restless snake.
"Now and on this bridge," The girl cursed.
"Go home, get the others back. All of them!" She replied. "Send Celia to find Jesper and the others. We'll bring them back through the tunnels as well."
"Yes, Miss Stasiaj," He sprinted away, as Stasiaj boosted herself up and onto the cobbles of the street. Rushing down the alley, Stasiaj headed out and onto the main street of the bridge, trying to keep her pace slow. But the worry in her chest was building and all she could think of was Malkus, Kaz and Inej, who were on this street unaware of what was going to happen.
There was a moment of silence, before the bomb exploded to the left of her. Stasiaj went slamming into the floor, her ears ringing as her vision swam in front of her. For a moment, she was stunned, but Stasiaj looked up again and spotted Malkus.
"Malkus!" The boy turned, before running for her, curling into her side as he found her. "Good boy. Let's go!"
She grabbed his hand, pulling him with her and hoping that Kaz and Inej were following along behind her. Turning the corner, Stasiaj glanced behind her briefly, at the Shu soldiers with wings of metal that were swooping around, before pulling the manhole cover open and dropping down.
They left it open, as Stasiaj checked Malkus over for scratches from shrapnel, and a few seconds later, two other figures dropped down. Stasiaj looked up as they shed their cloaks, before sighing in relief and ignoring her own injuries in favour of hugging the Wraith.
"Inej!" Stasiaj cried, flinging herself onto the Suli girl and hugging her tightly, as Inej returned it. "Oh, saints, I'm so sorry!"
"Stasiaj," Inej's arms wrapped around Stasiaj, clinging to her tightly with everything that the Wraith had.
"I'm so glad you're alright," Stasiaj pulled away, tears in her eyes, as she laughed with Inej. Brushing strands from her face, Stasiaj sent the girl the same smile that she used with the children. "You're back now."
"I don't even know where we are," The girl replied, wiping tears from her eyes as she looked around in confusion.
"You're in my den," Stasiaj replied, wrapping an arm around the girl's shoulders as she shot another thankful look at Kaz. "We'll get you home and get a warm meal in you."
"Thank you,"
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When they had returned, the other five had been waiting, rushing to wrap Inej in tight hugs as Kaz limped to Stasiaj's side.
"You're not going to ask me how I am, Princess," Stasiaj blushed, but it was hidden by the dark light of the basement. Turning, she smirked up at him.
"You have the survival ability of a cockroach, Crow Man," Kaz huffed, rolling his eyes at her description. "and my fangs were with you. They'd keep you safe."
"How?"
"I kissed them for good luck and now my good luck goes with you," Stasiaj replied, smiling at him before joining the others. "Food is in the dining room and then we can discuss what has happened today."
Jesper didn't need to be told twice, sprinting for the stairs as Stasiaj joined Nina and Inej, hooking her arm through theirs.
"Come on, weaklings, let's get you fed," Stasiaj teased gently, as both girls glared at her. "I'm trembling."
"Stasiaj, stop annoying them," Matthias prodded the smaller girl as he went past, causing the girl to stick her tongue out as the four headed up into the dining room, Kaz following behind, rolling his eyes all the while. Though, even he could not hide the small grin on his face.
Stasiaj, once again, took the head of the table as Jesper placed food in front of her, and Kaz was quick to take the seat to her right, leaning his crow cane against the table. Inej beamed at the sight of the food, practically inhaling her first serving as Jesper placed it down in front of her.
She ate the second slower.
"So," Stasiaj asked, chewing on a piece of meat in the stew. "That seemed like a fun little explosion on the bridge with the Shu."
"Is there anything you don't know?"
"Who my family are?" The others paled at her words, but Kaz merely raised an eyebrow. "But other than that, yes, I know everything."
"What things?" asked Inej.
"Did you miss half the Stave blowing up?" Jesper asked, and Stasiaj nodded, licking her lips.
"We saw the bomb at the White Rose go off," said Inej, "and then we heard another explosion."
"At the Anvil," said Nina.
"After that," Inej said, "we followed Malkus and he took us to Stasiaj."
Jesper nodded sagely. "That was your big mistake. If you'd stuck around, you could have nearly been killed by a Shu guy with wings."
"Two of them," said Wylan.
Inej frowned. "Two wings?"
"Two guys," said Jesper.
"With wings?" Inej probed. "Like a bird?"
"Moth," Stasiaj added in.
"There were two Shu with wings, and a man and a woman who were...not normal," Nina revealed.
"Nina's power had no effect on them," said Wylan.
"Hmm," Nina said noncommittally, chewing on a small piece of meat.
Matthias joined them at the table. "The Shu woman we faced was stronger than me, Jesper, and Wylan put together."
"You heard right," said Jesper. "Stronger than Wylan."
"I did my part," objected Wylan.
"You most definitely did, merchling. What was that violet stuff?"
"Something new I've been working on. It's based on a Ravkan invention called lumiya; the flames are almost impossible to extinguish, but I changed the formulation so that it burns a lot hotter."
"We were lucky to have you there," said Matthias with a small bow that left Wylan looking pleased and entirely flustered. "The creatures were nearly impervious to bullets."
"Nearly," Nina said grimly. "They had nets. They were looking to hunt and capture Grisha."
Malkus appeared in the room, running past the others at the table to scramble up and into Stasiaj's lap. The Snake barely moved, wrapping an arm around Malkus' stomach and listening to what he whispered in her ear.
Kaz leaned back in the chair, watching Malkus and Stasiaj momentarily, before turning back to the other Crows. "Were they using parem?"
She shook her head. "No. I don't think they were Grisha. They didn't display any powers, and they weren't healing their wounds. It looked like they had some kind of metal plating beneath their skin."
She spoke to Kuwei rapidly in Shu.
Kuwei groaned. "Kherguud." They all looked at him blankly. He sighed and said, "When my father made parem, the government tests it on Fabrikators."
Jesper cocked his head to one side. "Is it just me or is your Kerch getting better?"
"My Kerch is good. You all talk too fast."
"Okay," drawled Jesper. "Why did your dear Shu friends test parem on Fabrikators?"
"They have more Fabrikators in captivity," said Kuwei.
"They're the easiest to capture," Matthias put in, ignoring Nina's sour look. "Until recently, they received little combat training, and without parem their powers are poorly suited to battle."
"Fabrikators were not made for battle," Stasiaj replied, turning back to the others. "They were made for peace, not for war. But they adapted, like the rest of us."
"Our leaders want to conduct more experiments," Kuwei continued. "But they don't know how many Grisha they can find—"
"Maybe if they hadn't killed so many?" Nina suggested.
Kuwei nodded, missing or ignoring the sarcasm in Nina's voice. "Yes. They have few Grisha, and using parem shortens a Grisha's life. So they bring doctors to work with the Fabrikators already sick from parem. They plan to make a new kind of soldier, the Kherguud. I don't know if they succeeded."
"I think I can answer that question with a big fat yes," said Jesper.
"Specially tailored soldiers," Nina said thoughtfully. "Before the war, I heard they tried something similar in Ravka, reinforcing skeletons, tampering with bone density, metal implants. They experimented on First Army volunteers. Oh, stop grimacing, Matthias. Your Fjerdan masters probably would have gotten around to trying the exact same thing, given the time."
"Fabrikators deal in solids," said Jesper. "Metal, glass, textiles. This seems like Corporalki work."
"Tailors blur the line between Fabrikator and Corporalnik," said Nina. "I had a teacher in Ravka, Genya Safin. She could have been either a Heartrender or a Fabrikator if she'd wanted to—instead she became a great Tailor. The work you're describing is really just an advanced kind of tailoring."
Inej could not quite fathom it. "But you're telling us you saw a man with wings somehow grafted onto his back?"
"No, they were mechanical. Some kind of metal frame, and canvas, maybe? But it's more sophisticated than just slapping a pair of wings between someone's shoulder blades. You'd have to link the musculature, hollow out the bones to decrease body weight, then somehow compensate for the loss of bone marrow, maybe replace the skeleton entirely. The level of complexity—"
"Parem," said Matthias, his pale blond brows furrowed. "A Fabrikator using parem could manage that kind of tailoring."
"I see," Stasiaj murmured, before turning to Malkus and whispering in his ear. Kaz watched her, narrowing his eyes as Malkus ran off, before turning back to Stasiaj and raising his eyebrows. She waved him off.
Nina shoved back from the table. "Won't the Merchant Council do anything about the Shu attack?" she asked Kaz. "Are they just allowed to waltz into Kerch and start blowing things up and kidnapping people?"
"I doubt the Council will act," he said. "Unless the Shu who attacked you were wearing uniforms, the Shu Han government will probably deny any knowledge of the attack."
"They have denied any knowledge of it," Stasiaj revealed. "They made an announcement moments ago, stating that the Shu had no knowledge of these attacks."
"So they just get away with it?"
"No," Stasiaj replied. "Malkus tells me that one of my vipers was around the harbours today. The Council of Tides dry-docked the Shu warships."
She was met with seven astounded faces.
Jesper's boots slid off the table and hit the floor with a thud. "What?"
"They pulled back the tide. All of it and beached them," Stasiaj replied, shrugging.
"A show of force," said Matthias.
"On behalf of Grisha or the city?" Jesper asked.
Kaz shrugged. "Who knows? But it might make the Shu a little more careful about hunting on the Ketterdam streets."
"Could the Council of Tides help us?" asked Wylan. "If they know about parem, they have to be worried about what might happen if the wrong people get their hands on it."
"How would you find them?" Nina asked bitterly. "No one knows the Tides' identities, no one ever sees them coming or going from those watchtowers. The Shu won't stay cowed forever. They created those soldiers for a reason."
"It's smart when you think about it," said Kaz. "The Shu were maximizing their resources. A Grisha addicted to parem can't survive for long, so the Shu found another way to exploit their powers."
Matthias shook his head. "Indestructible soldiers who outlive their creators."
Jesper rubbed a hand over his mouth. "And who can go out and hunt more Grisha. I swear to the Saints one of them found us by our smell."
"Is that even possible?" Inej asked, horrified.
"I've never heard of Grisha giving off a particular scent," said Nina, "but I guess it's possible. If the soldiers' olfactory receptors were improved...Maybe it's a scent ordinary people can't detect."
"I need to send a message to those on the streets,"
"Why?" Wylan asked.
"There are a lot of Grisha children on the street," Stasiaj replied, shrugging her shoulders and lowering her voice. "Some parents are not as kind when they find out their child is Grisha, so kick them out to the street."
"You find them?" Nina asked, her eyes wide and a small grin on her face.
"Well, my vipers catch word, bring them to me so that I can bring them under my protection," Stasiaj replied, shrugging her shoulders. "But I'll warn them to stay below ground until the Shu are gone."
"I don't think this was the first attack either," Jesper said. "Wylan, remember how terrified that Squaller in the rare books room was? And what about that merch ship Rotty told us about?"
Kaz nodded. "It was torn apart, a bunch of sailors were found dead. At the time, they thought the crew's Squaller might have gone rogue, busted out of his indenture. But maybe he didn't disappear. Maybe he was captured. He was one of old Councilman Hoede's Grisha."
"Emil Retvenko," said Nina.
"That's the one. You knew him?"
"I knew of him. Most of the Grisha in Ketterdam know about each other. We share information, try to keep an eye out for one another. The Shu must have spies here if they knew where to look for each of us. The other Grisha—" Nina stood up, then grabbed the back of her chair, as if the sudden movement had made her woozy.
"Sit down, Nina," Stasiaj replied, shooting the woman a glare. "You are in no condition to do that, so sit back down."
"No..."
"You're also in no position to argue," Stasiaj pointed out. "My house, what I say goes."
Nina glared, sticking her tongue out at Stasiaj, who merely rolled her eyes.
"The city's not safe. It wasn't safe before and it isn't safe now. So let's all get rich enough to relocate."
Nina placed her hands on her hips. "Are we really talking about money?"
"We're talking about the job and making Van Eck pay up," Kaz replied, as Malkus reappeared and clambered back into Stasiaj's lap, a piece of toffee in his mouth.
"I want to know what we can do to help the Grisha who are still in Ketterdam," Inej looped her arm through Nina's, as Stasiaj brushed Malkus' dark hair out of his eyes. "And I'd also like to know how we're going to make Van Eck suffer."
"There are bigger issues here," said Matthias.
"Not for me," Jesper said. "I have two days left to get right with my father."
"Your father?"
"Yup. Family reunion in Ketterdam," said Jesper. "Everyone's invited."
"The loan?" Inej asked, an eye on Stasiaj, who nodded discreetly.
His hands returned to his revolvers. "Yeah. So I'd really like to know just how we intend to settle this score."
Kaz shifted his weight on his cane. "Have any of you wondered what I did with all the cash Pekka Rollins gave us?"
"You went to Pekka Rollins for a loan?"
"I would never go into debt with Rollins. I sold him my shares in Fifth Harbour and the Crow Club." Stasiaj tensed, turning slowly to look at Kaz. She had not known about this.
Her heart slowly began to tense as the others talked around her. She had been in partnership with him when Kaz had first built those places up from next to nothing. They were a testament to everything that he had done and created in the two years that he had been on the street.
For him to sell them...the thought was enough to make Stasiaj sad. To her, it would be like losing her empire or the Den. She couldn't stand for this.
Matthias shook his head. "What's Sweet Reef?"
"It's an area just south of Sixth Harbour," Stasiaj called, grinding her teeth together as she thought. "It's where they keep molasses, raw cane, and the processing plants to refine sugar."
"Most sugar cane comes from the Southern Colonies and Novyi Zem, but there won't be another crop until three months from now. This season's crop has already been harvested, processed, refined, and stored in the Sweet Reef silos."
"There are thirty silos," said Wylan. "My father owns ten of them."
Jesper whistled. "Van Eck controls one-third of the world's sugar supply?"
"He owns the silos," said Kaz, "but only a fraction of the sugar inside them. He maintains the silos at his own expense, supplies guards for them, and pays the Squallers who monitor the humidity inside the silos to make sure the sugar stays dry and separated. The merchants who own the sugar pay him a small percentage of every one of their sales. It adds up quickly."
"Such enormous wealth under one man's protection," Matthias considered. "If anything were to happen to those silos, the price of sugar—"
"Would go off like a cheap pair of six-shooters," Jesper said, popping to his feet and starting to pace.
"The price would climb and keep climbing," said Kaz. "And as of a few days ago, we own shares in the companies that don't store sugar with Van Eck. Right now, they're worth about what we paid for them. But once we destroy the sugar in Van Eck's silos—"
Jesper was bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Our shares will be worth five—maybe ten—times what they are now."
"Try twenty."
Jesper hooted. "Don't mind if I do."
"We could sell at a huge profit," said Wylan. "We'd be rich overnight."
Thirty million kruge rich?" Inej asked, as Stasiaj nodded. It was an ingenious plan.
The barest smile ghosted over Kaz's lips. "Give or take a million."
Wylan was gnawing on his thumbnail. "My father can weather a loss. The other merchants, the ones who own the sugar in his silos, will be hit worse."
"True," said Matthias. "And if we destroy the silos, it will be clear Van Eck was targeted."
"We could try to make it look like an accident," suggested Nina.
"It will," said Kaz. "Initially. Thanks to the weevil. Tell them, Wylan."
Wylan sat forward like a schoolboy eager to prove he had the answers. He drew a vial from his pocket. "This version works."
"It's a weevil?" Inej asked, examining it.
"A chemical weevil," said Jesper. "But Wylan still hasn't named it. My vote is for the Wyvil."
"That's terrible," said Wylan.
"It's brilliant." Jesper winked. "Just like you."
Wylan blushed daylily pink.
"What are they doing?" Malkus whispered into Stasiaj's ear, as the girl brushed his hair from his head.
"Flirting with one another,"
"So what you and Crow Man do?" Stasiaj narrowed her eyes as she watched the boy.
"Well played, Malkus, well played,"
"Those silos are huge," said Inej. "How much will we need?"
"One vial for each silo," Wylan said.
Inej blinked at the small glass tube. "Truly?"
"Tiny and ferocious," Jesper said. He winked again. "Just like you."
Nina burst out laughing.
"The weevil will make the destruction of the sugar look like an accident," said Wylan.
"It will," said Kaz, "until the other merchants learn that Van Eck has been buying up sugar that isn't stored in his silos."
Wylan's eyes widened. "What?"
"I used half of the money for our shares. I used the rest to purchase shares on behalf of Van Eck—well, on behalf of a holding company created under Alys' name. Couldn't make it too obvious. The shares were purchased in cash, untraceable. But the certificates authenticating their purchase will be found stamped and sealed at his attorney's office."
"Cornelis Smeet," Matthias said, in surprise. "Deception upon deception. You weren't just trying to figure out where Alys Van Eck was being kept when you broke into his office."
"You sneaky crow," Stasiaj smiled at him. "I am enjoying this plan of yours, Crow Man."
"You don't win by running one game," said Kaz. "Van Eck's reputation will take a hit when the sugar is lost. But when the people who paid him to keep it safe find out he profited from their loss, they'll look more closely at those silos."
"And find the remnants of the weevil," finished Wylan.
"Destruction of property, tampering with the markets," Inej murmured. "It will be the end of him. Could he go to prison?"
"He'll be charged with violating a contract and attempting to interfere with the market," said Kaz. "There is no greater crime according to Kerch law. The sentences are the same as for murder. He could hang."
"Will he?" Wylan said softly.
"I doubt he'll swing," said Kaz. "My guess is they'll saddle him with a lesser charge. None of the Merchant Council will want to put one of their own on the gallows. As for whether or not he'll actually ever see the inside of a jail cell?" He shrugged. "Depends on how good his lawyer is."
"I'll see what strings I can pull," Stasiaj replied slowly, her brain whirring. "I can get him in for a long period of time if I used my brain."
"And your connections," Kaz sent her a pointed look, and Stasiaj knew that he was talking about what they uncovered. Lantsov. The royal family of Ravka. Stasiaj huffed, still not sold on the idea that she truly was the missing Lantsov daughter, but if it worked to their advantage, Stasiaj would play every card she had.
"But he'll be barred from trade," said Wylan, his voice almost dazed. "His holdings will be seized to make good on the lost sugar."
"It will be the end of the Van Eck empire," Kaz said.
"What about Alys?" asked Wylan.
Again Kaz shrugged. "No one is going to believe that girl had anything to do with a financial scheme. Alys will sue for divorce and probably move back in with her parents. She'll cry for a week, sing for two, and then get over it. Maybe she'll marry a prince."
"Or maybe a music teacher," Inej said.
"There's just one small problem," said Jesper, "and by small, I mean 'huge, glaring, let's scrap this and go get a lager.' The silos. I know we're all about breaching the unbreachable, but how are we supposed to get inside?"
"Kaz can pick the locks," said Wylan.
"No," said Kaz, "I can't."
"I don't think I've ever heard those words leave your lips," said Nina. "Say it again, nice and slow."
"Actually, say it twice so we can make a record of it," Stasiaj added, her eyes wide.
Kaz ignored them both. "They're quatrefoil locks. Four keys in four locks turned at the same time or they trigger security doors and an alarm. I can pick any lock, but I can't pick four at once."
"Then how do we get in?" Jesper asked.
"The silos also open at the top."
"Those silos are nearly twenty stories high! Is Inej going to go up and down ten of them in one night?"
"Just one," said Kaz.
"And then what?" said Nina, hands back on her hips and green eyes blazing.
"And then," said Inej, "I'm going to walk a high wire from one silo to the next."
Nina threw her hands in the air. "And all of it without a net, I suppose?"
"A Ghafa never performs with a net," Inej said indignantly.
"Does a Ghafa frequently perform twenty stories above cobblestones after being held prisoner for a week?" Stasiaj nodded at Nina's words.
"There will be a net," said Kaz. "It's in place behind the silo guardhouse already, under a stack of sandbags."
"I don't need a net."
"I agree with Kaz," Stasiaj replied, as Inej turned to look at her, betrayal etched on her face. "You've been held captive for near to a week and haven't eaten. That's not healthy."
Kaz consulted his watch. "We have six hours to sleep and heal up. I'll nab supplies from the Cirkus Zirkoa. They're camped on the western outskirts of town. Inej, make a list of what you'll need. We hit the silos in twenty-four hours."
"Absolutely not," said Nina. "Inej needs to rest."
"That's right," Jesper agreed. "She looks thin enough to blow away in a stiff breeze."
"I'm fine," said Inej.
Jesper rolled his eyes. "You always say that."
"Isn't that how things are done around here?" asked Wylan. "We all tell Kaz we're fine and then do something stupid?"
"Are we that predictable?" said Inej.
Wylan and Matthias said in unison, "Yes."
"Do you want to beat Van Eck?" Kaz asked.
Nina blew out an exasperated breath. "Of course."
Kaz's eyes scanned the room, moving from face to face. "Do you? Do you want your money? The money we fought, and bled, and nearly drowned for? Or do you want Van Eck to be glad he picked a bunch of nobodies from the Barrel to scam? Because no one else is going to get him for us. No one else is going to care that he cheated us or that we risked our lives for nothing. No one else is going to make this right. So I'm asking, do you want to beat Van Eck?"
"Yes," said Inej. She wanted some kind of justice.
"Soundly," said Nina.
"Around the ears with Wylan's flute," said Jesper.
One by one, they nodded until Kaz turned to Stasiaj.
"Give me your cane, and I'll kill him with it," She replied and Kaz nodded at the steel in her eyes. She had done it once, she would do it again if times called upon it.
"The stakes have changed," said Kaz. "Based on Van Eck's little demonstration today, wanted posters with our faces on them are probably already going up all over Ketterdam, and I suspect he'll be offering a handsome reward. He's trading on his credibility, and the sooner we destroy it, the better. We're going to take his money, his reputation, and his freedom all in one night. But that means we don't stop. Angry as he is, tonight Van Eck is going to eat a fine dinner and fall off to a fitful sleep in his soft merch bed. Those stadwatch grunts will rest their weary heads until they get to the next shift, wondering if maybe they'll earn a little overtime. But we don't stop. The clock is ticking. We can rest when we're rich. Agreed?"
Another round of nods.
"Nina, there are guards who walk the perimeter of the silos. You'll be the distraction, a distressed Ravkan, new to the city, looking for work in the warehouse district. You need to keep them occupied long enough for the rest of us to get inside and for Inej to scale the first silo. Then—"
"On one condition," said Nina, arms crossed.
"This is not a negotiation."
"Everything is a negotiation with you, Brekker. You probably bartered your way out of the womb. If I'm going to do this, I want us to get the rest of the Grisha out of the city."
"Forget it. I'm not running a charity for refugees."
"Then I'm out."
"Fine. You're out. You'll still get your share of the money for your work on the Ice Court job, but I don't need you on this crew."
"No," said Inej quietly. "But you need me."
Kaz rested his cane across his legs. "It seems everyone is forming alliances."
"They're called friendships, Kaz."
"It's something he doesn't have," Stasiaj teased Kaz, before picking Malkus up into her arms, as he had begun to fall asleep, and turning back to the others. "I can get the Grisha children to me and under protection, but Grisha adults, probably not. Find a viable way out of the city, and you know where my talents lie. Keep me updated."
"Snake, we're going to need someone to go to Van Eck's house," Kaz turned to her.
"I can go," Inej volunteered.
"Absolutely not," Kaz and Stasiaj shot her similar glares, as Inej shrunk in her seat.
"You need rest," Stasiaj pointed a finger at the girl. "and so help me, I will chain you to the bed to get you to sleep, do not test me. I'll send vipers to Van Eck's house, get them to look at locks, guards and all of that stuff."
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Hiya,
Stasiaj is a mother and that's pretty much it. Malkus is a sweetheart and you are all going to love next chapter so much, it's unbelievable (have a guess at what might happen)
Let me know what you think,
Love Li xx