CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT ─── ❛ knife wounds ❜
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𝕿he tunnel that Stasiaj led Inej and Nina along came out into the middle of the warehouse district, close to the silos themselves. Opening the cover, Stasiaj hopped out first, helping Inej up, before both of them pulled Nina from the inside and closed the cover.
"Corpselight," whispered Inej, as the trio paused at the end of the alleyway, the shadows hiding them still. Nina shivered, as Stasiaj pulled a face.
"What are bodymen doing in the warehouse district?" The two girls turned towards Stasiaj, who sighed.
"Bodymen bring bodies to the warehouse distric at night, sort them and then put them on the Reaper's Barge for burning," Stasiaj murmured. "This is a morbid topic, can we move on to something else?"
"Why don't they just build a real cemetery?" Nina said.
"No room."
"Or not, I see," Stasiaj replied, before rolling her eyes. "There used to be talk of reopening Black Veil back when I first became Snake, but that all stopped when the Queen's Lady Plague struck. People are too afraid of contagion. If your family can afford it, they send you to a cemetery or graveyard outside Ketterdam. And if they can't...well, you get the gist."
"No mourners,"
"Precisely," Stasiaj replied, before turning to Inej. "Lead the way, Wraith. Let's get this over and done with."
Inej took the lead as they approached Sweet Reef. The silos themselves were daunting, vast as sentinel gods, monuments to industry emblazoned with the Van Eck red laurel. Soon everyone would know what that emblem stood for—cowardice and deceit. The circular cluster of Van Eck's silos was surrounded by a high metal fence.
"Razor wire," Nina noted.
"It won't be a problem." Stasiaj doubted that anything would truly be able to stop the Wraith for long, especially not barbed wire.
They took up a watch beside the sturdy red-brick wall of a warehouse and held their position, confirming that the guards' routine hadn't changed. Just as Brekker had said, the guards took almost twelve minutes exactly to circle the fence that surrounded the silos. When the patrols were on the eastern side of the perimeter, Inej would have roughly six minutes to cross the wire. Once they passed to the west side, it would be too easy for them to spot her on the wire between the silos, but she'd be almost impossible to see on the roof. During those six minutes, Inej would deal with depositing the weevil in the silo hatch and then detach the line. She'd be unable to see the guards, but Stasiaj had a powerful bonelight in hand. She would signal Inej with a brief flash of green light when she was clear to make the crossing.
"Ten silos," Inej said. "Nine crossings."
"They're a lot taller up close," said Nina. "Are you ready for this?"
"No matter the height of the mountain, the climbing is the same."
"That's not technically true. You need ropes, picks—"
"Don't be a Matthias." Stasiaj warned, as Nina's eyes went wide in horror.
"I'm going to eat twice as much cake to make up for it."
Inej nodded wisely. "Sound policy."
"Inej, you've got this," Stasiaj turned to the Suli girl, as Nina had a small nervous breakdown. "I'll be on the ground and Nina will be here as well. We'll keep you safe."
The patrol was setting out from the guardhouse again.
"Inej," Nina said haltingly, "you should know, my power hasn't been the same since the parem. If we get into a scuffle—"
"No scuffles tonight. We pass through like ghosts." She gave Nina's shoulders a squeeze. "And I know no fiercer warrior, powers or not."
"But—"
"Nina, Inej, hate to interrupt this lovely bonding moment but the guards." Stasiaj pointed out.
"On it," Nina said, and strode toward the guardhouse.
In the few steps it took her to cross the space from their warehouse lookout to the pool of lamplight bathing the guardhouse, Nina's whole demeanour changed.
"Please to excuse?" Nina said in a ridiculously thick Ravkan accent.
The guard held his weapon at the ready but didn't look particularly concerned. "You shouldn't be here at night."
Nina murmured something, looking up at him with big green eyes.
"What was that?" said the guard, stepping closer.
"Go," Stasiaj murmured, lighting the low-grade flash bomb and running in the other direction so that she could keep watch for Inej to open the gate for her.
"I come for job, yes?" Nina said. "To make sugar."
"We don't make it here, just store it. You'll want to go to one of the processing plants."
"But I need job. I ... I..."
"Oh, hey now, don't cry. There, there." Stasiaj giggled, as Inej left the gate ajar and Stasiaj slipped through it as quiet as a mouse, keeping to the shadows as she re-joined Inej.
"Your ... uh ... your fella looking for work too?" the guard was asking.
"I have no ... how you say? Fella?"
She heard Nina say her goodbyes and walk off in the direction opposite their lookout. The minutes passed, and just as she became convinced the bomb was defective, a loud pop sounded and a bright flash of light crackled from the warehouse they'd used to spy on the guards. The guard emerged again, rifle raised, and took a few paces toward the warehouse.
"Hello?" he shouted.
Nina slipped from the shadows behind him and was inside the gate in a matter of moments. She closed it securely and headed for the second silo, disappearing into the dark.
Stasiaj gave Inej one more squeeze on the shoulder, before disappearing into the dark as well, drawing her cloak tighter around her as she ducked down beside one of the silos to watch Inej work, and keep an eye on the guards.
The guard returned to his post, walking backward in case some threat still waited in the warehouses beyond. Finally, he turned and gave the gate a shake to make sure it was locked, then headed inside the guardhouse.
As soon as he was gone, Stasiaj sent Inej a quick signal, watching the Suli girl scamper up the rungs, licking her lips all of the while. This plan had a high possibility to go wrong, and Stasiaj didn't like leaving things to chance. When things were left to chance, something normally went wrong and with these sorts of missions, there was no heavy reliance on information, so Stasiaj's skill set was rendered useless.
She also didn't like having a waiting period. If Stasiaj had time left alone, her mind started to wander onto topics that she didn't want it thinking about. For instance, the wanted poster with her face plastered all over it, Kaz, having to leave her vipers, Kaz, the entire Anastasiaj Lantsov mystery and then back to Kaz.
Ever since Malkus had accidentally called him Da, Kaz has slowly been becoming more and more closed off, and Stasiaj feared that there relationship was going to revert back to it's Snake and Bastard era. She understood that Kaz had a hard time trusting others and communicating his feelings, but Stasiaj had thought that they were getting somewhere, that they were making progress.
Obviously, she was wrong.
There was a soft clang from above, and Stasiaj looked around for the guards, before flashing Inej the signal to go ahead, watching her walk across the wire to the second silo, then retracting the balance pole. Stasiaj kept herself from her thoughts, her eyes watching as Inej slipped the next weevil into the silo
Two down and...someone had pushed Inej into the silo.
Stasiaj stood, her eyes wide with confusion and fear. Who had known they were going to be here tonight? Who had seen them? Had Stasiaj not seen a guard crossing by when Inej was about to cross? What was Kaz going to th-?
Pain stopped her and Stasiaj paused as she reached down to touch her stomach. Even in the dim light of the warehouse district, Stasiaj could see that her hand came away with something almost reflective on it. Something liquid.
The pain registered better as Stasiaj choked, tears forming in her eyes as she tried to hold back a shout of pain, to not alert the guards. How had she not heard her assailant?
A tap on her shoulder sent her faceplanting into the floor, and Stasiaj struggled to move from that spot as someone placed a foot in the centre of her back and yanked.
Burning pain shot through her again as whatever had hit her un-lodged from it's place between her ribs, and Stasiaj whimpered in pain at the feeling of blood bubbling from the wound. The foot came off of her back, pressing her head into the floor as they stepped over her and continued on.
Fighting the dark, yawning pit of unconsciousness, Stasiaj mind began to work faster and harder than ever. Who were these people? Were they Van Eck's men, Shu or Fjerdans? How had she not known this? What was Kaz going to think or her not knowing this? Was she going to die?
Her last conversation with the man had been an argument, of sorts, and he'd walked off without saying goodbye or wishing her luck. With the way it was going, and the blood forming around her, Stasiaj would have truly needed some of that luck tonight. She didn't want to die.
Spitting to the side, Stasiaj pushed herself to her feet, ripping her top to tie around her stomach, despite the burning pain it caused her. Tears dripped from her eyes, but Stasiaj continued on. She didn't want to die. She couldn't die. From somewhere to her left, Nina was sparring with someone and above on the high ropes, Inej was exchanging blows with an assassin.
"I did not think you would get up," Stasiaj turned to look at her attacker, who was watching her with a wide grin. "The feared Snake of Ketterdam, and you were no more than a child. I am..."
"I don't care," Stasiaj replied, before spitting to the side again, her voice hoarse and pain ridden. "I don't care who you are. I don't care who payed you and I don't care what righteous bullshit you're telling yourself for attacking someone when their back was turned. I've had a really, really, shit week and you're not making it any better."
"That is no way to talk to..."
"Still don't care," Stasiaj shook her head, standing as best she could, as she pulled her fangs from her hair and from under her clothes. "Now, fight me like a man, or run off like a scared little boy. Choice is yours because I'm not dying on the floor, in my own city."
He lunged, the dagger cutting through Stasiaj's cheek, as she slammed to the floor and kicked his knee, grinning at the satisfying crunch. The man went down, another knife lodging itself in Stasiaj's calf in the process as she cursed vehemently in pain.
Growling, Stasiaj pulled the weapon free, flinging it back at the owner, before her own fang followed, landing in his arm. It was a good shop, but he tossed her fang free as if it were nothing, and came at her again, barrelling into her and slamming Stasiaj back into the cobble floor.
She gasped, winded and in pain, as blood soaked through the makeshift dressing. There was too much blood though, and Stasiaj wasn't sure that she'd win this fight. She was slowly starting to come to the realization that as much as she didn't want it, she might die that night.
"You're worse than I expected," He pinned her down, hands wrapping around her throat and Stasiaj was brought back to the ship, rigging tightening around her body and neck as it dragged her into the sprawling depths of the ocean. "They said you'd be a challenge."
"Who said I'd finished?" The man froze, his eyes narrowing as Stasiaj fought back her memories and opened her eyes again, a new malice coming into them. She needed to get back to Kaz and beat some sense into him for not wishing her good luck. If he'd just wished her good luck, then this would have never happened.
"What?" Stasiaj whistled, low and loud, before slamming her head back to the floor and waiting. The man looked around, before turning to her. "Who did you call? Who did you call?" He shook her on each question, slamming her head into the ground as stars clouded her vision.
"Them," There was a moment of silence, before all hell broke loose. Stasiaj had known that Ivarn was going to ignore all of her orders, lock the house up and then follow her here with some of the others. Ever since he was young, he'd tried to help her in fights. So, hoping and praying on a guess, Stasiaj had whistled for her vipers and they hadn't failed her.
They descended from the building, appeared from beneath the ground and sprinted to her as fast as they could, each one pulling fangs from their bodies, eyes murderous. The man on top of her, struggled to get off of her, but Stasiaj locked her legs around his waist and held him still for her vipers.
He yanked and tried to get free, but Ivarn reached him first, his fang going through the man's eye and sending him to the floor. She knew it was him, even with the mask that he wore. He'd always come to her aid first.
"Stasiaj?"
"Go, Nina and Inej, back them up and help," Ivarn nodded, as the vipers sprinted off on silent feet, throwing daggers at the assailants and trying to get the older teenagers free of their attackers. Stasiaj trembled, her legs shaking as she picked her fangs up from the ground, stepping on her attacker in the process, as blood pooled from his eye. "I told you. I had a really bad week."
Turning, Stasiaj stumbled towards where Inej and Nina were, finding a bizarre sight of corpses, vipers and a woman in white.
"I seem to have come at a bad time," Her vipers crowded around her, eyes narrowed into slits, and fangs out to protect their mother. Ivarn appeared by her side, offering his arm for the girl to lean on. "Is she important? Do we need her? Do you want her dead or alive?"
"I bested you," The woman said, turning to walk off as the vipers hissed and flipped the fangs over in their hands, eyes dangerous.
"You have a good night,"
"Get out, honey, or I'll gut you and hang your innards all over the Barrel," The woman in white barely flinched, before turning and walking away through a broken fence. "I hate girl's nights. Kids, back to the den, ears to the ground. The plan doesn't change, and stick to it this time."
"You're injured," Ivarn replied, turning to Stasiaj as the other kids looked at her, flipping their fangs away.
"You had enough common sense to wear masks, so no one can reveal who you are, but they know who I am so none of you can be seen near me," Stasiaj replied, pushing herself up right with the silos and releasing Ivarn's arm in the process. "Home, now, that's an order."
Ivarn lingered, his eyes wide at the blood dripping from Stasiaj's wounds.
"Stasiaj..." She steeled herself, turning away from his pleading face. Stasiaj couldn't let him see her like this. She couldn't let him see her on the verge of death, who lingered like a shadow.
"Home, Ivarn," He spat to the side, disappearing into the shadow and back home, as Stasiaj struggled to rejoin the others, hiding the terror on her face as she felt more blood leak through the bindings. "Nina, you're not bleeding. I don't think you got the memo that tonight was the night all of us got injured in major ways."
"Can you walk?"
"Who knows?" Stasiaj replied, watching Inej carefully. "Are you alright? Those stars look like they're horrible."
"You've been stabbed twice and you're asking me if I'm alright," Inej's face was ashen as she stood up, plucking spiked silver stars from her skin, the bleeding slowing. Stasiaj was not so lucky, and she could feel the ground swaying beneath her feet. "I could say the same thing. Let's go before the stadwatch show up."
"Where?" Nina asked as they set out for the canal. "If Pekka Rollins found us —"
Stasiaj took a step, before crumpling without the support of the silo or Ivarn, her head knocking against the concrete as Nina hurried to her side.
"Stasiaj?" Unconsciousness have never seemed to appealing to Stasiaj until that moment, with pain coursing through her veins and a headache like no other. "Come on, the quay. She needs help."
Arms wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her to her feet as Stasiaj rested her head forward.
"Stay awake, Stasiaj," Inej murmured, tilting her head upwards as they walked and tapping her cheek to get her eyes focused again. "Come on, we're almost back at the quay."
"Where do we go?" Nina asked.
But Stasiaj had lost too much blood to answer that question. Hopefully Inej knew because Stasiaj doubted that she could be the one they trusted to get information from anymore. Six feet below ground didn't allow much for a two way conversation.
She smiled to herself at that, before finally succumbing to the darkness. Stasiaj was simply too tired to stay awake now and death had never seemed so inviting. He held a leather clad hand out to her, his eyes like warm chocolate and they invited her to peace. Death looked like Kaz Brekker, and Stasiaj craved his comfort once more.
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Hiya,
This was fun. Stasiaj's been stabbed, twice, in quite major places and the vipers came to their mothers defence. Also, I just love that she can still make all of these comebacks whilst dying.
Let me know what you think,
Love Li xx