A/n: Thank you guys so much for 1.4k reads. My phone has been blowing up with notifications of you guys voting for chapters and adding the book to your reading lists. Sorry it took me so long to start writing again. I was unexpectedly busy and only just finished the show. This chapter is also nearly three times as long as usual chapters. I'm not sure if this is going to be the normal for this season's chapters, or not.
"Home sweet home." Jesper said as we neared the Crow Club.
"Straight off the boat from Ravka and no one was waiting to kill us as soon as we arrived. Yay. That's a good sign." He continued. "I think I might celebrate with a little dice and debauchery."
"No debauchery." Kaz interrupted.
"Dice then." Jesper said, cheerful that he could still gamble.
We really were trying to keep Jes out of gambling dens, but Jes being Jes made it difficult.
"No dice. We have stops to make." Kaz stated.
"What's first? Tante Heleen?" Inej asked.
"We get to the Crow Club." Kaz answered.
——
As we turned the corner to the Crow Club, the four of us stopped in our tracks.
The sign above the door was no longer that of the Crow Club, but the green sign of Pekka Rollins.
"Where's our sign?" Jesper asked, even though none of us knew the answer. "It's been replaced."
"The Kaelish Prince? Isn't that Pekka's club?" I said.
"What sort of name is that?" Jesper expressed.
"Dime Lions." Kaz mumbled to himself.
"Pekka Rollins owns the Crow Club?" Inej asked.
"Where does that leave us?" Jesper inquired.
"My house." I said. "We could go to my childhood home. It's still in my name. I haven't sold it, or rented it, or anything."
"My suits. All my hats." Jes complained.
This was one we were going to hear about for a while.
"Split up. It's not safe." Kaz said just as the whistle of the Stadwatch blew.
As the others turned around I ducked around a wall.
I gripped the bricks with fingers and started to climb. I perched on the roof of the squat building and watched.
"Halt! You three. Hands up!" A Stadwatch officer yelled as I moved to the edge of the roof.
More officers surrounded Kaz, Jes and Inej. It was too many for me to take down, even with the shadows on my side.
I was going to wait, and watch.
"Kaz Brekker. Jesper Fahey. And Inej Ghafa. Only a matter of time before you turned up." One of the Stadwatch said smugly.
"Is there a problem?" Kaz asked.
Other than taking Inej out of Ketterdam and killing a few Ravkans we hadn't committed any crimes. Kaz was probably just as confused as the rest of us.
"For you? Yeah." The officer answered. "You're wanted for murder.
"We just got back in town." Jesper said, lowering his hands enough that the officers pointed all their guns at him. He raised them up again. "Unless it's a crime to kill Volcra."
Right. We did that too.
That wasn't a crime though. Was it?
"Very funny, gunslinger." The officer said, unenthused. "Now, slowly, hand over those shooters."
"And you. Give up the cane." Another officer said to Kaz.
"And you sp-" The first officer started.
"Oi!" He yelled. "Where'd she go?"
The Stadwatch officers down below me started looking around for Inej.
Only I knew where she was.
"Wait. Where's the other girl? Elora Jones. The little assassin wanted by the Menagerie." The Stadwatch officer questioned.
"Does everyone know I'm wanted by the Menagerie?" I asked Inej who was perched next to me.
She just shrugged.
"Yeah. They do that." Jesper smirked.
"Doesn't matter. Two's enough for now. We'll get the girls later. Come on." The officer grabbed handcuffs. "Off to Hellgate to await trial."
"I'm going to get information on whoever framed us and find out what happened while we were gone." Inej said.
"Got it. I'm going to follow them. Get them out." I added as we parted ways.
I silently hopped onto the top of the Stadwatch truck that had Jesper and Kaz and other soon-to-be prisoners inside.
I was going to get them out as soon as I could.
Kaz has his thing against human contact-except with me for some reason. I had no idea why he was against contact, but I did know that he wasn't going to fare too well in a cramped truck, so close to others.
"Hey, stop this wagon!" I heard Jesper yell followed by bangs on the side of the truck.
All I knew was that something happened. To Kaz.
The truck came to a stop and the driver got out and opened the back door.
He sighed before saying. "You two. Out."
I assumed he was talking about Kaz and Jes.
It would have been the perfect time to take him out and help Jes and Kaz escape, but the officer was leading them somewhere and I wanted to know where. Possibly the person who was responsible for all this.
I followed them to a nice building. Similar to a merch's house, but not on the Geldstraat, where most mercher's and other wealthy residents of Ketterdam took residence.
I perched myself on the window sill of a window open just enough for me to hear what was being said inside.
"Somebody paid good Kruge to spend some time alone with you two." The officer explained.
Just then, Dreesen swung open the doors and walked in.
"Criminals." He exclaimed as he did so.
I have made it my one and only life goal to kill this man.
"Dreesen." Kaz greeted him with a sigh.
Dreesen hummed in acknowledgment.
"Ten minutes alone." He said, handing the officer a stack of Kruge. "Out you go."
He waited for the Stadwatch to exit before continuing.
"So, are you going to tell me what happened?" He asked.
"We've been framed for murder?" Jesper answered.
Dreesen scoffed. "I'm not asking about that. Where is Alina Starkov?"
"We don't have her." Kaz answered.
"Obviously." Jesper added.
I couldn't help, but to roll my eyes at the irony. Jesper is always stating the obvious.
"You left with an advance on my million Kruge with passage on my ship. And you dare to return empty handed."
He could've just done it himself. That's what Kaz always says when Pekka sends someone else to do his bidding and they fail.
"The deal was meant to include one Sun Summoner in exchange for the advance." Dreesen continued. "And you step off the ship with no such person in your possession. Clearly, you must have something of value to me, or else you would not have dared-"
My name means sun ray, or sun beam if that helps him out at all.
"It wasn't your money, Dreesen." Kaz interrupted Dreesen's monologue and my thoughts.
"You were brought in as an intermediary." Kaz continued. "Someone to hire the likes of us. But this operation wasn't yours. It was his."
Kaz turned to look at the man dressed in a black blazer and fedora. Standing not to far away from Dreesen,
"Outrageous!" Dreesen spluttered.
"Yes. Totally convincing." The man said, stepping forward, so I could see him better. "Thank you Dreesen, but I will take it from here." He said, patting Dreesen's arm.
Dreesen did not move.
"That was me politely telling you to get out." The man said.
Dreesen still just stood there.
"So go on." The man repeated.
Dreesen sniffed and exited the room with his men.
The man who'd sent Dreesen off removed his hat. "Well, this is much easier. Tell me. What gave it away?" He inquired.
"You dress too well for a bodyguard." Kaz answered. "And you are hanging on every word like it was your money on the table. You wanted to hear our story, but we don't know you. We know him. So you kept up the charade until now. My question is who are you?"
"What? You don't know me? Maybe in profile." The man posed as if that would help us know who he was.
He was as narcissistic as Jesper was when the two of us would go shopping and he'd check himself out in a mirror.
"What? No?" He continued after seeing Jes and Kaz's confused looks to eachother. "Very well. The name's Sturmhond."
"I've heard of you." Jesper said.
"Yeah I should hope so." Stirfry, or whatever his name was, said.
"He's a very rich pirate." Jesper continued.
"A privateer, actually. It's an important distinction." He interrupted.
"The question remains why is the Sun Summoner so important to a pirate?"
"Privateer. And you may not be aware, but half the world is looking for her, or even just confirmation of death. And the reward's gone up." He said pulling a poster out from his jacket. "Twenty million to hand her over to Fjerda. Turns out they weren't particularly pleased with Kirigan and the Sun Summoner's plan to weaponize the Fold."
"Alina never had such..." Jes laughed before clearing his throat. "You were saying."
"You're on first name terms. Where is she now?" Stirfry asked.
I took this as my cue and climbed in through the window behind and to the right of him and held my knife up to his throat.
"We aren't going to be telling you anytime soon." I said.
"Elora, leave him." Kaz ordered.
I stared at him in shock, but did as he said. I lowered my knife, but didn't put it away.
Stirfry turned around. "Elora Jones I presume. Pleasure to meet you." He held out his hand for me to shake.
I smacked it away. "Shut up, pirate."
"Privateer. And the name's Sturmhond."
"Okay, Stirfry."
He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Elora, get over here." Kaz said.
I went and stood next to him.
"So where's the Sun Summoner?" Stirfry asked again.
"We don't know where Alina is. She's gone." Jes answered.
"Escaped?" The pirate chuckled to himself before continuing. "I know you've gotten out of those cuffs. If I had time, I'd insist you show me how."
Kaz had gotten out of his handcuffs long ago. He tossed them to the ground.
"My intel informs me the Sun Summoner was wearing this when she entered the Fold." Stirfry held up a golden necklace. "It's part of the Queen's collection. A well known piece, the fabled garments of Ivets."
He paused. Looked the three of us over.
I had kept my hand on the back of Kaz's chair to keep me there and not at Stirfry's throat.
"So, either she used this to pay you off to keep quiet about where she was going, or you found her bloody corpse and stole it off her neck like vultures." The pirate leaned down so that he was face to face with Kaz.
"How dare you? How even- We are not vultures, we're crows." Jes said defensively.
He paused before adding. "And that makes more sense with context. But my point is, we're not grave robbers."
"Which means it was a payoff. So you know where she went." Stirfry looked at us for answers, but we weren't going to give any. He sighed. "If you tell me, I'll give you twenty seconds alone here before the Stadwatch comes back in."
Jesper scoffed. "You can't bribe us."
"Leave the necklace. Give us twenty seconds and I'll tell you." Kaz interrupted.
Before Stirfry had a chance to answer I had already taken it from his hands and was standing back at Kaz's chair.
"Kaz!" Jesper argued.
"The bribe she paid you to keep quiet about her next move, in exchange for her next move." Stirfry paused. "I like it. Still there is the mess of having to fence the royal jewels."
He held out a stack of Kruge.
"Kaz." Jesper said, turning his head to Kaz.
"Don't worry about the jewels, we just need the twenty seconds and the Kruge. We've already got the necklace." I said holding it up.
Kaz smirked to himself.
Stirfry looked at me with shock. "How did you? I didn't even notice."
"You weren't supposed to." I responded.
He went back to interrogating us for information on Alina.
"You all stepped of the Edam tonight. Was she with you then? Is she in town somewhere?"
Kaz hesitated before answering. "She stayed on the ship to Novyi Zem."
The pirate turned to walk away, but not before I snatched the Kruge from his hand.
"You've really got to teach me that. Well, next time we meet!" He said enthusiastically.
"Next time we meet will be the last time you see anyone." I threatened.
"Well then." He said. "Good luck, gentlemen, and lady."
Kaz took the Kruge and necklace from me.
"Any help with these?" Jesper asked, raising his hands.
I moved to help Jes, but was stopped by Kaz.
He tossed Jesper a coin.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" Jes asked.
Kaz just looked at him as if trying to communicate through his eyes.
"You knew?" Jesper inquired,
"About you being a Durast?" Kaz responded.
Now I looked to Kaz for clarity. Since when was Jes a Durast?
"Your gun misfired on Arken's train. You fixed it without moving. You repaired my cane without tools. And when you shoot, you never miss. Of course I knew."
Apparently, I wasn't as observant as I thought. Then again, it took Kaz confessing his feelings to me for me to realize he had a crush on me.
It always made me laugh to think of Kaz having a crush. He'd always seen so incapable of love, well, until he fell in love with me.
"Let's leave it at that. Yeah?" Jes said.
Kaz nodded. "I have no interest letting others in on your secret."
Jesper then turned to me. "El?"
"You're literally my best friend, what kind of friend would I be if I went around telling all your secrets." I said.
"But it's so easy to spill the beans on Alina." Jesper stated.
"He'd already deduced it." Kaz replied before I could say anything. "He knew the name of the ship that we were coming in on. The best we could do was get our money back."
"And Alina?" Jesper inquired. "She's half a day ahead and he's a pirate. We should warn her."
"We should, but that won't do her any good." I said.
"How? She could be anywhere by now and where do intend on posting a warning?" Kaz added. "We have enough in our plate here."
The doorknob rattled and the Stadwatch began ti bang on the door as if that was going to make us let them in.
"Speaking of, shouldn't you be concentrating?" Kaz said.
I helped Jesper get the other hand out of his handcuffs off and we headed out through the window.
——
"We are in the literal bottom of the Barrel." Jes stated as we walked along one of the dark, dirty streets of the Barrel.
"Stadwatch don't patrol down here. We're safer." Kaz informed.
"I'm not sure it's even safe to stay at my house anymore. It's probably better to find somewhere else to stay." I added.
Jesper jumped as Inej appeared next to him. I'd sensed her presence. A shadow sensing a shadow.
"What's you find out?" I asked her.
"We're accused of murdering Tante Heleen."
"Wait, what?" Jesper asked, surprised. "We didn't do that, though."
He paused.
"Wait. Did you do that?" He directed towards me and Inej.
"We didn't, but someone else did and they're framing us for it." I said matter-of-factly. "Plus, I'm out for Dreesen, not Heleen."
"Why are you out for Dreesen?" Jesper inquired.
I shrugged. "I don't like him."
"Remind me never to get on your bad side."
"It was Pekka Rollins, wasn't it?" Kaz interrupted. "He framed us for murder."
"He wanted to punish us for taking the job after he warned you off." Inej guessed.
I'd say she pinned the donkey right on the tail.
"But why take out Tante Heleen?" Jes asked no one in particular.
"Cause she's a bitch." I suggested.
"She held the deed to the Crow Club." Kaz answered. "We cut a deal so Inej and Elora could help us with the Sun Summoner, so Rollins killed her."
"He owns the club. Everyone who works there now works for Pekka Rollins." Inej said sorrowfully.
"Hold on a second. Why Elora? Isn't Inej the one who was indentured?"
"Yes, but Kaz paid off Heleen to leave Elora alone." Inej responded.
She paused before continuing. "There's more."
She lifted her sleeve to reveal the tattoo of the Menagerie.
"The Menagerie." Kaz said.
"He owns that now, too. Along with everything else the Menagerie owns." Inej informed.
"So we're not free anymore?" I questioned, even though I already knew the answer.
"So, Stadwatch are everywhere and Pekka's untouchable." Jesper stated. "Never thought I'd miss the Fold."
"You know, Inej. I might just come with you when you leave." I exclaimed. "See the world. Be free of the criminal life I so enjoy for a while."
Kaz looked down at the ground before pulling the Kruge we'd taken from Stirfry out from his coat and handing it to me.
"What's this for?" I questioned him.
"We aren't the only ones under a false accusation. Your Saint has a new bounty on her head. This time from Fjerda."
"They think she's in cahoots with the Darkling." Jesper added.
"This is your ticket to go and protect her." Kaz said to me and Inej. "Go to Third Harbour. Find a stevedore named Jari. He'll put you on a cargo ship out of here."
"No." I said.
"No?"
"No." I repeated and shoved the Kruge into Kaz's hands. "I'm not leaving and I know Inej isn't either. We aren't just going to leave you two alone to deal with all this."
Kaz looked to Inej. She nodded in agreement with me.
"We can't leave anyways. Pekka owns us now." I had a hard time getting owned out.
I may not have been under contract, but I was wanted and I knew that they'd work twice as hard to get me under contract as they would to bring Inej back.
"I'll take care of it." Kaz said firmly. "It isn't your fight now. It's mine."
He gave me the Kruge again and started to walk away.
"I'm not leaving you, Kaz." I stated, walking after him, Jesper and Inej following. "Now now. Not when you need me."
"What happens to Saints is fate." Inej put in. "What happens here is up to us."
"We're a team. A family. We're not just going to give up and abandon eachother." I added.
"Fine. But stay in the shadows. All three of you." Kaz said. "We reconvene in two bells at the end of Rozenstraat. Look for a workshop around the back."
Inej and Jesper walked away and I started to, but Kaz grabbed my arm, stopping me.
"Do you remember the premise I made to you the first day I brought you to the Slat?" Kaz asked me.
"Yes." I answered.
"Do you?"
"Yes!"
"What was it?"
"You promised to keep me safe." I told him.
"No, I said. "No harm will come to you while I'm alive."" Kaz corrected me. "Remember that."
He started walking away.
"Where are you going?" I called after him.
"We need a Heartrender for what's next. One who isn't already owned by Pekka." Then he disappeared into the shadows.
I caught up with Jesper.
"Where's Inej?" I asked.
"I don't know." He shrugged. "She just disappeared."
——
"Jes, wait up!" I called after Jesper as he walked into the workshop.
I ran right into him as I entered the workshop.
"I haven't seen you this hyper in weeks." He exclaimed.
"Maybe cause I was scared for my life half the time and living on eight cups of coffee the other half." I retorted.
I look up to see a boy probably Inej's age standing near a shelf of bottles. His hair was dark and curly and he looked horribly thin.
"Who's this?" I asked Jes.
"I don't know. I was about to ask the same thing."
"We've- Uh, Wylan." He responded.
"No, I mean why did Kaz have us meet here?" Jesper made himself clearer.
To be honest, I would've been confused too.
"I guess, um, I'm your demolitions man." Wylan replied shyly.
"You? You've got all your fingers."
"Well, maybe I'm careful."
"Careful is something you learn from losing your fingers."
"Shut up, Jesper." I said, turning to Wylan. "When was the last time you ate?"
Wylan looked down at his feet instead of answering me.
I knew that meant he hadn't eaten in days.
"There's a stove somewhere in here right?" I asked.
"Yes." Wylan answered, sounding confused.
"Great. I don't have much, but I can make soup. Maybe stew."
Me and Jes had stopped by the market to pick up some food before meeting here.
I made my way over to the stove and turned it on. I then started to chop some vegetables and boil water.
Just as I was putting in some vegetables and pork Kaz entered the workshop.
"So this novice is telling me he's our new demo man." Jesper stated. "Raske is better, or even Pim."
"And yet Wylan is the one I hired." Kaz responded. "Lora, what in the name of Ghezen are you doing?"
"Cooking. Look at this boy." I motioned to Wylan. "He's starving. Plus, we could all use a good home cooked meal."
"Shouldn't you be graduating university?" Jesper asked Wylan.
"Shouldn't you be in university?" I chided him.
Jesper told his father he was attending the University of Ketterdam when really he was gambling away his tuition and committing crimes.
Honestly, I'm surprised the University of Ketterdam even exists with how many people sun to be attending and are really just romping about Ketterdam.
Just then, Inej walked in with a girl who looked familiar, but I couldn't quite place my finger on how.
"You're here." Kaz said.
"With the new Heartrender." Inej replied.
"Nina Zenik. At your service." The Heartrender introduced herself.
"Nina Zenik?" Me, Jes and Inej all asked at once.
She chuckled. "Well, that's a reaction. Is there a famous Nina Zenik I don't know about?"
"Soup's ready!" I declared. "Wylan, get over here. You need to eat the most out of all of us."
Wylan blushed and sheepishly walked over to the stove where I handed him a large bowl of soup.
"Eat up." I told him. "I made it for you."
His face lit up after taking the first spoonful. "This is amazing!"
"Thank you." I smiled. "Cooking is my passion."
"Wait until you try her baking." Jesper declared.
"Back on topic." Kaz grumbled. "You worked with Arken." He said to Nina.
"It was more of a limited partnership." She replied.
"Did you trust him?" Kaz questioned.
"That turncoat? Not on your life. He was shadier than an oak at three bells." Nina scoffed.
"What's your price?"
"I've expended the legal avenues on my problem. Every clerk in the city says the same thing. "The judge will see you in six months.""
"And so you're looking for the not-so-legal route on what, exactly?"
"I'm told you could free someone from Hellgate."
Kaz looked at Inej and Jesper as I walked back to the stove to dish up another bowl of soup.
I cleared my throat. "I know someone who could help you. And so does Kaz."
Kaz shot me a glare.
"Oh, don't be like that. We need her help for whatever you have planned and all she wants is for us to break someone out of Hellgate." I said.
"Someone, I say if he's anyone, and in truth, he's the love of my life." Nina added.
"Sorry, I need a second to comprehend what you just said. I don't speak Shakespeare." I teased.
"I can't get you a release from Hellgate." Kaz stated.
"Kaz." I said firmly.
"But I can get you a visit." He finished. "In exchange for your services."
"What do you need me for?" Nina agreed.
"The aftermath."
Kaz started walking away.
"Follow me." He instructed.
I put the bowl of soup I had in my hands on the table as quickly as I could without spilling before catching up with the others.
——
We'd followed Kaz up to a rooftop that overlooked Ketterdam, or at least the Barrel.
"Brick by brick." Kaz said to himself just before an explosion sounded...right where the Crow Club should have been...
"Kaz?" I questioned in a concerned tone. "Isn't that the Crow Club?"
"It is." Inej answered solemnly.
"I had some really nice hats in there." Jesper said in a mournful tone.
"I take it we're now in the aftermath?" Nina guessed.
"This doesn't help us clear our name, Kaz." I told him. "This is war with Pekka Rollins, the King of the Barrel."
"The Barrel doesn't belong to kings." He paused for his usual dramatic effect.
He turned to walk away before finishing. "It belongs to bastards."
I rolled my eyes a little.
He was a bit dramatic. But that was somehow one of the things I liked most about him. His Kazzle Dazzle flare.