chapter four,     the plan

     WYLAN WITH THE drüskelle, called Matthias Helvar, spent some time together talking about the Ice Court. The youngling tried its best to sketch everything the man said, including the mechanisms, entrances, guard posts, the protocols and everything he could remember.

     As Lavender found out, Nina Zenik was a Heartrender and she had some sort of past with Matthias since their stares across the rooms were making everyone uncomfortable. Since Nina was a soldier, her language skills were impressive and she was a very educated woman, that's why she informed them that we should get to Ice Court when the Hringkälla will occur. It's a ceremony where new drüskelle are initiated.

     "Visitors are vetted weeks before they arrive in the Ice Court. They are double-checked, Fjerdans aren't fools," Matthias implied that getting inside the Ice Court without suspicion was impossible.

"Not all of them at least," Nina replied freely.

     "Don't poke the bear, Nina," Kaz implied, "We need him friendly. When does it occur?"

     "It's seasonal," Nina replied, crossing her legs together, looking at Jesper, Lavender and Inej who were standing together, "on the spring equinox."

     "Two weeks from now," Inej said.

     Lavender bitterly gulped as all this talk was making her head dizzy. It was getting real, it was getting too real. "So we can't get the invitations," she exclaimed.

     Kaz turned his head slightly to the side, his forehead slightly furrowed, his eyes focused on something far away. He seemed contained and distant at the same time.

     "What's with that face?" Lavender whispered.

     "Scheming face," Jesper whispered back.

     "Definitely," Inej agreed.

     "Then we are not going through the embassy," Kaz finally replied, looking at Matthias and then at Nina. "What's the easiest way to steal a man's wallet?"

     Lavender wanted to ask what was going on with that stupid question, but others in the room didn't seem confused by it. They seemed to think about it deeply before Inej replied first: "Knife to the throat?"

     "Gun to the back?" Jesper implied.

     "Poison in his cup?" Nina suggested.

     With all of these answers, Lavender could put up an image, a set of skills everyone had. Jesper was a great shooter. Lavender spotted a set of knives around Inej's body and since Nina was a Grisha, her answer was fitting either.

      "I'd say grab it and run," Lavender shrugged, giving her answer.

     "That's why you wouldn't survive a day in the Barrel," Kaz briefly looked at Lavender, causing her to scoff.

      "Speak for yourself," Lavender mumbled, crossing her hands over her chest.

      "Criminals," Matthias spat out the word with a disgusted face. "You are all horrible."

     "The easiest way to steal a man's wallet is to tell him you are going to steal his watch. You take his attention and direct it where you want it to go. Hringkälla will do that for us," Kaz finally replied, making Lavender shift her weight from one leg to another. It felt weird for her to hear him speak like this. But again, he has been through a lot and he had to adapt to life in Ketterdam.

      "And that means?" Lavender asked.

     "We enter as we are— as criminals. Through the prison," Kaz replied, making Lavender understand that everyone in the room has done something against the law. Lavender wasn't a Saint herself, but she wasn't a criminal. Getting in through the prison seemed like a horrible idea.

     "You want Fjerdans to lock us up? Shouldn't we try to avoid that?" Jesper confusingly exclaimed, crossing his hands.

     "They will be counting heads at the prison gate, not checking passports and embassy seals," Kaz pointed out and everyone just stood silent for a few seconds, thinking about it intensely. The more planning they did, the more impossible it all sounded. Couldn't Lavender just come to visit Jesper another time?

     "I don't want to be locked in a Fjerdan cell," Nina exclaimed, stretching out her hands up.

     Kaz simply flicked his sleeve and two metal rods appeared between his fingers— lockpicks.

     "Yeah, right. As if those won't be taken away from you," Lavender murmured in boredom. There was a way for them to get away from the cells, but she didn't know if others knew that information. Jesper was Grisha. He was a Fabrikator, but he wasn't trained to be one. She knew he could manipulate metal and he could probably do it to the gates.

     "I have my own ways of getting them into there," Kaz replied and with a simple flick of fingers, the lockpicks vanished into thin air. He seemed to like to show off.

     Lavender scrunched her nose thinking about how he could take the metal rods with him and the only way for him was to swallow them. Only the thought made her sick and she shook her head.

     Soon enough, Kaz said the word that they should tell to Bo Yul-Bayur once they see him, so he could know that they are here to save him. Sesh-uyeh.

     "This can be done and we are the ones to do it," Kaz remarked and the mood fell in the room. It became too realistic, too dangerous, too insane.

     "Unless we die and nothing gets done," Lavender exclaimed and she could feel everyone's glares at her.

     "Jesper, your sister is horribly pessimistic," Nina exclaimed and Lavender suppressed a laugh.

     "I am realistic and I am a great medik, I am not letting any of you die," Lavender announced with a soft smile even if she wanted to run away. Maybe farm life wasn't so bad after all.

     "The woman is right. You have no idea what you are up against," Matthias crossed his arms, his face calm and proud for his country even if he was betraying it already.

     "But you do, Helvar. That's why I want you to work on that plan all the time. All details are important. I'll be checking on you regularly," Kaz announced, standing up from his seat as Inej walked to Wylan to look at the sketch.

     "It does look like rings of a tree," Inej mumbled.

     "No, it looks like a target," Kaz intervened, making everyone stay silent for a few seconds.

     Jesper threw his hand over Lavender's shoulders, feeling how inconsistent his sister's breathing became. He could see she was afraid, everyone in this room was afraid as this mission was impossible. But yet, there they were, a bunch of idiots grasping for more money.

"Even if Matthias tells us all he remembers— there is no guarantee that it will be the same as before. Maybe we will just end up in the prison and never get out," Lavender pointed out.

"Fjerdans are not big on changes," Nina admitted.

"I agree with Lavender. There are no guarantees on anything— once we get to the Ice Court there are very little chance we will get out." Inej intervened.

"There is no other way to do this— Back out if you want to," Kaz turned to Lavender while saying these words. "We are done here. Get ready to leave by tomorrow night," Kaz implied, checking his waist watch for a few seconds before putting it back in inside of his finely made vest.

      "So soon?" Inej asked, her voice low.

      "We don't know what the weather will be like and there is a long journey ahead," he answered, "Keep Wylan out of trouble," he suddenly turned to Jesper.

      "Why me?" Jesper's voice was whiny.

     "You are unlucky to be in my line of sight. And you, Wylan, keep an eye on Jesper, too" Kaz implied, his voice rock-salt as he walked closer to where Jesper and Lavender stood.

"On me?" Jesper's voice raised by a few octaves, making Lavender let out a faint giggle.

      "Yes, you," Kaz replied without any amusement in his voice as he pulled out four stacks of kruge and stretched it out to Jesper. "This is for bullets, not bets. Wylan will make sure you don't wander to the wrong places," his look finally drops to the red-headed woman.

      Lavender noticed how her eyes would drop on the man, constantly, almost without her permission. She noticed how tall he grew, he was slightly shorter than Jesper, but he was more muscular than the lean Zemeni guy. Kaz's haircut was slightly unevenly buzzed on the sides, his hair messily dropping on his forehead— she also noticed how calm his ocean eyes were— he was talking about an insane plan and they remained cold, almost too cold. In other words, Kaz Brekker made Lavender's breathing hitch repeatedly.

     "I will take care of that," Lavender exclaimed as there was no way in hell she will watch Jesper gamble the money away.

     "I will keep an eye on you," Kaz announced, his voice low and deep, making her develop some shivers. He really doesn't want me here, does he? Lavender thought.

    "Ooh, it's kind of creepily romantic," Lavender shot him a smile and a small wink, receiving an eye roll from the man.

     "Stock up on the things you need. Jesper will take you to the shops where you can get medik things," Kaz got back straight to business. "We will keep this parlour closed."

      "We have to sleep in here? I have some things to do," Jesper whined slightly.

      "You will manage," Kaz bitterly said as Jesper's important things to do only meant to go gambling. "Not a word to anyone. No one's to know you are leaving Kerch. You are working with me on a job at a country house outside Ketterdam."

     Everyone stood silent before Jesper grabbed Lavender's shoulder and got her outside the parlour and she sighed loudly, hearing how the merchling soon joined them.

      "You two are not even related," Wylan pointed out and Jesper shot the guy a glare.

      "Really, merchling? I thought your fancy schools made you smarter than this," Jesper snarled at him.

      "I am smart, I am just pointing out a fact," Wylan protested.

      "That was obvious without pointing out," Lavender shrugged her shoulders and turned to face the merchant's kid. "You got here in the wrong place and time, right?"

     "I wanted to be here. It's way better here than with my father," Wylan replied.

     "Sure, as if bathing in money every day is so exhausting," Jesper sarcastically snarled, looking at the smaller boy who was the height of Lavender.

     "Not everything is about the money— I don't care about the money," Wylan replied with annoyance in his voice before he walked through the siblings and got downstairs. "Let's go," he bitterly snarled, making the two upstairs snicker for a little while.

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LAVENDER TIREDLY SLUMPED on the floor as it was late in the night when Jesper and Wylan got back with her from shopping. Her bag was full of the necessities not only for treating someone but also for her.

She placed her back against the wall as she had another bag of hers which were filled with her personal belongings, clothes, a few books and beauty products. She placed the bags beside her as the drüskelle started to work with Wylan again, while Kaz was looking over to the sketched papers.

Kaz looked at Lavender, feeling weird inside of her. Once she left with Jesper he was sure that she won't come back. He didn't want her to come back, but once she did— he felt relieved. Memories flashed into his head, remembering everything detailed and clear.

Once Kaz and Jordie got into Ketterdam, they were lost, but Jordie's hopefulness that everything will be okay, kept both of the brothers going. Their father died, they sold the farm in the village they lived and they came to find a better life in the capital.

Soon enough Jordie met a man named Filip that directed him to Jakob Hertzoon that encouraged them to invest their money in stocks.

Some evenings, Jordie and Kaz would spend at Jakob Herzoon's house, where his wife would make them a delicious hutspot and Kaz would play with their daughter Saskia.

When the nine-year-old Kaz saw Saskia for the first time, he thought she was the most beautiful and nicest girl there is to exist. They both played, talked about nothing and everything and just had fun.

Until one day, Kaz was left at a nearby coffee house again while Jordie was dealing with the investment business. Jordie would always tell Kaz to stay in the coffee house because wandering in the streets would be too dangerous for a child like him.

That day he saw a girl and she totally mesmerized him. She was walking freely in a red linen dress, her red hair braided in tons of different braids that kept the hair away from her face. Her hand was securely placed in her mother's as they stepped into the coffee place.

Kaz felt as if he was dreaming. The little boy fell in love with the little girl instantly and childishly, his mouth opens as the hot chocolate in front of him didn't matter anymore. And it was, well, hot chocolate.

Instead, he focused on how green the girl's eyes were, how pink her cheeks were painted, how adorable those two little dimples in her cheeks were. Little Kaz Rietveld fell in love with Lavender instantly and surely.

Now, Kaz could see so many features on her face that only changed a little bit. He hated himself that he was like that, he hated the fact that she was here. But at the same time, he mourned her death all these years— he didn't want to see her die again.

He understood why she was doing this. She had another family and Jesper was going to do this no matter what. She already lost her mother, she lost Jordie and him and she didn't want to bear another loss in her life. It was understandable, but that was once again, the Kaz Rietveld speaking inside of him. It was not him anymore.

Kaz wanted her to look at him with a look that would make him not regret being like this, but she was avoiding him and that was for the best. No one had to find out. It was for his and her safety.

     It also made him wonder if Lavender knew who killed her mother. If she knew what happened after the plague finally vanished. Kaz Brekker knew who killed her mother and he was after that man.

     That's why he needed to survive, to get revenge for Jordie and Lavender.

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Author's Note:

-Thoughts on the chapter? What do you like about the book?

m.n