CHAPTER FOURTY-FOUR
vol ii — home turf

EVERYTHING WAS GOING perfectly. Down to the exact time everyone was supposed to be in their places, creeping along the shadows, gathering the information they needed. Dinara wanted to just forget the plan and use one of her daggers and run it through Van Eck's heart, watching as he took his last breath with a sickening smile playing at her lips. She wanted this whole ordeal to be over, wanting to leave this god forbidden place and manage to make a life for herself. She hated the fact that Inej was so willing to risk her well-being just to make sure that Dinara was able to get into the silos. Kaz and Wylan were tasked with getting into the house and grabbing whatever they could to get leverage on the much older man. Dinara was slightly worried about what could happen, Van Eck being unpredictable at moments, so she was worried about the boy's safety.

But she couldn't worry about them too much, she had a job to do after all. Her mind had to stay focused on the task at hand, not needing any small slip-up's that could cause an issue for them later down the road. Well, chaos had come before they had come over to the area the silos were in, Nina meeting an old friend ( Zoya, of course ), Wylan seeing his mother for the first time in years, and Matthias just being a horny bastard. God forbid he live a little and manage to get what he wanted, Nina. And the fact that Nina's power seemed to grow every time she woke up in the morning, which was slightly off putting. Dinara didn't want her to get overwhelmed and accidentally cause a scene because she was unable to control her new powers that managed to stem from the copious amounts of parem she had consumed.

She had a small cut on the inside of her hip, the stupid razor wire cutting into her skin. She had made a stupid judgement, thinking that she had been in the clear, only for one of the blades to going stabbing into her skin, causing red to run down the side of her leg. Nina had somehow convinced Matthias to allow her to come with the girls, wanting to be a part of something after watching from the sidelines for quite a while. Dinara was only slightly cautious about having the Heartrender on the mission, but there wasn't anything she could do, Nina's will power being too much. She had been tasked with putting on a facade and managing to distract the guards so Inej and Dinara could sneak past them, running through the field as they reached the silos without being noticed.

The two climbed the silo silently, reaching the top and taking a moment to look down at the city. The smoke coming from the factories, clouding the streets slightly, but not enough that it would hinder your view. The lights were flickering as some went off in the buildings, while others flickered off, letting you know the clubs and brothels were open for business. If you listened close enough, you were able to hear the loud laughter of the drunks that were on the street, stumbling around as they shouted and made jokes that only made sense to themselves. The moon was bright over there, casting a shadow that landed on the top of the silos, but not bright enough to cause the two to attract attention to themselves. Dinara was thankful that the moon seemed to be on their side, letting them sneak in the darkness and cause the chaos that was meant to happen.

Through the small flickers of moonlight, she could barely make out what was below her, too busy focusing on the fact that everything seemed so small from such height. It took both of the girls' strength combined to try and get the hatch open without making a sound. Inej followed Wylan's directions step by step, making sure that nothing bad would end up happening to them. Diana had snuck off to the ground, waiting for Inej to start climbing along the wire. Her breath was shallow as she tried to control the emotions that were swarming her body, but there was nothing she would be able to do if Inej decided to take a tumble down. But, the green flash across the field caught her attention, which meant that it was time for Dinara to leave Inej alone and head towards Nina. It was dangerous to cross the field at the moment, but she had to get there, having to find her way into Van Eck's  house to meet up with Wylan and Kaz.

She pressed a quick kiss to Nina's cheek, taking the girls face in her hands. "Don't let that girl end up dead. You hear me?"

"Just go. Don't go doubting my abilities now, Di," Nina snarked, pushing the girl away from her, wanting her to get out of there as fast as she could. "Don't keep lover boy waiting. I've got our girl."

Dinara didn't even bother correcting Nina about the lover boy comment, focused on the fact that she would be able to keep Inej safe. She ran as fast as she could through the town, slinking in the shadows every time she felt that she would be noticed. Being a fugitive was increasingly difficult for no reason whatsoever. Her hands grabbed onto the wall that lined the outside of the ridiculously large home, correction, hell. This was the place that had caused Wylan all of the pain he had endured made her want to burn the house to the ground, leaving nothing but ashes on the ground. It was quite easy to get into the house, which surprised Dinara, seeing as the man had a massive target on his back. She crept along the dark hallways, the only light being the candles that were strung against the wall, the chatter from the guests flooding her ears. She figured that even a small creak of the floorboards ( which wouldn't happen ) wouldn't even catch the attention of them.

She could hear the small chatter of Wylan and Kaz, the older boy just complaining about how long it was taking for the safe to be cracked. She slinked into the room, staying unnoticed as she leaned against one of the walls, watching the two boys cause utter chaos. "Why are you taking so long? Though you knew what you were doing," Dinara snarked, looking down at her nails, catching the jump of both boys. She let out a small smirk, knowing that she had managed to scare both of them.

"Dinara, could you have given the poor cripple a warning," Kaz said, raising an eyebrow at her position. He was done with her antics and wanted nothing more than to get back, but he was never able to, the girl being three steps ahead of him at all times. There wasn't enough time for another retort, Wylan having crack open the safe, allowing for Kaz to peer inside. His gloved, greedy hands reached for the bag from the safe, wincing each time his arm would make contact with the large hole that had made its way onto the safe ( courtesy of Wylan and his gadgets ). A small ring came dropping onto his hand, which Kaz immediately tucked into his pocket, and grabbed stacks of kruge, handing one to Wylan and throwing another at Dinara.  "Does this bother you, merchling?" Kaz asked Wylan, noticing the screwed up face on the boy.

"I don't enjoy feeling like a thief."
"After everything he's done?"
"Yes."
"So much for righteous. You do realize this is yours?"
"Jes said the same thing. I'm already out of the will."
"Doesn't mean you aren't entitled to it."
"I don't want it. I just don't want him to have it."
"What a luxury to turn your back on luxury."
"I can't even run an empire. Never mind read."
"So pay someone to do that work for you."
"Would you?"

Kaz paused a moment before he answered, his mind racing. There was one person he would trust the most, the one person who happened to be leaning against a wall in that very room, her nails skimming through each piece of kruge, counting it out. She was the one person he could trust on anything, the one he wanted to be with, but saying that outloud? Was that another task by itself. A task he would end up working towards, a slow step, a day at a time. "When people see a cripple walking down the street, leaning on his cane, what do they feel?" he questioned instead, not wanting to show Wylan that he did have feelings, even though he could feel the curious stare of Dinara on the side of his face.
Wylan looked away, feeling uncomfortable with the mention of the limp Kaz had. "They feel pity. Now, what do they think when they see me coming?"

Wylan knew the answer to this question, having witnessed it first hand. "They think they'd better cross the street," he said, the corner of his mouth quirking up.

Kaz sent the boy a wink, tossing the ledger back in the safe. "You're not weak because you can't read. You're weak because you're afraid of people seeing your weakness. You're letting shame decide who you are." Kaz looked over to Dinara, motioning to the painting with his hand. "Help me with this, would you?" Her hands reached up, helping pull the painting down over the gaping hole that was the safe. "Think on it, Wylan. It's shame that lines mf pockets, shame that keeps the Barrel teeming with fools ready to put on a mask so they can have what they want with no one the wiser for it. We can endure all kinds of pain. It's shame that says men whole."

"Wise words," a voice said coming from the corner. The three Crows turned immediately, concerned for their safety, and to how they hadn't noticed the man sneaking into the room. Dinara tried to make out his face, but he was hidden too well in the shadows, his features being hidden but the darkness. "Kaz Brekker. Philosopher crook," Pekka Rollins taunted, stepping out of the corner and allowing his face to be shown in the light.

well hello there pekka