CHAPTER TWENTY
vol i — bloody fjerdans!

"FOUR GUARDS," DINARA SAID. SHE watched as one of the guards chatted with the driver of the prison wagon and handed him a stack of documents.

"They're the first line of defense," said Matthias. "They'll check paperwork and confirm identities, flag anyone they think requires closer scrutiny. By this time tinkles the line going through the gates will be full of Hringkälla guests and backed up all the way to the gorge."

"By then we'll be inside."
"How often do the wagons run?"

"It depends. Usually in the morning. Sometimes in the afternoon. But I can't imagine they'll want prisoners arriving at the same time as guests."

"Then we have to be on the early wagon."
"I wish you all the best of luck with that. I'll be busy playing dress up."
"I'm envious."
"Well, I best be going. Don't want to be late."

The group said goodbye to her, watching as she walked away. Dinara walked through the small cafe and onto the streets. Rotty had been oh so generous to make fake documents for her, letting her slip into the Ice Court without having to be chained to a wagon. She walked through the streets, heading towards one of the inns. Her room was simple, decorated to Fjerdan fashion, her elegant dress hanging in the corner of the room. A bath had been made up for her, the smell of roses littering the room, infiltrating and enveloping Dinara all at once. She stripped herself of all of her clothes, slipping into the warm water, letting it scorch her pale skin. She let out a sigh, her muscles relaxing in the warm water, her thoughts drifting away. Her eyes closed in bliss, her head sinking below the water, washing away the grime from her days at sea. The soap washed away all the memories of being cooped up in the small cabin, Nina waiting on her hand and foot. She had brought up the idea of going in through the main gate to Kaz, who agreed. It was unlikely there were ladies from a menagerie who looked like her, leaving her to have to find another way and most likely getting killed.

And neither of them like that option. As the sun started to sink lower into the ground, Dinara started to get ready for the evening. She slipped off her robe, taking the dress off of its hanger, letting it slip onto her body. The dress showed off the right amount of cleavage — allowing her to get into the Ice Court without too many questions — and it hugged her curves in all the right places. The blue fabric fell off of her shoulders, a slit in the side of her leg, her skin was on show and she was enjoying every minute of it. Dinara applied her makeup and did her hair, blue gems lining her black hair, matching perfectly with the color of her dress. She slipped her black heels on, placing knives into the seam of her dress, hidden to the visible eye. She wrapped a shawl around her shoulders, heading out of the room and into the carriage that had been waiting for her. Everything was planned perfectly, now she could only hope everything went alright. The horse-drawn carriage brought her up to the side of the mountain, leading her into each of the checkpoints.

The guards scanned her paperwork, too busy on the sight of her cleavage on display, leaving her to waltz right into the Ice Court. Her eyes scanned over the intricate design of the Ice Court — its beauty was even powerful up close, sending shivers up her body at the sight of it. She walked further into the large room, eyes peeled for one of the Crows, grabbing a flute of champagne off of a waiter.
She sent smiles to anyone making eye contact with her, transfixed by her beauty, leaving people weak in the knees as she continued further in. She had to keep herself from stealing anything that shimmered in the light by downing more champagne than anyone else. Thankfully, her alcohol tolerance was high, leaving her to drink as much as she wanted and stay alert at the same time. Tearing herself away from a drunk man, she walked towards a dark alcove, spotting Kaz and Matthias in the corner.

"Thank the Saints," Dinara said. Her voice in a hushed whisper, trying not to attract a ton of attention. She felt Kaz's eyes scanning over her body, enticing a warm feeling to spread throughout her body, a fluttery feeling in her stomach. Her dark eyes made contact with the steel blue of his, trying to find any sort of emotion in them. "I have never wanted to leave someplace more in my life. I think I've been dry humped fifteen times."

Kaz raised an eyebrow at her brash words, jealousy seeping through his veins, making his fists clench. He had to stop himself from asking for each man and stabbing them, letting them bleed out onto the floor. "Well, dressed like that, I'd expect nothing else." You look like a million kruge.

Dinara felt a blush creep onto her cheeks. She waved him off, turning her attention back to the crowd spread throughout the room. She let her body lean against the cool pillar in the alcove, eyes scanning for the two girls that were apart of their little crew. She spotted Nina in her costume, enticing a snort from the girl watching. Dinara had no doubt that the man she was talking to was falling in love just by the sight of her, taking a quick glance at the Fjerdan beside her, she saw his sharp jaw clench. He's jealous. She turned her attention back to the room, eyes scanning over every single person before landing back to Nina. She watched as her friend tensed up, before turning and talking to a drüskelle officer, seemingly someone of a high rank. Her body went on guard, wanting to offer some protection for her friend, but it seems Matthias had the same idea.

Matthias turned towards Kaz. "Brum knows," he said. His voice strained with something that Dinara couldn't exactly pinpoint, but knew that he was in some type of pain. "We have to help her."

"Be smart, Helvar. You can save her and get us Yul-Bayur, too." Kaz's raspy voice broke through, giving Helvar his permission to go and save the girl.

Dinara watched as he stalked off into the crowd, making conversation with his superior, falling back into his drüskelle way. She turned towards Kaz, an eyebrow raised at the sight in front of her. "Is this such a good idea?"

Kaz let out a scoff. "No, but it's a risk we have to take." He stole a glance at his watch, making eye contact with the girl in front of him. "I suggest you get moving, don't want to disrupt anything else." Dinara finger saluted the boy, heading to walk off. "Di!" She turned around at the sound of her name, jutting out a hip, waiting for the boy to say something. "I.....no mourners."

She let out a sigh, disappointed at the words that came spilling out of his mouth. "No funerals." She sent him one last wink, before slinking into the shadows, leaving behind a boy fighting a battle in his mind about his Shadow.

( ...⛓... )

DINARA HAD LEFT TO FOLLOW THROUGH with her task, sneaking out of the main hall, slinking through the shadows undetected. She had made her way to a courtyard, hiding behind one of the sacred trees the Fjerdan worshiped. She had to wait for Kaz's signal, her impatience getting the best of her. Sitting still was never a strong shit, and the quiet wasn't helping, leaving the minutes to tick on slowly, almost painfully. Everything was set up perfectly, bombs wired to trip and explode. The silence was dangerous, leaving Dinara alone with only her thoughts. Her mind drifted to the boy she had left back in the alcove, wondering what every single fluttering feeling meant, and why they decided to make an appearance. Her mind drifted to the blue eyes that left a mark on her soul wherever they traced over her figure. She had given him the key to her heart and soul without knowing, allowing him to seep into every crevice and place his mark there.

She found it painful, always knowing that he was somewhere in her soul, making all of this decisions for her, her body doing them without being told. Little did she know that she had left the same mark on the boy, her soul bleeding into his, intertwining and exploding in his body. It left even the thought of touch comforting, yet his body would not let him reach out to the one person he believed he could find a home in. It was exhausting really, not being able to express your love for someone, yet knowing you doing, hiding it in the deepest part of your soul, allowing it to be buried. Trespassing into his body, unable to report the crime of a stolen heart because every time he glances at the girl, all of his thoughts disappear, flowing away with the wind. Making them unable to reach each other no matter how much they tried. What a pity.

kaz wanting to rip off her dress>>>