WICKED GAME [shadow and bone] ON HOLD

common enemy

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍:

"he threw a book at you?"

She met Kaz not far from the place where the coach that the trio had blown up was. Upon seeing her unharmed the young man let out a deep breath. Only when Jesper turned around and noticed her standing there, he pulled out his gun and aimed it at her.

Katerina halted in her movements and tilted her head, slightly narrowing her eyes at the man.

"Oh shit, what am I doing?" The dark-skinned man quickly put his revolver in its holster before raising his arms in surrender. Kaz sighed from beside the Zemeni boy and swayed his head.

"Lower your arms, Jesper, she is here to help." Katerina almost laughed at the expression that appeared on the man's face, when she noticed the Suli girl jumping over the wall and landing with a grunt.

"Inej!"

Jesper turned to help the girl. Kaz directed one concerned look to the girl, and after making sure that Jesper got her, walked closer to the redhead.

"Are you alright?" Katerina did a double-take at the man. She raised her eyebrow.

"I maybe don't know you well, but I know that you never express your worries. Or maybe I am wrong." The man sighed.

"Stop lying, you know everything about me. I don't know-how, however, I have made my peace with it."

And that was true. Kaz was at first wary of the fact that the redhead had known everything about him. And with everything, he meant everything. Yet he had time to ponder about that. Katerina and Kaz knew each other, and maybe life made them go separate ways thus not allowing them to see each other or even know anything about their lives, Kaz was glad that it was her who knew everything about him. For there was no one else in the world to whom he would trust this information.

"I am alright." Katerina nodded her head. "Thank you."

While the pair were talking, Inej and Jesper were quietly wondering how on earth had this happened. Just a day before, the group, including Kaz, were fearing the young woman yet now there she was, chatting with Kaz like they were old friends.

Old friends.

Inej and Jesper shared a look, the thought seemed to strike their minds at the same time. Yet they did not dare to say anything else. The pair decided to not mention anything. They believed that when Kaz will be ready, he is going to tell them.

"I am deeply sorry for interrupting your interesting conversation, but I think we need to get moving." Jesper stepped closer to the pair with Inej under his arm. The Suli girl was clutching her side clearly in pain.

Katerina turned to face the pair and nodded her head.

"Right. You are absolutely right." She looked at Inej. "And who out of all of them dared to put their hands on you?" Inej took a few deep breaths before answering.

"The Inferni. She is dead though." Katerina nodded her head.

"The Inferni. Wait..." She suddenly snapped her head towards the Suli girl, narrowing her eyes. "Do you mean Polina?" Inej widened her eyes and gulped yet nodded her head. "And her brother?" Again, a nod.

The trio held their breaths for what is to come. They were genuinely scared that the redhead will suddenly have a need to avenge her fellow Grisha when a scoff from the girl caused them to look at her with a dumbfounded expression.

"Well, good riddance. Both of them." Jesper furrowed his eyebrows not quite believing in what he is hearing.

"I am sorry. Did you just say, 'good riddance'?" Katerina nodded her head.

"Polina was always jealous of me because I was just a better Inferni and received the recognition she didn't, and her twin Pavel had the audacity to hit on me a couple of times." For some reason hearing that someone had tried to 'hit on her', made Kaz feel certain emotions.

The redhead looked over the injured Suli girl immediately making her deductions.

"You can't ride like this. We need another plan." Katerina sighed while looking around until her eyes stopped at a certain coach. She tilted her head while observing it. "That's a pretty nice ride, isn't it?" She turned her head to look at the trio. Kaz nodded his head, understanding what the girl was planning. Jesper whistled.

"It sure is."

The redhead adjusted her kefta and turned her head to once more look at the trio.

"Leave this on me." She sent a smirk their way and a wink before walking near the guard that was standing beside the horse.

Katerina had no idea how much Aleksander's personal guard knew about her betrayal, yet she hoped that at least she will have the element of surprise.

"Hello." She stopped near the Heartrender who immediately turned his head upon Katerina's greeting. "I'll be honest, I have no idea what your name is, but I am sorry." Before the guard could say anything, she grabbed the man's head and smashed his face against her knee, knocking him out immediately.

She blew a few strands of hair out of her head and once more adjusted her kefta before moving to the coach. Upon opening the doors, she was greeted with a familiar face. She offered the man a beaming smile upon recognizing him.

"Hello, David." The redhead barely managed to avoid the book that was thrown at her face. When she raised her head, Katerina saw Kaz knocking the man out with his broken cane. The redhead picked up the book and moved through the coach to the other side.

She stood beside Kaz, and the book raised in her hand looked at the unconscious man on the ground.

"He threw a book at you?" Katerina raised her head to meet eyes with Jesper who had come closer with Inej still under his arm.

"I know right." She expressed in disbelief. The redhead Inferni took one last look at the Durast. "What an idiot."

Jesper offered to take the reins and Inej joined him, while Kaz and Katerina sat inside the coach.

The pair had so many unspoken things to talk about.

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