The last thing Kaz saw before he blacked out was a large burly man standing over him.
~
That was how she knew he was the only one that she would ever have a place for in her heart. To put it into other words, he was the only one she would ever love...
If anyone had told Inej a few months ago, that she would be going out for dinner with her parents and Kaz on her arm, she would have (respectfully) laughed in their faces. A few months ago, it would have never been possible: finding her parents, finding her purpose, being truly free of the fear that her experience at the Menagerie may come to pass again.
Yet, now, Kaz had persuaded King Nikolai to find her parents, to which he kept his word and did. She had realised her purpose: "I want to use my money to hire a crew and outfit a ship. I'm going to hunt slavers.
And while many men gifted flowers, Kaz had shut down the Menagerie through a few simple tactics. And, without the steady income for Tante Heleen, she had failed to pay the rent, meaning that the whole place had gone out of business.
Thank God. Inej internally prayed to the Saints. One pleasure house shut down meant less young girls like her former self would be traumatised. It was bad enough that she had experienced that, but it was just too much thinking of all the girls who had to go through that day upon day.
But the fact that he had gone to such lengths for her, meant the world. And that, was how she knew he was the only one that she would ever have a place for in her heart. To put it into other words, he was the only one she would ever love. His flaws made him perfect. From his cold-hearted, ruthless nature to his introverted self. From his haphephobia to his limp in his right leg. She loved every part of him. And these so-called imperfections in the eyes of others made him Kaz, the Bastard of the Barrel, Dirtyhands, the man she had given her heart to.
~
In her room, Inej fastened the buttons on her suit. From childhood, she had been averse to always wearing dresses. Sure, she enjoyed wearing beautiful dresses from time to time, but wearing a suit made her feel empowered, as if she could do anything. It boosted her confidence and made her feel good about herself.
She delicately clasped an elegant gold bracelet on her left wrist; it read a barely visible engraving - 'ghar vah jagah hai jahaan dil hai' [home is where the heart is].
And in addition to that, she wore a long angel pendant on a gold chain which hung low. Nina had gifted her this a week after Matthais' death as a thank you for all the emotional support she had given her. Just before Nina had given her this, she had been reminiscing about some bittersweet memories of him and laughing through the tears as she recalled how much they had hated each other at the beginning.
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She had had her face in her hands before startling Inej by jumping up and running out of the room. Returning with a small package wrapped in brown paper and twine, she had pulled on Inej's hands until they were outstretched, palms faced up. With a smile, she placed it in her hands. "Open it. I bought it for you."
