━━━ ❝ I pity the fool who wants to be a God. ❞
&
━━━ There is enough fire inside you to put
all of Hell to shame, but you are
pretending to be water, for someone
who is too afrai...
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CHAPTER XVIII. the wounds that won't heal
Kaz had always believed he was above it all. It wasn't his ego speaking, but a pure fact. Having to pretend to be civilised with Pekka Rollins even after everything happened spoke to his incredible self-restraint. And if that wasn't a testament of his patience, then Leia would be his witness. A one-sided witness, however, seeing how she'd never know his reasons behind Hellgate.
But today... What he just witnessed was about to revolutionise his meaning of self-control. Kaz put up a good fight, but the scene of Leia and the unknown man locking lips graced his mind every other second.
Truly, there wasn't enough words in this world to describe what he was feeling. All he knew what that Leia had thoroughly done it now—Kaz burned, all over his body. Only it wasn't a bonfire keeping him warm, but a blistering hot rash that blazed his skin. If he didn't know better, he'd think it was anger—shameful anger.
Relief should be the word I am looking for—that he wouldn't need to carry her corpse back home and endure the curses Mariam, Elias and Elsie would no doubt throw at him again.
Kaz slipped back the mask of the Bastard of the Barrel and did what he did best—steal. By now, Matthias and him had arrived on the White Island without detection, though the price he paid for that was to don a drüskelle's uniform. Kaz's skin crawled at how tightly fitting the sweat-stained uniform was against his skin.
Thirty million kruge is cutting it close, he glowered, smoothly slithering between the rare pockets of free space in this crowded ballroom. Matthias followed him into an isolated corner of the stairwell, asking what was so funny about the ice sculptures they passed along the way.
"Your country's idea of decoration is patriotism," Kaz forcibly hid his limp when climbing up the stairs, hoping not to give anyone something to remember him by, "Obviously."
Matthias appeared beside him, "I don't expect you to understand it. Nothing is sacred to you."
Kaz paused for a long moment. "I know someone who'd agree with you."
He could hear Leia's words clear as day. Talking about how he broke their honour between thieves. Bringing up her name sent his mind into overdrive, and so the memory Kaz tried so hard to forget knocked him at full force again. His mind simmered with rage—clearly visible as well since Matthias quietly mumbled at him to "get a grip" when they reached the top of the stairs.
Kaz glared at the burly man before arching a brow in Nina's direction, who was dressed to the nines in her ridiculous Menagerie outfit. Tante Haleen was masterful in the art of seduction, and Nina's low neckline definitely stole enough of Matthias' composure for him to use some of his own advice.
Matthias cleared his throat, ignoring the shimmering scales of Nina's skirts—and her shameless wink—as she walked by them and disappeared upstairs. "Women brings nothing but trouble."
