Kanej

Chapter 15

Inej

Inej kept a safe distance, her running feet making no sound as she trailed behind Kaz, making sure he was always in her vicinity. She vaguely wondered where they were going. She would have asked him if she hadn't been upset in the morning. Oh well, she would see soon enough.

She was never in the habit of following Kaz except when she feared for his safety. And like always, he was ever conscious of her presence, no matter how undetected and inconspicuous she would become. Right now, she followed him to Specht's professional office, the one where he conducted all his legal affairs.

It was past eight bells, when Kaz disappeared in the building and Inej settled in her vantage position. She was alert, tense, and if she was completely honest, a little curious. She'd never met anyone like her before, other than Dunyasha, but she was dead so it couldn't be her. More importantly, what did the Phantom want?

Inej scanned up and down the streets, scrutinised the various individuals who entered and left the surrounding establishments. There was rarely anyone just walking on the streets. Ketterdam was a dangerous place to walk alone, even in the brightness of the day. Inej squinted ahead, thinking she saw something shadowy dart in a darkened alley, but it was only a cat.

She sighed and wondered if this mysterious person would make an appearance. She melted in the shadows of the rooftops, making sure she had a clear sight to all entrances and exits of Specht's office. She was so used to becoming invisible it was second nature to her. It was as natural as breathing. And because she was so attuned and skilled in mastering invisibility, she was able to detect the exact moment the Phantom materialised from the shadows and behind her. 

It wasn't the footstep or the breathing that alerted Inej someone was there. She felt a change in the air, as if she could sense the person's energy invading in her personal space. It all happened very quickly; one moment she was alone, the next she wasn't. She whirled around, knife already poised to strike but the figure stepped back and raised their hands in peace.

Inej hadn't given much thought to the identity of the mystery person but the Phantom was a good start. After the shock of confrontation wore off, Inej was surprisingly impressed at the Phantom's stealth and cunning nature. The Phantom was clad head to toe in black, and similar to Inej, a hood covered their face, obscuring their features. It was hard to distinguish the gender, but intuition told Inej it was a male. And not much older than her. She stepped closer, keeping her knife pointed at him and demanded 'Who sent you? What business do you have in Ketterdam?!'

When the Phantom realised Inej had no intention of leaving, and had no inclination to lower her weapon, he relented. His voice was soft, almost musical when he spoke.

'What makes you think anybody sent me here, Wraith?' His tone was slightly taunting, as if he were laughing at a private joke. 'And my business in Ketterdam is certainly none of your business.'

Inej resisted the urge to demand how he knew who she was and retorted, 'It is my business, if it concerns Dirtyhands. Tell me, why are you following him?'

She heard the Phantom scoff under his breath and shook his head. 'As if I'll tell you.'

'I could force it out of you,' she countered, taking a step towards him. 'But I have to warn you, it won't be pleasant.'

'Bet I can take you.' He sneered, his body suddenly on the defensive as he sized her up. Inej stared incredulously at him and said calmly, 'then you're even stupider than I thought.' The words barely left her mouth when the Phantom attacked, lunging for her.

But she was ready for him. She braced herself and at the very last second before he could make an impact, Inej neatly sidestepped. The Phantom's rush of momentum threw him off balance and Inej took his sudden disorientation to spin and land a hard kick to his gut. He stumbled, clearly underestimating Inej's strength as she aimed a punch at his throat, but he ducked.

He grabbed her wrist, and squeezing painfully, dragged her closer to him, while his other arm wrapped taut around her midriff, restraining her squirming body against his. Inej slammed her head back, hearing bone crack and stomped hard on his toes. The Phantom swore and gave a low grunt of pain and his grip faltered but it wasn't enough for Inej to break free.

She tried to twist her torso. If she could just turn around, she could knee him in the groin with her knee brace, which had been modified to release tiny daggers when activated, courtesy to Jesper. She grabbed his restraining arms around her torso and held tight, about to use them as leverage and catapult him over her shoulder when he suddenly loosened his grip and released her.

She spun around, confused and a tad irritated. The Phantom's hood was in disarray, and Inej could make out strands of blond hair, falling across his forehead. In the dim light, it was almost white gold. He was panting heavily, and clutched a hand over his face; Inej had broken his nose. He held up one hand and gasped 'as entertaining as this has been, my fight is not with you, Wraith. I'm here for Brekker'.

Inej took a step towards him. 'Your fight with Brekker, is your fight with me.' She said coldly. 'And you attacked me.' She pointed out sarcastically. The Phantom's eyes glinted and he shrugged, 'I've only heard about the legend that is the wraith. I guess I just wanted to see if you lived up to your name.

His eyes suddenly flashed and he made a show of lazily eyeing her from head to toe. 'Safe to say, I wasn't disappointed, he murmured, and Inej could detect the grudging admiration and awe in his voice. Inej shook her head, 'I  don't know-,'  but the Phantom wasn't done talking. 'Or maybe,' he drawled out slyly, 'I wanted to feel you pressed against me.'

Before he could blink, the Phantom was sprawled on the floor, Inej pinning him down as she pressed her knife against his throat. This close, she could see panic and fear flare in his eyes as he opened his mouth in shock, but Inej beat him. 'I don't know you, and I don't trust a single word that comes out of your mouth. So you'd better start talking. Unless you prefer me to leave you at the mercy of Dirtyhands?'

The Phantom didn't move a muscle but Inej could feel him trembling in anger and humiliation. 'I already told you, I'm not saying a word to you,' he snapped, like a petulant child, and Inej sighed. 'Wrong answer' and pressed her fingers firmly against his temple.

His eyes clouded and rolled back in his head. He was out like a light. Inej leapt to her feet and dusted her hands on her clothes. 'This is going to be a long night.' She mused and went to search for Kaz.