The Fox and The Crow [Kaz Brekker]

chapter 5

Italics - Sign Language

Daemon quickly scrubbed at the floors first, trying her best to wipe away all of the blood she had left behind in her killings. She knew she would never be satisfied with the work as some of the dark liquid made faint streaks against the wood and seeped in between the cracks. She tossed her discarded blanket back into its place on her 'bed'.

She blew a strand of dark hair out of her face before collecting her knives and wiping them off as well, using much more care. They had been a gift from the crows. She cherished them just as she did the necklace hiding beneath her shirt. After they were shining bright once again, she washed the blood off her skin, whining quietly when she saw her shirt was stained.

Daemon leaned to the side to see into the front room, and when she saw no one come in, she pulled off her vest and shirt, leaving her in just a bra, and shoved the shirt into the wash basin, thoroughly soaking where the blood had gotten to. When she finished, she wrung out the shirt as much as she could before putting it back on, shivering at the coldness. Then she put her vest back on.

Just as she rolled up her sleeves, the door opened and Kaz walked in. Bolliger was escorting the woman she had noticed into the room. The woman was sat down in the chair Daemon had previously occupied before the attack. She looked incredibly nervous. Daemon straightened up and walked over, nodding firmly to Kaz. Daemon smelled something off about the woman. Something foreign to her. Dust, soot, and a floral smell she hadn't smelled before.

Kaz noticed her wet clothing, but didn't comment on it as they were with company.

"I don't understand. I was not cheating," the woman insisted.

Kaz lifted up the painting behind his desk to reveal a safe which he grabbed money from, "You've been here every night for a week. You don't play Makker's Wheel or Ratcatcher, only cards. Because you keep track of what's played."

"Well, that is not cheating."

"No, but I'll have to add an extra deck to your table to keep things more balanced," he slammed the money down on the table in front of the woman, "An incentive to keep playing. Count it for me."

The woman hesitantly grabbed the money and began to count it. Daemon immediately noticed once again how oddly she counted it. Every place had a different way of counting their money, so it was easy to notice around where you came from by the way you did it. Daemon herself was a quick counter who only had to flick through the money with her thumb. But she also had years of experience working in a club.

Kaz stopped the woman with the end of his cane, "Where are you from?"

"West Ravka. Os Kervo," she answered.

Daemon saw the way she tensed. The way she held her breath for a moment after answering. She had a good poker face, but it wasn't good enough to fool the people in this room.

"West Ravkans count their money from one hand to the other, but people out east who work the mines in Sikursk, they count like you do," Kaz observed.

The woman set the money back down on the table, "I am from West Ravka."

"West Ravkans don't mention the 'west' part. To them, there's just Ravka and the old country. You're lying about where you're from because you've fled. You're hiding."

The woman's lip trembled as she relented, "My daughter is Grisha. Neither of us wanted her to fight in the war. You can't make us go back."

"No, no, i'm not after you. But you need to tell me how you and your daughter got through the Fold unscathed and unnoticed. Now."