Blood In The Water ~ Shadow & Bone

1

The shadows were alive. Every dark movement seemed to draw more and more attention from the pale eyes hidden in the back corner. This club was a regular disguise for the small seafarer. No one cared who she was here, and no one paid any heed to yet another miniscule figure clad in black, not in the darkest club in Ketterdam.

The small girl caught sight of a frighteningly familiar face emerging from the back of the building and quickly but silently stood from her hidden seat, weaving through the throng of people to the door. She did her best to calm her racing heart, but as she brushed past a girl with raven-colored hair on her way out, she felt a surge in her chest she hadn't felt since she was twelve. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked up at the girl to find her already staring down at her, stony eyes widened in shock. The blue-eyed girl felt her hands trembling as she forced down the old sensation, turning and running away from the club as any thought of discretion left her mind.

Buildings flew by as she sprinted through the East Stave, praying that she appeared as simply another street rat running from their problems. Sea water stung her face as it sprayed in from the harbor. Her shoes slid as she stopped at the edge of the dock. She hadn't even realized she had been running towards the gulf until she felt the cold water droplets on her face. But it was always where she ended up.

She took a shaky breath, bending down to pull off her boots and socks. She shakily lowered herself to sit on the edge of the dock, letting the cool water run over her feet. The feeling was one she had avoided for months, and it was one that sent shivers down her spine in the best way.

The crunch of broken pavement under heavy boots snapped the girl out of her reminiscence, and she jumped up, ignoring the pain of rocks digging into her skin. Her hands clenched into fists as she glanced between the two men across the pier.

"Who's this then?" one asked with a smile. "Runnin' from the Crow Club, are we?" The other grinned and shook his head.

"Not a smart move, little one." The girl clenched her jaw.

"Whoever said I was smart?" she retorted. "I see something that scares me, I'm not gonna stick around and let it find me."

"Afraid of Dirtyhands, are you?" She scoffed.

"Aren't you?" One man rolled his eyes.

"He's our boss."

"Not what I asked. I asked if you were afraid of him. Which... I would be very, very surprised and also think you were an absolute idiot if you weren't." One of them rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"You made the mistake of running into Brekker's second," he said. "Those two have no secrets from each other. He wants a word." She hummed and shook her head.

"Yeah, I really don't think I'm gonna risk it," she said. "I've been in Ketterdam for a year, I know when Kaz Brekker wants a word, he either wants you dead or a Crow, and I'd rather not be either." The other man laughed and shook his head.

"It's amusing that you think you have a choice." She said nothing but raised her fists, and he laughed. "You think you can hold your own against the two of us? We're twice your size." She shrugged and stepped forward slightly.

"I'll take my chances." Instead of throwing a punch, she reached into her jacket and gripped a small knife, throwing it into one man's hand. He cried out, and the two looked down at the blade stuck through his palm. The other man looked back up at the girl with rage in his eyes.

"You bitch!" he yelled. She smirked a bit and bowed mockingly, fixing her footing as he ran at her. He threw a punch towards her, and she grabbed his hand, using it as momentum to duck under his outstretched arm. She tightened her grip on his fist and pulled his arm behind his back, freezing the water underneath his skin. He screamed as the expanding fluid stretched his flesh. She pushed him away as his friend pulled the knife out of his hand, and she backed up as he stepped towards her, glancing between her and his friend, who was clutching his arm to his chest as blood began to fall from it.

"You're Grisha," the man with the knife said with a grin. "That's very interesting." The girl looked between the two frantically before outstretching her hands towards them. The men froze, beginning to choke as water filled their lungs. They clutched their throats, but one of them still made an attempt to advance towards her. In a panic, she clenched her fists, watching with no expression as water seeped from the pores in their skin. It wasn't long after that that the two men fell to the cobbled ground. The girl lowered her shaking hands and calmed her frantic heart.

"That's a neat trick," a new voice said. The girl spun around, looking for another attacker, but the voice only laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not going to turn you into the Stadwatch or Dirtyhands. But I've only met one person who knew it was possible to control the water within another's body." She nodded slowly.

"I've known since I was a child," she said cautiously. "Since I saw it happen to someone else." It was quiet for a moment before the mystery person chuckled in disbelief, and the girl saw the figure of a boy starting to emerge from the shadows.

"That's... not possible." He stepped out of the shadows, and the shine of gold hair made her heart stop.

"Nikolai...?" The young prince smiled a bit.

"Hello, Marina," he said gently. "It's been a while."

just a bit of a PSA with this here new book, I absolutely adoreeee Marina and Nikolai

now back to your regularly scheduled program