In Between

Chapter Twenty-six: Ivan Blake

Draven grabbed Apryl's hand and starting dragging her into the shadow of the border fence. There was a space in between the house and the wooden boards that they could fit through if they turned sideways. He slipped in first, whispering that she should do the same, and together they started inching their way through the gap.

"This is the Ivan Blake who you were telling me about, right?" Apryl asked breathlessly.

"The very same—except now he's apparently the most powerful man in the Inbetween, besides the king himself." Draven tried to keep the venom out of his voice for Apryl's sake (he didn't doubt that he could be quite scary when he was mad enough), but she swallowed nervously and he knew that she could tell.

"Do you even know where you're going?" she asked as they emerged on the other side of the house.

"Nope. Just trust me," he quoted her, dragging a smile out.

The man who had shouted their position skidded to a stop when he saw them appear from behind the house. A second man was not too far behind him, and Draven knew who it was even before he spoke; Ivan Blake—possibly the worst person in their whole dimension.

"Do not run! I only want to talk to you," he yelled, and his voice sounded sincere. He also spoke in English which meant that he knew that Apryl was there.

"Fucking liar," Draven snarled viciously.

Apryl looked at him in surprise and said, "Where did you learn that word?"

"I didn't. Is it bad? I hope so, because I was thinking something bad and that's the English translation," he explained, shrugging uncaringly. She smiled without offering judgement.

They dashed across the alley and slipped behind the next house. Apryl followed him silently—she probably thought that he knew what he was doing. They came out on the other side in a third alley. Karina's shop was the next building over, but the space they would have to go through was significantly smaller than the ones before it. He wouldn't be able to fit. "Quick. Squeeze through there and go get the others. I'll keep this idiot occupied."

"No!" Apryl shouted without even considering it. "Let's go back the way we came," she said, refusing to let go of his hand.

"They'll catch us eventually. Ivan isn't alone—the other man probably stayed over on that side. We can't go back," he explained.

The new general turned the corner and started down their alley, alone. Even from this distance, Draven could see his cold grey eyes and pitch-black hair under the green general's cap. His was a face that Draven had been conditioned to hate. Part of the reason why he rarely used mirrors was because he thought that they looked alike with the same eyes and hair color—even the shape of Ivan's face reminded Draven of his own. Seeing his refection always made him wonder, What if I end up just like him?

Everyone knew Lieutenant Ivan Blake as a cold-blooded, heartless snake who thought only of himself. He was a solitary man with no wife or kids who favored preying on the weak as he clawed his way up the social ladder. The man worshiped the ground that any of the council members walked on and likely spent a majority of his time tampering with that ground in the hopes of taking their place.

"Go back to the shop, Apryl," Draven said darkly. "I wouldn't want you to have to see me beat the shit out of this guy."

Unfazed, she looked up at Ivan as he came towards them and wrinkled her nose with disdain. "Ugh, I can tell that he's a jerk just by the way he walks. I think I'm looking forward to watching you kick the crap out of him," she said, winking.