Dirtyhands

four

Sorry about the slow update. I had a whole lot going on and needed to figure out where I was going with this story.

Kaz arrives at Van Eck's manor. Its entrance is large and grand. No doubt that Jan Van Eck was compensating for something when he built it. Kaz's eyes trace the frame of the house. It a stone building with pine accents. It truly is a beautiful building. Kaz can remember the time he blew a hole in it. He is rather fond of that particular memory.

Kaz wraps his gloved hand around the knob of the door and pulls it open. "Wylan really needs to start locking the doors.' Kaz thinks as he walks into the manor. Through everything he has been through Wylan still has the ability to trust people. Kaz doesn't understand in nor does he approve of it.

Kaz can hear hushed voices in the dining room. It's Jesper and Wylan's voices. He walks into the room and lets his cane thud against the wood floors. The voices stop when he walks in. "Ohh. Hi." Wylan says quietly. Jesper isn't as shy. "Heyya Kaz." He says with a grin. He wants something. Kaz can tell that much.

Kaz nods in his direction. "We need to secure this place before we talk." He rasps and looks directly at Wylan.

Wylan nods and gets up. Kaz can sense Wylan's slight discomfort. Wylan's always been nervous, to say the least, in his company. Wylan walks out of the room to lock all the doors and Jesper goes after him. Kaz can hear whispering on the other side of the wall. He can make out a few words such as, "dangerous.... get us killed..... friend..." and "help.."

After a few minutes, both of the boys return. "What happened?" Wylan asks softly.
"The Slat isn't secure. Someone broke into my room." Kaz answers.

"Who....?" Wylan says softly.
"The king of the barrel." Kaz replies, with anger lacing every word "And your father."

"What?" Wylan whispers as his face drains of color. "I thought he was gone. I thought that they both were gone."

"They're back and we need to figure out what our next move is. We don't know what their plan is. They're even more dangerous than before because they have already lost almost everything. They believe that they have hit rock bottom and the only way to go is up from there. We need to show them that they always have more to lose." Kaz states.

"And how do you propose we do that?" Jesper asks. A smirk travels across Kaz's lip as he leans closer.

*Pekka Rollins Pov*
"I don't understand why we don't just sneak back into the slat and slit that little bastard's throat." Van Eck hisses as he takes a sip of his kvas. He has been a wreck and a liability. The only reason that Rollins is still working with him is that Van Eck is valuable. Brekker took almost everything from him. But he missed one minor detail. He forgot to take away his connections. All of Van Eck's money, political and economic power had been stripped of him but people were still loyal to him. Important people who still had their wealth intact.

"Because we want to watch him suffer. I don't you want to get back your kruge? Don't you want your title back?" Rollins replies and tries to stay calm. This merch doesn't know how to deal with street scum like Brekker.

"What's in this for you anyway? How do I know that I can trust you?" Van Eck states "What if you just want to drain me of what little I have left."

"You can't trust me. I'm a liar and a thief, but I'm your only chance at revenge. I want Brekker dead just as much as you do. His little wraith visited m. Told me to leave or she would kill me. I don't like being told what to do. The only thing that I want is to see Brekker's face as I rip out her heart. Then we can kill him." Pekka says and looks at Van Eck.

"I also have one more request. I want to know the story behind those gloves." Van Eck adds.

"Okay. To curiosity, revenge, and profit." Rollins says and raises his glass. Van Eck taps his glass against Rollins. "To the death of Kaz Brekker." He adds.

*Return to Kaz's Pov*

Jesper and Wylan had both gone off to sleep, leaving Kaz alone with his thoughts. At one point Kaz had enjoyed being alone, with just his thoughts to keep him company, but now he couldn't stand it. The buzz in his head would drive him mad. The buzz would alter between Inej and Jordie. Between love and tragedy. The two people who made him feel the most. He leans back on the chair and runs his gloved hands over his face. He hears the soft patter of bare feet behind him. He turns to see Wylan's mother. "Who are you?" She asks quietly and takes a seat in the chair facing him.

"I'm a friend of Wylan's." Kaz answers and tries to keep his voice as soft as possible. He doesn't want to scare her away. He doesn't want to be alone with his thoughts again.

"Ohh. I'm Marya, his mother." The woman replies.

"Kaz." Kaz states. He has met Marya a few times before. He doubts that she remembers him.

"It's nice to meet you," Marya says and  Kaz nods in response. Even though the company is helping him drown out his thoughts, he still doesn't really want to talk. Marya seems to get the message and just sits there quietly.
After almost thirty minutes of comfortable silence, Marya turns to him and asks "Why are you wearing gloves? Are you cold?"

"No. I'm fine. Thank you for asking." Kaz replies and tries to mind his manners.

"Okay. Goodnight Kaz." Marya says and gets up before leaving Kaz with his thoughts yet again. Kaz stares out the window and at the dark sky. There are no stars and the moon isn't visible. It's just dark and empty. The blue of the sky is almost black and it reminds him of his time on the reaper barge. How the dark water would consume him. Cover his body and fill his airways. He can feel his pulse quicken but he can't look away from the sea in the sky. His skin crawls as he remembers that horrible night. The night where he truly lost himself. The night that forged him into the monster he is today. He can remember the feeling of water traveling down his throat and into his lungs. The feeling of Jordie's cold skin against his as he desperately tried to stay afloat. Then he feels something start to travel up his throat. He jumps up and sprints out of the large house and vomits in the rose bushes out front.

He stumbles back and shivers as the cold air moves under his clothes. It's almost similar to the feeling of cold water but not quite. He rushes back inside and away from the cold night. He goes into the living room and builds himself a fire in the fireplace. For the rest of the night, he watches the flames dance on the wood.