TROUBLE , kaz brekker

vi. i am so much worse.

CHAPTER SIX

ECHO HAD NEVER SEEN KAZ LOOK SO...FRANTIC.

His usual stoicism was traded for a nervous energy that could put Jesper to shame and despite the immaculately pressed suits, he finally looked as he was - a boy. Kaz languished in the whispers that followed him on the streets, the ones that called him Dirtyhands and the Bastard of the Barrel because in Ketterdam, fear was a far more valuable currency than kruge. But in this moment, the facade fell away and they were both just lost children. Children the world had left behind.

Echo was pacing, book in hand. Papers were thrown at her feet as Kaz shifted through stacks of leather bound parchment that towered over his dark wooden desk. The second they'd returned from Dressen's manor, there had been no time for argument, no time for discussion, only for him to drag Echo into his dimly lit rooms by the silk of her dress and begin to pour over her 'borrowed' texts in the hope that they had all the answers.

It had been an hour. One sixth of their precious time and not a single word had been exchanged between the two, let alone an idea. At this rate, the Sun Summoner would return to the realm of myth before they reached the Little Palace. Echo sighed. "What are we doing?

"Be more specific." Kaz turned the page of the book he was reading nonchalantly.

"You know what I'm talking about. It was one thing when we had a week to find a way across the Fold, but six hours?" She crossed the room until they were face to face, separated only by the desk and the distance Kaz seemed determined to put between himself and the world. "I love a challenge but this is cutting it close."

"What are you saying? That we say no?" Kaz looked less than pleased at the idea, either from his money-hungry mind or something else entirely.

"I didn't say that."

"Good." He reached across his many piles of paper and grabbed a navy leather bound book emblazoned in gold. He palmed in through his leather gloves before flinging it across the room to where Echo sat, she frowned at him.  Now do you think you can keep reading? Or shall I get Jesper to take your place?"

"Pack up the dramatics Brekker." Echo dismissed him as she reached down and picked up the book, dusting its' dirtied covers with a brazen frown. It was typical Kaz, so little regard for anything that didn't serve him a purpose. "I'm not just another Barrel Rat for you to order around."

"Maybe I'll ask Per Haskell to do it for me."

Sometimes Echo wished she could see inside Kaz Brekker's head and work out exactly what the hell he was thinking. Per Haskell was the Leader of The Dregs in name only. Whilst it was true that Kaz was the one to drag the gang out of the gutter and push it into notoriety with a reputation strong enough to establish them as one of the most feared gangs in Ketterdam, it was Per Haskell who took the credit - and the profit - for his efforts. That also meant that when Kaz hired Echo, she didn't really work for him. Instead, she worked for an old man with yellowing teeth and a tendency to stare a little too long at the young women he employed. She hated him, almost as much as Kaz did, which is why mentioning the old man's name was a very lowblow indeed.

Echo slammed the book onto the chaise-longue under her feet. All it took was one word from Brekker and her blood felt like it was boiling under her skin but her words were calm, poised. "He's as much your boss as he is mine."

"But unlike you I don't have to ask for his permission to go somewhere." Kaz quipped.

It was then Echo decided that killing him would be a mercy. She'd been so concerned with returning to her homeland that she'd forgotten the obstacles a little closer to home. Going to Ravka would mean asking Per Haskell for permission - permission he was not likely to give. In his eyes, Echo was his prime money maker, second only to Kaz. Letting them both cross the Fold and face the wrath of the Volcra would damage his precious income more than burning the Crow Club to the ground himself.