Heartbeats In Shadow - Kaz Brekker

her name is alina starkov

Kaz and I were together, he was refusing to let me be alone when my father was so nearby. We were standing in a doorway, chests pressed together, and I was holding a small mirror. I was attempting to tailor my face, trying to make myself less recognizable, while Kaz stood guard. An old man walked past where we were standing, looking at our close position, and gave us a very judging look. I was satisfied with my tailoring and nudged Kaz to spill his drink on his uniform. He did so, then walked out of our hiding place. I heard him speaking to someone, and waited before emerging myself.

Kaz was speaking to Ivan and Feydor. This would be the first test to see if I was recognized, as I was very familiar with both of them. Kaz was laughing nervously, and said, "The Kaelish ambassador is clumsy when he's drunk."

"You can't wear that in here. Get a replacement from laundry," Ivan told him. I panicked slightly, not wanting Kaz to leave me alone.

"Our orders are to-" I started but was cut off by Ivan saying, "You heard." Kaz nodded in understanding and began to walk away, leaving me with my two old friends. Feydor spoke for the first time.

"Have we met before? You look strangely familiar," I was careful to keep my heart under control, knowing they were both checking for lies.

"I don't believe we have," I said, before walking off, making them believe I was continuing my patrol.

"Wait," Ivan called, which made my heart jump for a moment. I hoped they hadn't heard.

"I agree with my compatriot, you look familiar. What is your name?" I struggled for a moment, trying to come up with a name they wouldn't recognize.

"Nina," Both their eyebrows shot up in surprise, and I noticed Feydor's arms moving to put me in a coma. Clearly, they knew my friend.

"Zenik?" Ivan asked, taking a step towards me.

"No, Nina..." I took a moment to think of a last name, and blurted out the first one to come to mind. "Brekker." This made them both stand down, but they still were looking at me warily. I walked off, taking a long way around to the place we had agreed to meet Inej. Kaz was standing there, waiting for both of us.

"Any problems?" He asked.

"They noticed something was off, but they didn't recognize me." I heard his heart rate slow at the mention of no one knowing who I was, and wondered if he sincerely cared if I made it out undected. A moment later, Inej approached from behind. Kaz held up a guards uniform and she took it.

"Are they my size?"

"You have to ask?"

"Do you remember what happened last time we did this? Got me a mans uniform," I chuckled, not knowing this story. I would have to ask Inej about it later.

"It worked, didn't it?" Kaz responded.

"Just be happy I'm eager to get out of this," Inej said, and I could hardly blame her. The outfit was ridiculously colored, and looked too tight to be comfortable. She walked off, and Arken approached us next. Kaz held out another uniform, this one much larger. Arken took it, nodded to both of us, and said, "See you at the meeting point." We waited another moment before walking off together, it not being uncommon for guards to patrol in groups of two. We walked to the room where the demonstrations were taking place, and I noticed my father speaking with the royals. I was beyond scared he would notice and recognize me, and I clutched Kaz's arm as soon as I was able to hear his voice. I stopped in my tracks, and Kaz followed my gaze. He pulled me aside.

"You need to remain calm, Vik. If you are acting strangely, you will only bring more attention to yourself." I nodded, unable to speak. We walked back to the guard's posts, and I took the spot nearest to Kaz. He looked at me and gave me a nod of reassurance.

The crowd got very silent for a moment, and everyone turned to see a shu girl wearing a black kefta embroidered with gold. I was surprised my father was allowing a non-shadow summoner to wear black, but I had assumed he would do something to set her apart. Her gaze was fixed on my father's position, and he turned to look at her. He had a face of pure admiration and pride when he saw the black kefta on her frame, and I assumed this was the first time she put it on. Alina made her way to my father.

They spoke in hushed tones, and I was unable to hear their conversation. Kaz approached me from the side, wanting to have one last short conversation before the demonstrations began.

"If we need a distraction, I am relying on you."
"I know," I responded, and he walked back to his post. The demonstrations began with inferni throwing balls of fire at each other, standing on raised platforms to be sure the flames wouldn't touch any of the guests. It was quite a spectacle, but I was not impressed. The Grisha do the same presentations every year, and it had become quite boring to me. While they were showcasing their abilities, I was searching the crowd for people who could recognize me. I saw Genya, Ivan and Feydor, Zoya, David, and several others who were familiar, but whose names I did not know. The inferni took a bow, and my father and Alina made their way to the stage. He turned, addressing the crowd, which had fallen completely silent.

"Her name is Alina Starkov." He said simply, his eyes searching the faces. When his gaze found me, it lingered for a moment, but not long enough to indicate he knew me.

"And she will bring liberation to us all." My father clapped his hands together, and darkness enveloped the room. There were several gasps of surprise, but the darkness was like a second home to me, and I had never feared it. He gestured to Alina, who brought her hands together, and summoned the light. She formed a small ball, and moved it between her hands for a short while. Then the ball split in two. She sent them to the middle of the room, using the chandelier to help reflect the light in every direction. She called it back, and my father removed his shadows. The crowd all muttered 'Sankta Alina' and fell to their knees in respect.

Inej, Kaz, and I stood away from the crowds, talking about what had just occurred. Inej was currently speaking.

"And the Lynx flush was to smoke out Arken."

"Like I said, our futures depend on this," Kaz responded.

"There were two identical keftas in the fitting room, Inej. Alina is wearing one, and an Inferni was measured for the other. They need Alina for the demonstration, but at the reception, thats when they'll deploy the double for security reasons." I told Inej.

"I set Arken after the double while we get the real one," Kaz said.
"Arken will get caught!" Inej protested.

"He chose his fate in Novokribirsk when he met with Zlatan," Kaz explained.

"What if you're wrong? What if we sandbagged him with a lynx flush and the meeting had nothing to do with this?"

"The only two men in the world who profit off the fold? Doubtful. Now," Kaz said and began to walk towards Alina. Inej and I flanked him, waiting to see what he would do. We walked past Feydor and a tidemaker, so I turned my head in the opposite direction.

"Ms Starkov," Kaz began, making Alina turn towards us. "We are to escort you to dinner. Could you come with us please?" She turned back around, searching for someone.
"I thought...actually I am quite hungry." Kaz made a grand gesture with his hand, showing her that we would follow. Kaz didn't notice there was an inferni eyeing us questioningly, but I didn't point it out to him. Alina began to walk, with Kaz and Inej on her slides, I was walking behind them. Together we formed a triangle. Alina slowed her pace, and I raised my head to see what she was looking at. I was met with the gaze of my father. My heart dropped, not knowing what to do. Kaz moved slightly over, so I was covered with his body from my father's sight.

"Thank you, I'll take her from here." He brought out a bunch of flowers and handed them to Alina. Kaz looked at me desperately and nudged me with his foot.
"Do something!" He said in a loud whisper. I took a deep breath, nodded, and moved my hand over my face, removing the tailoring. As I took off my hat, my hair returned to its normal length and color, and after a moment, all traces of tailoring were gone. I widened my stance, clapped my hands together, and summoned the shadow. It enveloped the entire room. My father froze, pushed Alina forward and turned to meet my gaze. As I did this, Kaz and Inej exited the room and I could only hope they were able to get away.

"Viktoriya," I hear my father's icy voice pronounce my name. Alina looked between us in confusion.

"Hi, dad."