Midnight Thoughts ~ Shadow & Bone

14

As we followed Arken towards his transport, I was the one left holding the goat. Kaz elected to hold the lantern, and I was convinced it was just because he didn't want to hold the furry animal anymore.

"We're almost there," Arken called back. I sighed and looked behind us.

"Where the hell is Jesper?" I muttered. My question went unanswered as we approached a field.

"Just a little further." There was a sign stuck into the ground as we walked, and Kaz, Inej, and I stopped to read it.

"Landmines," Inej translated. Kaz looked up as Arken kept walking.

"We'll wait," he called to the man. "Follow the path that you carve." Arken glanced at the sign and shook his head.

"That sign," he said, "that was my idea to keep people away." He shrugged. "Can't be too careful. We're fine. Come." The three of us glanced at each other before following him. Inej looked up at the wall of shadow.

"It's one thing hearing about it," she muttered, "but this is..." I shook my head.

"Nothing compared to what lies within," I said harshly. I didn't mean to snap at her, but every time I saw this thing, whether it be in person or on parchment, I was reminded of everything my father had done. I looked up at Kaz to see him watching me carefully with his brows furrowed in concern as Arken grabbed a chain from the edge of the Fold. He tugged on it roughly, pulling a worn down train from the depths of the shadows.

"There," he muttered. He turned to us and pointed at the goat in my arms. "So, goat, jurda..." Inej handed him the pouch, and he nodded. "Thank you. Now we're just waiting on-"

"Wait for me!" We all looked back at the edge of the field, where Jesper was running towards us with several men chasing him.

"They can't see the train," Arken muttered. Kaz sighed.

"Jesper, get here now!" he yelled. Inej nodded.

"Leave the lantern!" The boy stopped at the sign, staring across at us frantically.

"Landmines!" A bullet shot past him, hitting the metal sign, and he groaned. "Oh, wait for me!" He dropped the lantern in his hand, taking off across the field. "Don't you go without me! Wait!" Kaz groaned.

"Come on!" Arken pulled the door of the train open, and the four of us clambered inside, holding the door open for Jesper.

"Please tell me you have twenty pounds of alabaster coal," Arken begged as Jesper jumped on board. The boy winced.

"Slight snag in the plan," he admitted. "Turns out that the kid who was helping me buy the coal didn't exactly know how to, uh, buy coal." I rolled my eyes.

"We know you gambled it away," I told him. He sighed.

"I lost a little bit of the money." Kaz glared up at him, and he caved, shaking his head. "I lost all of the money. Uh, but I managed to steal-" He shoved the bag into Arken's hands. "-twenty pounds of alabaster coal." Arken weighed up the bag and shook his head.

"No, no," he muttered. "There's sixteen pounds." Jesper nodded, grinning.

"Sixteen pounds of alabaster coal." Kaz looked up at Arken.

"Can we do it on sixteen?" The Conductor sighed.

"Never been done before." He pulled down a seat from the door and pushed Jesper to sit on it before gently pushing Inej to sit along the side. "Sit here. Never shift your weight." Kaz and I glanced at each other before sitting on the other side before he made us, and Arken pushed up his sleeves, revealing several thin scars along one of them.