Six of Crows: Cloaked in Shadow

Chapter 8 - Jesper

A/N
WARNING: Onscreen canon-typical violence.

Having arrived in the Slat to find Kaz's room stripped of personal items and the Dregs all saying that they saw him, Inej and Wylan - Wylan? - leave a few minutes ago, Jesper was not happy. He'd left what promised to be a very profitable poker game for absolutely nothing whatsoever!!!

He assumed they were headed to the Van Eck mansion on the Geldstraat, so turned a corner and picked up his pace, watching as the crooked houses of the Barrel started to merge into the opulent houses of the Lid. The Ketterdam day was now well under way, and all the stores were opening on the canal front.

It was only when Jesper turned into Goedmaiden Bridge that he realised he was being followed.

Damn it.

It was more instinct than actual proof, but Jesper could feel someone's eyes on him. There was a man in a fedora hat walking behind him who hadn't been out of sight since he had left the Crow Club, a man with a big nose who kept appearing in front of him and a little gang of people consisting a girl with a wild mane of unkempt hair, a hang-dog young man and a Shu fellow. Also, he could have sworn that he'd seen a few tell-tale flashes of golden hair or gaudy teal. Was the pirate following him too?

Jesper picked up his pace, hurrying towards the Geldstraat and the safety of the Van Eck mansion. He could hear the footsteps getting louder, the occasional glimpses he got of his pursuers showing them as being even closer.

They're going to catch me, he realised, and he sped up again, now almost sprinting, and he tore round a corner-

-and ran straight into Kaz Brekker, knocking them both to the ground.

"Who the- Jesper, you podge, I should have realised," he snarled, shoving Jesper off him and struggling to his feet. He brushed the dust off his suit with more force than was strictly necessary.

Jesper's eyes scanned over Kaz's face, noting the darker hollows of his eyes and his prominent cheekbones, the spots of dried blood staining the bandage wrapped around his forearm, the way he leaned heavily on his cane and winced when he put weight on his bad leg. He'd gotten worse.

Then he turned and saw the tiny, bird-like figure of Inej hovering beside her Barrel Bastard, and a grin split his face. "Inej! I'd heard you were back!" He turned back to Kaz. "Much as I know you'd like to remain with me on top of you, I have a Wraith to greet."

Ignoring Kaz's spluttering protests, Jesper hugged Inej hard. "I've missed you." And so has Kaz. If only you knew how much.

"Jesper-" started Wylan, but he cut the merchling off.

"Kaz, I need to show you something. Now."

Kaz looked around at his two companions, then back at Jesper. He could feel his shark-like gaze boring into him, assessing the situation. "Fine," he said after a long second of scrutiny. "Inej, Wylan, you guys go on to the Van Eck mansion. We'll meet you there once we're done."

Inej gave Kaz a strange stare but walked off back down the cobbled road with no further protest, Wylan following unhappily, but close behind. Is it just me, or is something up with my merchling? thought Jesper, but any investigation would have to happen later. First, he had to sort out his stalkers.

The moment Inej and Wylan were out of sight, Kaz turned to Jesper, his dark eyes narrowed. "What is it?"

"Heel-biters down the dark-deep," he replied in the Barrel shorthand dialect. Followers, enemies.

"Through the worm-holes where we spill the red-life." To the alleys, we'll kill them there.

Jesper fell into step beside Kaz, the thunk of his cane punctuating his every footstep. He could see Kaz's limp getting worse as they crossed the invisible boundary separating the prosperous houses of the Lid and the ramshackle hovels of the Barrel, so he slowed his pace. Kaz huffed out a breath, but made no comment. He really must be in pain.