Six of Crows: Cloaked in Shadow

Chapter 25 - Inej

Kaz was the first thing that crossed her mind, then she took in the slump of his shoulders, the glazed look in his eyes, the lines of pain open in his face, and the next was oh, Saints.

"What did you do?" Inej snarled, relishing Raven's flinch. Footsteps behind her. Wylan appeared by her side. She felt him stiffen as he saw Kaz.

"He is injured," Raven said wearily. "He needs assistance, aid, a medik. Maybe a priest."

Inej considered killing Raven then and there, but Kaz didn't look like he could stand without support. "Wylan, help me," she said, trying to keep her voice steady, and between the two of them they maneuvered him from her arms into theirs. His head lolled on her shoulder. "Kaz?" A tremble, that time. She swallowed. "Kaz, can you hear me?"

"Yeah," he rasped, and Inej nearly cried with relief. A shudder went through him. "Ghezen," he said, "damnit," and shook off their arms, staggering into the wall. He looped an arm around the coatstand, holding himself up. Why isn't he using his hands?

"Kaz." She moved towards him carefully, keeping her hands in sight so as not to alarm him. Behind her, Wylan started calling for Jesper. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just," she said, her voice breaking fully this time, "I just want to help."

He shivered, pressing his back against the wall. "Don't. Don't touch me."

"I won't, I promise."

"Don't ask me questions. Please."

"I promise," Inej said, her chest aching. "I promise." The words sounded hollow, painful, like the drip-drip of a near-empty waterjar during a drought.

"Inej," Kaz said, and closed his eyes.

Raven rubbed her face with bloody hands, sagging against the fence. "Ghafa, I... I can help."

"You can help," Inej said, "by telling me what you did to him." Anger made a hard, bitter ball in her throat, stinging each time she swallowed. She grabbed Raven and dragged her into the house. Raven made an odd noise midway between a whimper and a gasp. Inej shoved her hard enough that she went sprawling onto her arse. "Not feeling like talking yet? Maybe you'll feel more at ease telling my knives."

"I will tell you all you need. I swear it. But at this moment, you should be caring for him, not..." She tailed off. "Ah, I forget the word. Asking questions."

"Interrogating," Inej said icily.

Raven waved a limp hand at her. "That."

She wasn't just tired, Inej realised, she was exhausted. There was little chance she'd have the energy to put up a fight, let alone a good one. A blade to the heart would be so swift, so easy. Would solve so many problems.

But Inej had seen what vengeance did to people. She had seen it in the girl sprawled on the floor, in the boy huddling hollow-eyed by the coatstand. She would not follow that path.

She turned to Kaz.

A/N
Far, far too short. I know, I know. I just wanted to reassure y'all that I'm not dead. This fic will be finished, I promise. But most of my attention at the moment's going to my original (gasp, I know!) urban fantasy heist called An Inking of Thieves. Do feel free to check it out!

More on its way <3