“When things go wrong in the Barrel, it’s better to know about it and pretend it was the plan rather than play catch up, Inej.
Wylan’s pointer finger tapped a steady rhythm against the heavy oak table, while Jesper started to pace up and down the length of the room.
It wasn’t unusual for the three of them to worry over Kaz. But for the first time, Kaz wasn’t there to dispel their anxiety. His rough voice wasn’t there to mock, tease, or get annoyed at their yammering.”
“You shouldn’t make friends with crows,” he’d told her.
“Why not?” She asked.
He’d looked up from his desk to answer, but whatever he’d been about to say had vanished on his tongue.
The sun was out for once, and Inej had turned her face to it. Her eyes were shut, her oil-black lashes fanned over her cheeks. The harbor wind had lifted her dark hair, and for a moment Kaz was a boy again, sure that there was magic in this world.
“Why not?” She’d repeated, eyes still closed.
He said the first thing that popped into his head. “They don’t have any manners.”
“Neither do you, Kaz.” She’d laughed, and if he could have bottled the sound and gotten drunk on it every night, he would have. It terrified him.
“Oh, and Inej,” he said as he led her out of the salon. “Don’t ever sneak up on me again.”
The truth was she’d tried to sneak up on Kaz plenty of times since then. She’d never managed it. It was as if once Kaz had seen her, he’d understood how to keep seeing her.
