Who: The Crows (Inej, Kaz, Nina) What: An idea, a scheme, and a theft When: during the Duval party/Sept. 12th Where: Midnight Rating: low-medium. They are planning on stealing
Nina thanked the gods she still possessed her acting abilities because a few times she’d needed to pretend a vampire compelled her to blend in with the other humans. Apparently they were paying too much attention to her cleavage and not how her heart sounded. Although, the Grisha wagered she probably smelled more like a witch? Maybe?
Either way, the Crows wanted to score something before the Portal closed. Nina didn’t quite know which house they intended to hit, but she kind of hoped not the one with Alyssa and Damien in it…they knew Kaz too well considering he lived with them. Not that Kaz passed up a challenge.
She wore an outfit with cleavage, that looked at home in a party, but that she could remove two pieces and move easily.
Kaz did enjoy a challenge. Hence why they were all in attendance at the Duval party. Yes, he was aware that Damien and Alyssa knew him, but he didn’t ever think they could completely outsmart him. An hour or so of recon, schmoozing a few guests, vampires included, and Kaz felt he’d have sufficient information to act. Nina and Inej could always push back on the idea, but he highly doubted they would want to. There was far too much in it for all of them.
Despite how much he despised clothing in this era, Kaz had adapted his outfit to fit in with the current style. He reluctantly left the hat at home, but his gloves remained firmly in place. The stylish, expensive suit he’d managed to commandeer was capable of easily concealing his tools of the trade. The only weapon visible was his cane, the crow’s head clenched in a gloved hand as he made his way over to Nina outside of the Duval manor. Inej would be meeting them shortly.
“Hello, Nina dear,” Kaz greeted quietly. “As expected, I see you left little to nothing to the imagination.”
Inej, of course, had been intrigued and ready for a job to come along since they had been in this place. The portal opening had finally given Kaz the chance to shine like he did so well in times like this.
Schooling her expression, she stepped out of the shadows next to Kaz, giving the appearance that she had just suddenly materialized next to him. She was dressed in all black and her hair was pulled back from her face in a braid. She touched the knives up her sleeves even as she greeted her two family members.
“I love the dress, Waffle Wife,” she said sincerely with a smile. “Though I have no idea how you can do the things you do in those dresses.” She looked at Kaz. “You look like you belong in this society.”
He did. He looked very good and his attire was as good or better than some of the clothing she had already seen tonight when she was doing her own bit of reconnaissance.
Nina batted her eyelashes in a joking fashion. “How else am I going to distract a room full of vampires, Kaz sweets?” A few definitely eyed her as they passed and she smiled. Thankfully, her powers would help the trio in this place and a little extra help from her figure wouldn’t hurt in her opinion. “I wonder if it counts as using my powers if I fight mind compulsion from vampires.” If not, she’d need to visit a cemetery in the next few days.
When Inej dropped down, Nina offered her a grin. She and Kaz had worked out a system to take those at the casino, but this would be good practice since she knew Kaz wanted to hit up the Vegas on the moon. With only three of them, they needed to take on additional roles, but Nina liked the new challenge.
“You get raised and trained to be a spy and you find you can run very far in a pretty dress and fancy shoes, Knife Wife.” She shrugged and looked off in the distance. “You do look like you’d fit into this place, Kaz.” But she tuned out the more intimate part of the conversation between her two closest friends. All it did was remind her how much she missed Matthias and wouldn’t get those types of moments with him ever again. The Corpsewitch refocused on the task at hand.
“Certainly not by using your powers.” For all Nina’s abilities, he knew she also was capable of being a “loose cannon.” He wasn’t opposed to her using them if the situation arose and they were in dire need, but otherwise, he preferred they refrained from getting messy. Especially given Alyssa and Damien were present within those walls. “At least, not for anything outside of potentially battling compulsion,” he added. “And even if you do, I’m sure you already know you have to make it look like you didn’t.” Given Nina could probably make her own mother believe the world was square instead or round, Kaz had no doubt she would be able to pull it off.
After years together, fighting side by side, Kaz could feel when Inej was near. Not surprisingly, his Wraith emerged from the shadows seconds after he addressed Nina. Her hair was in braids and though she was not decked to the nines like Nina, she stole the show in Kaz’s eyes. There wasn’t a woman in the world that could compare with Inej. His fingers flexed on the crow's head of his staff, aching to touch her, but forcing himself to refrain. Both Inej and himself were at a place now where certain touches were not so nearly so difficult. However, there would be plenty of time for that later, after they pulled off this job.
“Hello, Inej,” he greeted. He fell silent as the two women briefly spoke. Nina running was rather amusing to Kaz though he obviously didn’t betray any of that emotion. She was more likely to feign a fall and then act as if she was the victim all along. Running wasn’t her forte. Making people believe something that wasn’t real? Now that was where she excelled. Casting illusions of grandeur. It was why Kaz wanted her as part of the Crows to begin with.
At the compliments, Kaz merely shrugged. “It is what is required to fit in tonight,” he replied. “And help us to pull off this job.” He waited a moment, gauging their reactions before continuing on. “We’re going to steal a particularly valuable piece of art from Duval house.” Technically, Kaz was going to steal it. Nina and Inej were going to provide the intel and distraction necessary for him to pull it off.
Inej gave Kaz a small smile before focusing her eyes on some of the guests in the distance. She could spend a great deal of time watching Kaz, but this wasn’t the time. There was a job to do and she could almost feel the blood singing in her veins. It was a feeling she always got when they had something in the works.
It felt weird for there to only be the three of them doing this, but Inej had no doubts in their ability to pull off whatever they were here to do. They could take up additional tasks in the plan and she knew that Kaz had planned for all of that.
When he mentioned what they were here to do, Inej looked at Nina and then looked back at him. Stealing was almost second nature to them all but what had her intrigued was who they were stealing from. One of the Duvals was dating the guardian that was assigned to Kaz. Where was he going to put the piece of art once they acquired it -- because they would acquire it.
“What is it and where is it most likely stored,” she asked, already going over steps in her mind.
Nina didn’t plan on using her powers except to resist compulsion, while acting as though it worked on her. The plus side? At eighteen she was, technically, too young to be a blood bag. According to the information she gathered, a human needed to be at least twenty-one. “Kaz, I was born to pretend compulsion works on me.”
Okay, yes, Nina probably would fake a fall or faint before she ran, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t do those things. She only preferred to take other actions first and she did excel at illusions and acting, or Kaz would have found himself a different Heartrender for the Crows. Nina proved herself useful so he’d kept her around and now he’d find it difficult to rid himself of his friend.
The Grisha looked back at Inej. She did not care that they stole from the Duvals, but where they’d keep it once they acquired it seemed like a solid question. “You have a plan for where you’re keeping it once we possess it, right? Because you live with Damien and I live with one of Bran’s good friends. Quite possibly his only good friend. So as far as I can tell, our places are out.” Unless they could sell it right away, of course. But she looked forward to the job, even with only the three of them, although right now she wouldn’t mind some of Wylan’s forms of distraction.
Inej’s smiles were rare and precious and Kaz never took them for granted. He didn’t doubt there would be more after they pulled off this job because there absolutely was no way in which they wouldn’t. Even without Jesper and Wylan, Kaz knew between the three of them they had the abilities necessary to be successful. He wasn’t in the habit of letting there be another option.
“And here I thought you were born a heartrender with the chance to be a pain in the butt and go rogue whenever it suited you,” Kaz replied smoothly. The legal age was 21, but who said anyone in this house or in this town always played by the rules. There were rules in Ketterdam too and how many times a day were they broken? Besides, maybe Kaz wanted Nina to put herself into a situation where she would almost get bitten. There was no better way to distract the head of Duval house than to break one of his cardinal rules right under his roof.
Kaz slipped his phone from his pocket and brought up the picture of the artwork on screen. He held it out so that both Nina and Inej could look and study it. “It’s rumored to be located in Damien’s study,” Kaz explained. He’d managed to get a particularly foolish human who was all too eager to brag about which house he was from to give him that valuable information. “On the top floor of the house.” Which was where Inej came into play.
“Originally, I was planning to do the thieving myself, but, obviously, Alyssa and Damien will be keeping a close eye on me.” Kaz swiped a finger across the screen and another picture appeared, this time it was a blueprint of the Duval house. He enlarged a portion of the screen and gestured at a room. “That’s the study. Now, the best way to get in is from the outside. Which will require a little work from both Nina and I. We’re going to disarm the security and cause a disturbance in the meantime.” He shifted to another screen to show the location of the security room.
Kaz slipped the phone back into his pocket and looked between the two women. “I’ve already made a replica of the painting so it should be an easy switch. Inej will only have a few minutes to make the switch and exit.” He knew Nina was fully capable of dragging out a scene if necessary, but hopefully, that wouldn’t be the case. Besides, Kaz was going to make a scene of his own in hopes of drawing out any guards from the security room.
“And who says I’m going to be stashing it at anyone’s house?” Kaz countered, pulling a thin tube from his pocket and handing it to Inej. “Perhaps I already have a buyer.”
If Inej knew how much her smiles meant to Kaz she would try to give him more of them. Being in this place had been helping her get better at expressing herself with the people she cared about. Nina had always managed to know how her friend felt, but Kaz knowing how she felt was a more recent thing.
Inej was listening to Nina and Kaz carefully and she was already planning steps in her mind as soon as Kaz told them where the painting was stored. She had no doubt that she could make the switch and be gone in the time allocated to her for the job -- Kaz would make sure that she had enough time, after all.
“Why are Alyssa and Damien keeping such a close eye on you now?” Inej’s tone was only slightly worried. “I thought that they were guardians who basically gave you your space but were there if you needed anything.”
Did Kaz need something and she and Nina weren’t aware of it? No, she was pretty sure that she and Nina would be the first -- maybe the only ones -- that would know if Kaz suddenly needed something. They were Crows and they handled stuff together and for each other.
She accepted the tube from Kaz and placed it in one of her many pockets. Without being fully aware of it, she was already balancing on the balls of her feet as she envisioned geeting up the side of the building and into the room in question.
“Having a buyer ahead of time would be the better plan. Although, if we needed to, I could probably keep the painting at my place. Josh doesn’t come into my room at all and he doesn’t intrude on anything I am doing.”
Josh reminded her of having a brother -- especially now that Jesper was gone.
To be fair, one of Nina’s skills included knowing how people felt. Even without the telltale heartbeat she instinctively recognized as a Heartrender, Nina hadn’t lost the ability to read people. Even Kaz, not that she’d ever admit as much.
She flipped off Kaz. “Have I gone rogue since we got here?” Nina countered. If Kaz wanted her to pretend to be a willing blood bag, short of actually being one because Saints only knew how her blood actually tasted, she’d do so happily and willingly. Besides, playing by the rules never really was her strong suit.
As Kaz presented his plan, the Corpsewitch looked at the plans carefully while giving Kaz her full attention. This would definitely work and if they needed an extra distraction, Nina came ready and willing with her cleavage.
“I’m guessing they’re keeping an eye on Kaz because they don’t want him hurt?” At least, Nina assumed…from Alyssa. She’d wager Damien only cared because Alyssa did. “We’re entering a den of vampires who drink blood. If I was a guardian, I’d feel a little concerned. Also it’s Damien and the guy seems like control incarnate.”
Nina nodded. “Good. A buyer ahead of time seems like a good thing.” She could see Inej already preparing herself. Josh seemed nice and seemed to be a good guardian for Inej. Eve worked well as Nina’s guardian, because the pair were both newbies in this world an laughed together a lot. A bit like a big sister if you asked Nina.
“Let’s keep it that way.” Nina hadn’t gone rogue since their arrival here. Kaz would give her that, but his words were a reminder to keep it that way. With Jesper gone, they had to stick together.
The truth was that Alyssa may never have caught Kaz doing anything, but he doubted she was oblivious to what he was capable of. Sure, there was potentially some concern for his well-being there, but, Kaz knew it went far deeper than just the fact that Alyssa had a heart. Besides, Damien didn’t trust Kaz and he was sure the other vampire would be making sure Kaz kept his hands to himself. If he wasn’t watching him, some of his goons would be.
“It’s concern and the fact that Damien doesn’t trust me,” Kaz replied. “He’ll have people watching me all night. Which is why I’m counting on you and Nina to do most of the heavy lifting. The security will be handled and you shouldn’t have an issue getting in and out.” He hated that he couldn’t swipe it himself, but he had to be smart. Alyssa and Damien would both be watching him like hawks tonight. He had to play it careful…mostly.
“If necessary, we can stash the painting at Inej’s place. I’m not sure what Josh knows about art, but I doubt it is as extensive as Damien or Alyssa.” It was possible Eve wouldn’t know a thing about it either, but since Inej would have her hands on the painting anyway, it felt smart to go with her.
Inej listened to the two of her friends talking, but she was already away in her mind as she made plans for how to get up the side of the building and into the study. She wasn’t worried about getting in. She was concerned with the security system and getting out. However, if Kaz said he had that part under control, then she believed him.
Kaz always had back up plans to the back up plans. He would have made sure that everything would work to his satisfaction before involving her and Nina.
“Hmm. I never realized that Damien didn’t trust you, Kaz.” Inej’s eyes filled with worry as she turned to look at him. “Doesn’t Alyssa live with him? How can your guardians be people that don’t trust you?”
She was concerned about Kaz’s safety with Damien now, because of course she was. Kaz was amazing and there was not a situation that he couldn’t get out of, but Damien was a vampire.None of them had ever dealt with vampires before.
It was part of what made this job so exciting to her. It was a new situation surrounded by people she had only heard of in stories.
“If there isn’t a buyer as of yet, I can keep it in my room until you do,” Inej said quietly as she tightened her braid and started running through her ritual of touching each of her knives -- or gesturing to where they were -- and naming them as she prepared herself for what she needed to do. “Like I said, Josh never comes in there, so it will be safe until you need to deliver it somewhere.”
She was ready whenever Kaz said that it was time.She wanted to hug them -- to hug him -- but that would probably not go over well right now when they needed to be stoic and prepared for anything. She couldn’t soften right now.
That was how she succeeded at all she did, after all.
Nina saw Inej’s concern and wanted to soothe her friend’s worries. In her estimation if Damien wanted to do something he would have already. Although a small part of her wished Eve befriended Damien instead of Bran. Ah well. “What I know of Alyssa is that Damien wouldn’t be stupid enough to incur her wrath by going after Kaz.” Look, she’d run into Kaz’s guardian a few times and kind of liked her.
Given what the Grisha knew of Josh’s friends and Damien, he probably wouldn’t care as much about a stolen painting from Damien. The dislike wasn’t exactly a town secret.
“Alright, where do you need me first, Kaz?” Nina did not go through rituals before a job. She focused on the tasks in front of her and made sure she looked her absolute best.
Kaz didn’t want to worry Inej. “He won’t go out of his way to hurt me, but if I’m caught stealing, he has a right to.” Like anyone that Kaz and the Crows had pilfered from, Damien had the right to seek retribution if he caught any of them red-handed, which was why he was being extra cautious. Alyssa did have sway over the vampire, but he doubted she would be pleased if he was caught stealing from the man she loved.
“Alyssa is my guardian. Not Damien. I’m not saying she doesn’t trust me, but I doubt she will be ignoring my presence at the party. I’m still under her care till I’m eighteen.” And again, he doubted Alyssa was completely oblivious to what he was capable of, but he wasn’t going to mention that to the young women. “Which is why we need to play it carefully.”
When Inej said they could stash it in her room, Kaz nodded. “I can have the buyer take it by tomorrow, but for tonight it might be best for you to hang on to it. Like I said, we are switching it and Damien will be distracted tonight. I doubt he will notice anything till tomorrow.” He was hoping much later tomorrow too. Alyssa might inadvertently help with that aspect of the plan.
He turned to Nina. “I’m going to need you to focus on distracting the vampire on duty near security. Lead him away. Let him think he’s getting a free meal. I want you to cause a scene big enough so that everyone is distracted far from security. Then I will slip inside and disable the system. It should take me five minutes at most to do it.” Kaz then turned to Inej. He wanted to take her hand, but this wasn’t the time or the place. Afterwards.
“You’ll be outside the window by that point. The vampire guards swap shifts so that will give you about a five to ten minute window in which to slip from the roof inside. Plus, the scene Nina causes will pull everyone’s attention from the outside so you should have a good amount of time to get in and out.”
By this point, Kaz was familiar with technology enough to know how a ‘burner’ phone operated and he pulled two from his other pocket. “We will use these to communicate. Obviously, none of our real names are listed under contacts in case one of us ends up caught. When security is disabled, I will send a message to Inej to let her know. The same goes for when Nina leads security away.”
He handed them the phones. “Also, Inej will message when she is far enough away from the party. The names we are listed under should be familiar to you.”
Inej listened closely to everything that Kaz was saying. He was right in that Damien could take revenge for them thieving from him, but that would mean something went wrong and they had gotten caught. Not something very likely to happen from what she was understanding of Kaz’s current plan. It was very straight forward -- a little boring, maybe, but for their first big job with just the three of them boring was probably best.
She also knew that even though all three of them lived with guardians they missed having their own place -- their own home. They were treated well by their guardians but the Crows should all be together. Maybe something could happen with that soon. Jesper was gone and so was the ability to live at the place he planned to acquire.
She missed Jesper, and Wylan, as well.
Inej flipped open one of the phones and hit the Contacts button, her mouth twisting into a small smile before she snapped the phone shut and placed it in another of her pockets.
“I was examining the outside before I came in to meet you two,” she spoke up as she looked at her two friends and family. Her dark eyes were sparkling. “It will be no trouble for The Spider to get up the side of the building to where we need me to go.”
Nina grinned. “I can totally do that.” Causing scenes would always be the Grisha’s specialty and she did so excel at them! She took the phone and laughed when she saw the names. “I like it.”
To be fair, Nina had offered to get a place for the three of them, but Kaz wanted to wait until he could put the place in his name. And the Grisha would respect her friend’s and boss’s wishes.
A nod. “No mourners,” she whispered quietly to the other two Crows, noticing how empty the response would sound without the rest of the Crows.
“I know.” Kaz didn’t doubt the two women standing before him. For all the hell he gave Nina, he respected and trusted her. Inej and him had been through hell and back. There was no one he trusted more, no one else he trusted with his life.
It already felt too quiet without Jesper’s banter and Wylan’s moral protests. Kaz stepped forward and glanced between Nina and Inej. His gaze lingered on Inej’s briefly before he spoke.