Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo Read Free Book Online Page A

guess.”
    â€œShu?” asked Kuwei, returning to where he’d spread his notebooks over the table.
    Nina nodded. “Cannons out, red flags flying.”
    â€œI talked to Specht earlier,” said Kaz. “The embassies are full up with diplomats and soldiers. Zemeni, Kaelish, Ravkan.”
    â€œYou think they know about Kuwei?” Jesper asked.
    â€œI think they know about parem ,” said Kaz. “Rumors, at least. And there were plenty of interested parties at the Ice Court to pick up gossip about Kuwei’s … liberation.” He turned his gaze on Matthias. “The Fjerdans are here too. They’ve got a whole contingent of drüskelle with them.”
    Kuwei sighed mournfully, and Jesper plunked down next to him, giving him a nudge with his shoulder. “Isn’t it nice to be wanted?”
    Matthias said nothing. He did not like to think about the fact that his old friends, his old commander, might be only a few miles from them. He wasn’t sorry for the things he’d done at the Ice Court, but that didn’t mean he had made peace with them either.
    Wylan reached for one of the crackers Jesper had dumped on the table. It was still disconcerting to see him and Kuwei in the same room. Nina’s tailoring had been so successful that Matthias often had trouble telling them apart until they spoke. He wished one of them would do him the courtesy of wearing a hat.
    â€œThis is good for us,” said Kaz. “The Shu and the Fjerdans don’t know where to start looking for Kuwei, and all those diplos making trouble at the Stadhall are going to create some nice noise to distract Van Eck.”
    â€œWhat happened at Smeet’s office?” Nina asked. “Did you find out where Van Eck is keeping her?”
    â€œI have a pretty good idea. We strike tomorrow at midnight.”
    â€œIs that enough time to prepare?” asked Wylan.
    â€œIt’s all the time we have. We’re not going to wait for an engraved invitation. What’s your progress on the weevil?”
    Jesper’s brows shot up. “The weevil?”
    Wylan removed a small vial from his coat and set it down on the table.
    Matthias bent to peer at it. It looked like a bunch of pebbles. “That’s a weevil?” He thought of weevils as pests that got into grain stores.
    â€œNot a real weevil,” said Wylan. “It’s a chemical weevil. It doesn’t really have a name yet.”
    â€œYou’ve got to give it a name,” said Jesper. “How else will you call it to dinner?”
    â€œForget what it’s called,” Kaz said. “What matters is that this little vial is going to eat Van Eck’s bank accounts and his reputation.”
    Wylan cleared his throat. “Possibly. The chemistry is complicated. I was hoping Kuwei would help.”
    Nina said something to Kuwei in Shu. He shrugged and looked away, lip jutting out slightly. Whether it was the recent death of his father or the fact that he’d found himself stuck in a cemetery with a band of thieves, the boy had become increasingly sullen.
    â€œWell?” Jesper prodded.
    â€œI have other interests,” Kuwei replied.
    Kaz’s black gaze pinned Kuwei like the tip of a dagger. “I suggest rethinking your priorities.”
    Jesper gave Kuwei another nudge. “That’s Kaz’s way of saying, ‘Help Wylan or I’ll seal you up in one of these tombs and see how that suits your interests.’”
    Matthias was no longer sure what the Shu boy understood or didn’t, but apparently he’d received the message. Kuwei swallowed and nodded grudgingly.
    â€œThe power of negotiation,” Jesper said, and shoved a cracker in his mouth.
    â€œWylan—and the obliging Kuwei—will get the weevil working,” Kaz continued. “Once we have Inej, we can move on Van Eck’s silos.”
    Nina rolled her eyes. “Good thing this is all about