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CHAPTER NINE; burning cold
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BLUEBEARD WAS RIGHT: Ace wasn't made for the cold. In fact, she could say with certainty that she loathed it. The cold in the northern parts of Fjerda wasn't like the cold during the winter in Ketterdam. This cold seemed to freeze her from the inside out each time she breathed.
Summer in the Southern Colonies was unbearable—hot and humid—but Ace would rather the hottest day in the Colonies to an average cold day in Northern Fjerda. The heat she could deal with, she could wear next to nothing—even though in Ketterdam and anywhere else that would be scandalous—bathe in the ocean and she could manage—the Colonies were built for the heat as was everyone in them. Yet, the Fjerdan cold would kill her. She never got used to layering for a Ketterdam winter, much less for trekking through the permafrost. Bluebeard was right, Jesper was right, and Ace would die frozen.
A couple of days after falling asleep on the deck of the schooner and waking up in her cabin, they got their first glimpse of the northern coast of Fjerda in the late afternoon, but Specht decided to wait until dusk to make land in hopes the twilight would lend them some cover. There were whaling villages along the shore, and no one was eager to be spotted. Despite their cover as trappers, the Dregs were still a conspicuous group.
They spent the night on the ship, and at dawn, she slipped on her acrobat suit, and every layer Matthias had handed her with a smug smile on his face that said here you can't offend my eyes with your skin—though Ace did see that he scowled a little less towards Nina, which was a given seeing as Ace was nearly a hundred percent sure the last thing Matthias would be at seeing the Heartrender's skin was offended. Ace put the deck of cards in a pocket and left her gun on the Ferolind, and was about to leave her cabin when she heard the smallest hint of movement.
"You're good, Wraith," she said with a smile and turned to see Inej scowling her way from the doorway.
"How?" Inej said and Ace grinned.
"My father was really strict when I was a child. He wanted me to have strong senses." Ace shrugged. "He had really weird tests. I remember there was one day of the week I had to spend with a blindfold and get around like that. I've learned to be aware of my surroundings."
Inej seemed to be surprised by the little information Ace had given her about her past, and to be fairly honest so was Ace. But then again, the heist they were embarking on was life or death, and Inej was possibly the person she trusted the most on the schooner—possibly.
"Your father blinded you for a day each week?"
Ace frowned, "Yes. He wanted me to be the best."
Inej paused for a moment, as if she wanted to say something else and decided against it. Finally, she settled on a smile, "It seems he got what he wanted."
