Sorry this chapter is really short, it's finals week and I haven't had much time to write.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" I said, beginning to circle my father and Alina. As I did so, my father turned to meet my gaze, keeping Alina behind him for protection.

"Second-order, get the otkazat'sya out of this room. Patrol both palaces for intruders." I cursed under my breath, worried for Kaz and Inej. Now, there were only three of us in the room. Me, dad, and Alina. I wondered why he hadn't sent her away yet but realized he probably only trusted himself with her protection.

"Why are you here Viktoriya?" My father spoke to me, cutting any formalities.

"I'm not answering that." Alina was looking between us both as I stopped walking.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" She questioned. I began to laugh hysterically, making both of them look at me like I was a maniac.

"You didn't tell her about me?" I looked at my father and clicked my tongue. "That's unfortunate." I walked closer to Alina, and she took a step closer to my father as he extended his arm around her.

"My name is Viktoriya, Kirigan? It's so hard to remember what we are using now." I said this part quietly, as I wasn't sure how much of our past Alina was aware of.

"I was second in command of the second army for a long time, and I am the only Grisha with my power."

"If you're a Grisha, where's your kefta?" she asked. I turned to my dad.

"That's a good question, dad, where is my kefta?" I wasn't going to pass the opportunity to be reunited with my kefta, I missed it dearly.

"In your room, with all your other belongings. I had a feeling you would return home eventually."

"Ah, you're playing the part of the caring father in front of Alina, I see." I looked at her more directly, clasping my hands behind my back. "Don't fall for it, it's all an act. He pretends he loves and cares for you, waits until the right moment, then tries to kill you in your sleep. And tells the world you committed treason," She looked shocked, taking a step away from my dad. He looked murderous.

"Alina, please go to the war room, I'll be there in a few minutes." She obeyed silently, making me wonder if there would be an opportunity for Kaz or Inej to grab her.

As soon as Alina exited the room, my father and I got into a battle stance.

"Let's get this started, shall we?" I said, looking my father in the face. I know he would kill me in an instant if he had the chance. He drew his hands together, then sent the cut in my direction. I formed a shield with my shadows, and he raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"I can see you've improved your skills,"

"I have, do you want to see something else?" I asked sincerely, but I didn't wait for a response. I summoned the cut with one hand and began to slow his heart with the other. He fell to the ground in agony, and barely dodged the cut I sent in his direction.

"FEYDOR!!" My father shouted in desperation. Shit. I heard the doors bang open, and realized I needed to make a decision. Kill my father at that moment and have the whole of Ravka trying to kill me, or slip past Feydor and try to make a run for it. Begrudgingly, I left my father and decided not to kill him right now. I increased the thickness of the shadows coating the room, and walked in the direction of the doors, masking my heartbeat from Feydor.

I opened the doors, not caring if they made noise, and sprinted as fast as I could down the hallway. I didn't completely know where I was, as the Little Palace had changed since I had last been here. I could hear footsteps behind me but ignored them as I ran for my life. I reached a door that looked familiar and threw it open. I was greeted by the sight of my father and Alina making out on the desk of the war room. He must have taken the shortcut to our rooms after recovering.

"Gross!!! I did NOT need to see that." I covered my eyes and ran into what used to be my bedroom, slamming and locking the door behind me. Making a break for the closet, I could hear my father approaching my door. I was surprised to see that nothing had changed, even my bed was still unmade. I opened the door to the wardrobe, grabbed the first kefta I could find, and ran to the window. I tried to unlatch it but quickly realized my dad must have changed the windows.

"Fuck!" I yelled. I could hear two heartbeats trying to break down my door, and they were almost successful. I ran into the bathroom and was relieved to see the window above the bath was open. I began to climb out, not thinking of what I would do once I could get out. I looked down and realized I was two stories up and there was nothing there to cushion my fall. I heard the door break, and my dad entered the bathroom. I was left with no other option, took a deep breath, and jumped.

I screamed in agony when I hit the ground, having probably broken my leg and multiple ribs. To my luck, there was a carriage only on the other side of the courtyard, and there only seemed to be one person sitting in the driver's position. I limped my way over, and when I reached the carriage, I was greeted by the sight of Kaz, Inej, and Jesper. They all stared at me in confusion but soon realized there was a large number of Grisha rushing in our direction. I swung open the door to the carriage, painfully climbed in and tried to close it, but Kaz stopped me by climbing in after me.

"Jesper, GO!" I said, but regretted it as the force of yelling was excruciating for my ribs. The carriage began to pull away, and I was about to faint from pain, but I could only focus on one thing. The fact that Kaz Brekker and I were alone in a carriage.