The rain was pouring by the time Jesper and Wylan returned to the Slat.

Jesper shivered as they stepped outside the carriage, the damp and cold sneaking its way under his coat. He was glad Kaz had accepted his shirt, but he hoped he could have it back soon, the vest not offering much insulation against the chill of the evening. He tugged his coat closer, trying to cover as much of his exposed skin as possible. Thankfully the Slat was only a short walk away.

Upon entering they were immediately imbued with warmth and good mood. The Dregs were drinking and happily chinking their glasses together, swapping stories of Kaz, theorizing how he had gotten out of his latest escapade unscathed, and how bad the other guy had it. From what they gathered Kaz had made a triumphant return, unharmed and victorious, just like the Dregs members had predicted when Kaz first went missing. Only the crows knew the real story, and they would keep it that way, letting the myth of Dirtyhands grow, offering them protection against anyone considering going after them.

Wylan started up the stairs, Jesper followed close behind. They were both tired after spending the last few days searching for their friends in less then ideal sleeping quarters. Jesper longed for his soft, luxurious bed at Wylan's house, preferably with Wylan in it. Hopefully they could return to their home with Inej tonight. They just needed to finish whatever task Wylan was on from Kaz, and they would be free to return home to sleep.

At the top off the stairs, Wylan knocked carefully at the Kaz's office door. There was no response.

"Try jiggling the handle, that usually annoys Kaz enough to respond," Jesper offered.

Wylan tried what Jesper proposed, and to their surprise, the door swung open. Kaz usually kept the door locked. "Maybe they left it open for us?" Wylan asked, looking back at Jesper.

Jesper shrugged. He was in a hurry to finish their task, so he pushed passed Wylan, only to come to a complete halt two steps inside the room, causing Wylan to crash into him.

Wylan was confused at Jesper's sudden stop, and looked at Jesper for answers. He looked shocked, his jaw pretty much hitting the floor. Wylan followed his gaze, seeing Kaz and Inej asleep on the bed.

Jesper could hardly believe what he was seeing, wanting to pinch himself to check if he was dreaming. There on the bed, both Kaz and Inej were sound asleep, despite how much noise Wylan and him had made coming up the stairs. Usually, the two of them would react to any person's presence, let alone the sound of somebody entering the room. What was even more mindboggling was the fact that the two of them were sleeping next to each other, in Kaz's bed, Inej's palm resting on Kaz's chest. He wouldn't have believed it if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes. If he ever tried anything like that he was sure he would not be alive the next morning, or at least one hand short.

"Um, should we wake them?" Wylan asked, feeling uncomfortable as this was a private moment not meant for them. It was only the issue of the antidote that kept him from leaving. Kaz had said it probably wasn't important, but Wylan had felt he was hiding something, and his feeling of urgency had only grown as he learned more about the concoction that was injected into Kaz.

Instead of answering, Jesper stepped closer to the bed, his head tilted. "Does his breathing look normal to you?" he asked.

Wylan's anxiety grew, and he closed in on Kaz. Shortly after meeting Jesper he had told him that he was not allowed to touch Kaz's skin under any circumstances, but never the reason why. He didn't think Jesper really knew why, just that Kaz wanted a certain distance between himself and everyone else. Wylan wanted to respect that, so he held a hand a few centimetres from Kaz's mouth, feeling Kaz's breath without the need to touch.

Jesper was right, something was off. Wylan could barely feel Kaz's breath. It was shallow and weak. "Jes, he's barely breathing. It must be the poison," Wylan blurted out.

"The what now?!" Jesper said, alarmed at the new information. Not only had Kaz been beaten and tortured, but now he was apparently poisoned as well. Kaz sure knew how to piss off the wrong people.

Wylan blushed slightly as he realized he'd broken his promise to Kaz, but he didn't have time to regret it, forging ahead instead. "King injected Kaz with something. He told me it wasn't anything serious, that it would probably pass on it own, but still asked me if I could look into it, just in case. He told me not to tell anyone," Wylan explained, not meeting Jesper's accusing eyes.

"Why our thick-headed boss still insists on this stupid need to know crap is beyond me," Jesper said in frustration. "I'll wake him, while you wake Inej. He has some serious explaining to do."

Jesper started shaking Kaz, shouting at him to wake, but there was no response. That wasn't good.

Wylan hadn't made it around the bed before Inej was up on her feet, knife in hand, a sleepy confused look in her eyes. Jespers actions to wake Kaz, had woken her instead.

"When…? What…?" Inej asked confused, her eyes flicking between Jesper and Wylan.

Jesper didn't hesitate, his own worry for Kaz spiking as he failed to wake him. "It's Kaz. There's something wrong with him. Wylan says he's barely breathing," he informed her.

Inej's eyes went to Kaz. She noticed how his chest was barely rising, a distinct difference from earlier. "Why? What is wrong with him?" she asked, fear evident in her voice.

"Wylan thinks it's the drug that King injected him with. Please tell me he told you something useful about it," Jesper asked.

"He didn't tell me much. It was meant to make him pliable and subservient to Kinker, not kill him," Inej stated, unsure what was happening and angry at herself for not pushing harder for Kaz to talk to her.

"That makes sense," Wylan offered. "I think King mixed a bunch of different ingredients together, but she made a mistake when using gaernitus detroximos. It is supposed to have some of the effects you describe, but if not handled correctly, it can be a deadly poison. Even a small dose can cause intense pain, followed by paralysis. I think the poison has spread to his chest, and is restricting his ability to breath. I think the placement of the injection and his restricted breathing has slowed the spread of the poison, and kept it from reaching heart," Wylan explained.

Inej almost didn't dare to ask. "What happens if it does?"

Wylan looked down at Kaz. "He dies," he answered softly.

Inej had to fight back her tears, the terror of loosing Kaz taking hold of her. "Please, can you fix him…?" she whispered, her voice breaking on the last word.

"I think so," Wylan said as he pulled out a syringe and the concoction he had made at King's mansion. "We found her notes, and I think I managed to make an antidote that should counteract the effect, but I can't be sure. I'll need to inject it close to his heart," he stated.

"How will we know if it's working?" Jesper asked.

"If my mixture is correct, it should work almost instantly as his heart should pump the antidote through his system quickly," Wylan explained, looking to Inej for permission to proceed.

Inej nodded, and started unbuttoning Kaz's shirt. She slid the left part of his shirt open, exposing the skin above his heart.

Wylan carefully studied his chest, letting his hand hover over it, still careful not to touch. Once he found what he was looking for, he slid the syringe in, and pressed the plunger down, sending the antidote flowing into Kaz's blood stream.

They all held their breath, hoping and praying for a response.