Chapter One:
Rose POV
I woke up in a room I didn't recognize. Unsurprisingly I also had a headache. I laid on the couch while surveying my surroundings. The room was very spacious and had a flat screen television, a couple arm chairs and a couch smaller than the one I was laying on. There was a medium-sized kitchen with a small round table with two chairs in the center. I got up with my senses on high and searched for any possible signs of danger.
Flashback
Lissa and I were having lunch at our favorite cafe in the Royal Court. My three-year-old son, Angel, was at daycare until I got off my guardian duties. During our conversation I felt that Lissa was hiding something from me. I tried to do a deeper study of what it could be, but she's able to shield her thoughts from me very well nowadays.
"Liss, what are you hiding from me?" I asked. She opened her mouth to respond but got interrupted when someone tapped my shoulder. I turned around to face a tall Dhamphir with short, brown hair and a tanned complexion from working outdoors.
"Excuse me, are you Rose Hathaway?" He asked me with a slight British accent.
I nodded in response and said, "And you are?"
"No one of consequence." After that everything went downhill and he shocked me by punching me in the eye. I stood then and took his arm and flipped him over my shoulder, sending the chair I was sitting in scattering across the room. He in return kicked my legs from under me. I registered shock and an expectancy through the bond. Was Lissa expecting this outcome?
He tried to pin me to the ground, but I elbowed him on the side of his face. He managed to knee me in the stomach and seemed satisfied when my breath went "oof". I wanted to wipe that smug look off his face but he soon had me pinned. He pulled out a cell phone and made his voice low enough so I couldn't hear his conversation. He managed to do this and keep me pinned at the same time.
All of a sudden he started laughing and said, "Yes, you were right, she did put up quite a fight." He looked at me as he said this and I gave him my best glare. If it affected him, his expression didn't show it. The conversation must have been brief, because a few minutes later he snapped his phone shut. Then he punched me one more time and my world started to go dark. Through the bond I felt a feeling of guilt and wondered what Lissa had to be guilty about. Then blackout.
End of Flashback
I heard movement descending what sounded like stairs, and braced myself. If it was that British guy than I'll enjoy my revenge. I edged myself against a wall and took a peek at who was coming down the stairs. What I saw made me unable to blink, speak, or move.
"Dimitri?" I barely managed. He paused in his descent and froze as well. He was as handsome as ever with his shoulder length hair worn loose, and he was pretty much the last person I expected to be trapped with. Even with his fine features, he still looked...groggy. It had been at least four years since I last saw him.
Flashback
After Tasha's arrest and my innocence being proven, Dimitri had asked to be reassigned. He was given another royal Moroi named Alan Szelsky and after a few days he approached me to tell me goodbye. From his eyes I could tell that this goodbye was permanent. He left me there trying to hold back tears, and there was only a few things left to do; go to my room, lock the door, curl up in a ball, and have a nice long cry.
After a while Lissa came and knocked on my door. "Rose, can I come in?" I got up from where I was sprawled out on the bed and unlocked the door. I opened the door and Lissa gasped at my appearance. I knew my eyes were bloodshot from crying and her arms automatically encircled me. I almost started crying again and she held me for several moments.
"Rose what happened?" She asked with concern in her voice.
"Dimitri...he...he left." I barely managed.
"Oh Rose, I'm so sorry. I wish I had known, so I could've been here sooner. They have me running around doing so many new things—"
"It's okay Liss." My voice sounded completely lifeless.
After that I went into a state of depression; I wouldn't eat as much, didn't speak unless asked a direct question, and sometimes cut my wrists if the memories became too much. After a few weeks signs of my pregnancy began to show. I started to eat again so that I could support myself and the baby I was carrying.
Occasionally Dimitri and his charge would come to court, but usually didn't stay long. I never got a chance to tell him about our baby. After a while I stopped trying, because I wouldn't give him a chance to hurt Angel the way he hurt me.
End of Flashback
"Rose." He said in his soft, honey-like voice.
The bitterness of those memories left me seething. I brushed past him, opened the front door, and slammed the door shut. Dimitri seemed to get over his shock and trailed after me.