Thank you everyone for the favs and reviews. I love seeing them :D Gives me that inspiration to keep writing!
Also to the guest whose birthday was when I last posted, I'm glad I could add to the celebration :D
Part 6
I felt him approaching the room, knowing he was already at the doors before the guardian announced him to Tatiana. I kept my head forward, not wanting to look at him just yet, still trying to think of a reason not to involve him.
At least with him being closer, some of the pain had receded.
Abe turned to Dimitri, giving him a once over. "So this is the man that caused all this fuss. The one that made Rose travel all the way to Russia and then dares to reject her as his soulmate." Abe growled at the last part, malice dripping from the words.
I hadn't expected Abe to know about that, but it irritated me hearing it brought up. I shot up from my seat, glaring at Abe. "Shut it, old man."
Dimitri's eyes narrowed, warning me, "Rose." I had forgotten that Dimitri knew Abe as Zmey, unaware that the mob boss feared in Russia was my father.
Abe cocked his head to the side, "I see he is still protective of you. That's good."
I wanted this conversation to end.
Turning back to Tatiana, I pleaded, "Please, Your Majesty. He doesn't need to be a part of this."
"Perhaps we should leave that to him to decide," Tatiana replied, tapping her perfectly manicured nails on the arm of her chair. She was enjoying this. Her attention turned to Dimitri, "You have previously mentioned having connections with Strigoi, knowing of their set-up. Is this true?"
Dimitri was trying to figure out where this was going; his eyes flicked to mine before he answered her question. "Yes, Your Majesty."
"So you could use those connections to find someone."
His eyebrows furrowed, "Possibly." A careful answer, not committing but not denying. He was fishing for more information. And Tatiana was going to give it to him.
"What I am about to reveal to you shall not leave this room. Do you understand?"
"I understand," Dimitri assured, expression serious.
"Vasilisa has a living sibling. Rose here has been tasked with finding them, and our only lead is finding one Sonya Karp. Do you believe you could locate her?"
That was a lot of information at once, and Dimitri took it all in stride, much better than I had. "Some Strigoi do keep track of others. I can try to reach out and find out if there is any information about her whereabouts." While to the untrained eye, Dimitri was nonchalant, I could see the uncertainty, the panic.
I was right about him fearing having to go back down that path. This was going to be painful.
Tatiana smiled, acting as if there were no more problems, "Very well. Do well with this task, and it will reflect favourably for you." I wanted to yell at her for essentially threatening Dimitri for compliance. Despite neither he nor I having agreed to take on the task, it was already decided in her mind that we would. "I will leave the rest to you."
A clear dismissal. Abe pressed a hand on my lower back to guide me out. No doubt knowing if I remained, I would say something else I shouldn't to her. Dimitri was close on our heels. I waited until we were away from others, spinning to face Abe.
"You could have warned me beforehand, you know," I whispered angrily.
He was unsurprised by my outburst, "I'm sorry, Rose. But I was busy trying to keep you out of jail."
I faltered, avoiding Dimitri's eyes.
"As much as I would have loved seeing you put Tatiana in her place, try for fewer witnesses next time." It was an attempt at a scolding tone, but his delight showed through. Trust my father to be proud of my insulting the Queen.
I was still mad, though, "You never should have brought Dimitri into this."
I felt a pulse of emotion from Dimitri, but it was gone too quickly to get a read on it. "I can handle it, Rose."
My irritation turned on him, "But you shouldn't have to!"
Abe placed a hand on my shoulder again, "What's done is done."
I hated to admit it, but he was right. Feeling myself deflate and a headache forming behind my eyes. So much had happened, and the day wasn't over.
"Now," Abe continued, seeing I wasn't going to argue anymore, "follow me, and we can start to plan your first steps."
Abe had arranged a suite in the guest accommodations by the palace, rooms that were often reserved for the wealthy Moroi royals. But when you are the man with blackmail material on most royals, you are treated like one.
As we walked to the room, Dimitri's hand had found mine, my body sighing in relief having his touch again. It was like coming home, each time feeling better. I wondered if that was because our bond was becoming stronger.
Thankfully, Abe made no mention of it when he caught sight of our hands, though he did send me a look.
It made me inwardly cringe, suddenly worried that Abe may try to break Dimitri's kneecaps.
Once in Abe's room—which was honestly the size of an apartment. Easily three times the size of my dorm room in the guardian's building, if not bigger—the large L shaped couch was a welcomed sight; I fell against the cushions, finally able to relax my aching body.
The day's events frazzled my mind, and I will claim that as an excuse for why I drew Dimitri down with me. My body moved without thinking, arms snaking around his waist until I was wrapped around him and my head against his chest.
At first, he was caught off guard; then, his arms quickly returned the embrace. Abe sat down across from us in an armchair, clearing his throat loudly.
"Don't even say anything, old man. This is my business."
Dimitri tensed. I realised that I should probably bring Dimitri into the loop if he was going to be stuck with Abe and me.
I pulled back a little to catch his eye; they were wary as they flicked between Abe and I. "You can relax, comrade."
He shot me another warning look, protectiveness coming through the bond. It made my stomach flip, which I quickly scolded it for doing. I released him, blaming my close contact for why my body was betraying me.
Once there was enough distance between us, just our hands touching, I gestured to Abe. "Dimitri, meet my dad." It was almost comical how wide his eyes became, his disbelief evident. "Yeah, I was surprised too."
Abe changed the subject, "Is your mother aware of this new development?"
I scowled, "I don't know. No one was meant to be aware, but it spread around Court pretty fast." I had hoped to avoid the soulmate talk, especially when I didn't even know what I was going to do about it now.
My plan to leave Court for a while was out the window, and now I am searching for a Strigoi with Dimitri. How am I meant to weaken my need for him and move on if he was there the whole time? I stood from the couch, needing to pace.
"It does seem that Belikov is the main topic of gossip here, and you as well. I was barely here a couple of minutes before Pavel informed me of it." Abe explained, "The former Strigoi rejecting my daughter."
I spun on Abe, pointing a finger at him, "Just drop it, would you!"
A knock at the door made us all pause. Pavel let himself in; he crossed the room and bent down to whisper in Abe's ear. Whatever he said made Abe smile, "Wonderful. We shall join her shortly." Abe stood from his couch, pulling on his suit jacket that he removed upon entering. "I need to step out for a moment, but while I do that, I suggest you two come up with a way of locating this Sonya Karp." With a wink at me, Abe left the room, followed by Pavel.
Leaving Dimitri and me alone.
"So he's your father?" Dimitri broke the silence that had settled between us.
I sighed heavily, "Yeah." I continued to pace, rubbing at my chest as if it could alleviate the pain. While it wasn't bad, it was annoying to have it non-stop. And to top it off, my head was pounding with the knowledge Tatiana had dropped. Lissa had a half-sibling; her father had an affair.
This news would break Lissa. She loved her father and held her parent's relationship on a pedestal.
They were an example of how loving and caring a soulmate bonded couple could be, but now it turns out he had betrayed his soulmate and fathered another child. While he wouldn't be the first Moroi to do so, it was still a shock because I never thought he was like that.
"Rose," Dimitri's voice drew my attention, "Come sit down so I can help you."
I wished his open arms didn't look so enticing. Shaking my head, I kept pacing, carefully putting more distance between us. "I'm fine."
"No, you aren't."
"Let it go, Dimitri." I snapped.
He sighed deeply. I was about to check what his emotions were through the bond when he spoke in a quiet voice, "I don't understand what you want."
That made me halt, my back to him. I didn't know either. I kept tossing between wanting him and wanting to be free of him; both seemed impossible.
Keeping my back to him, I asked, "What do you want?"
Apprehension came through the bond, which didn't make me feel better. "I…" He started, voice weary, "I don't know. I just don't like to see you in this much pain."
My face fell, annoyed for thinking I was going to get an actual answer. "Yeah, well, that's pretty much my life for the last couple of years. Non-stop pain." I never caught a break anymore, not in life and not in love.
"I think… I think I can feel something. Earlier, when I was losing control, I suddenly felt a sense of calm." His voice was guarded, but I could detect the smallest amount of awe through the bond, "That was you, wasn't it?"
I crossed my arms as if they could shield me from this conversation. "Yes. I can feel your emotions and send mine through to you, it seems." Unease suddenly grew in him, "Like right now, I can feel that you are nervous. The more we are together, the stronger the bond is getting, and I feel it more. I used to have to be touching you to feel your feelings, but just being close is enough now." And as the days pass, it will keep growing; soon, I will even be able to read his thoughts. They wouldn't be clear like Lissa's, but more like an intuition to what he was thinking.
Dimitri became silent again, absorbing the information. "I can't feel yours."
I scoffed, "Figured that." Bitterness in my voice. If he could feel mine, he would know just how much I hated this whole situation. The entire world for taking away the one thing I truly wanted. When his guilt started to flare, I had to close myself off from the bond; it was still so consuming.
"But I still can't… I don't feel that same way for you."
My lip trembled, a tear falling from my eye. "Figured that too." I wiped the tear away, pushing my emotions down and ignoring the burst of pain. There was no way I could survive however long it takes to find this long lost sibling. "You don't have to do this. I can think of something to tell the Queen, get you off the hook."
"Rose, I've been ordered by her. There's no getting off the hook." He told me in an exasperated tone like he used to at the academy when I would try to Rose logic my way out of something. Only then it used to be accompanied by an affectionate look and a half-smile. "Besides, you being away from me will only cause you pain."
"And being with you causes just as much!" I cried, feeling so defeated. I willed the tears away. I have already shed too many in front of him, because of him.
"I...I'm sorry." His voice was so broken, filled with guilt. And the worst part was he was; I knew he was. But it did nothing to help.
My heart felt like it was breaking again. No matter how many times I would tape and glue myself back together, I kept falling apart.
Drawing on my guardian training, I shift all my emotions away, my resolve from last night returning. I won't let Dimitri hurt me again. I had to cut myself off from it all so I could do this task, and then afterwards, I will get away from him.
By the time I turned back to him, my mask was up, face impassive. "So, how do we find Sonya?" I remembered that Mikhail had once searched for Sonya for a year, unable to find her, and was unsure if Dimitri could do better even with his contacts.
Dimitri didn't comment on my sudden change of subject or demeanour, his mask also slipping in place. "I will need a phone."
The short conversation Dimitri had on the phone with Boris had been some of the worst minutes of my life. I had struggled to keep my fear from showing when he spoke in that voice, pretending to be the monster he once was. The one that still haunted my nightmares.
I didn't know what was worse, my feelings about it, or the ones I felt from Dimitri. I had tried my best to block them, but the guilt was so immense, it was overflowing into me. At first, I had allowed it, a natural response from all the times I took Lissa's emotions, her darkness. I wasn't sure if Dimitri even noticed me doing it or if he felt the weight lift.
I had to stop. I was already in a fragile state of mind, and taking his guilt was dragging me down further. I couldn't comprehend how he was living with it, how he was standing with how heavy it was.
After he had hung up, he placed the phone on the glass coffee table between us, muttering that he would have to wait to call back.
I needed to compose myself. Abe had been the one to give Dimitri the phone when he returned, sitting with us now. I made an excuse to them both about needing the bathroom before quickly leaving the room.
I splashed cold water over my face and on the back of my neck as I took deep breaths, trying to calm my rapid heartbeat. I couldn't understand the conversation Dimitri had, seeing it was in Russian, but when Abe's eyebrows were raised, impressed, I knew I didn't want to know.
Dimitri had been terrifying as a Strigoi, cruel and calculating. It didn't surprise me that he could easily threaten one over the phone, but being reminded was not something I needed.
His guilt was still pouring off of him, like waves crashing into me. It was like he was drowning. He didn't look at me once during the call, standing to the side of the room, away from everyone. I didn't know if I should comfort him or not. If I could even help anymore.
Feeling marginally better, I returned to the main room, the men sitting in silence. Abe on the armchair again with Pavel behind him and Dimitri on the far end of the couch. Dimitri had more control of himself now, the despair that clouded his face after the call had receded, though he still wore a haunted look.
Abe glanced between us before speaking, "I suggest you both pack a bag. We will leave soon to meet up with my associate, and then you two will be on your own." Abe had already given me an envelope that had some money and information in it, telling me that his associate would take care of helping us travel around to find Sonya.
I had no idea what our plan was once we found her, but I decided just taking this one step at a time was best.
I glanced over at Dimitri again, knowing his only belongings were back at Lissa's in the bag in the spare room. And from what I saw through the bond, Eddie had run back there with my bag after the Royal Guards took me.
It had what I would need for the trip; my room didn't have much that I cared for enough to have with me. Returning to Lissa's would be easiest, briefly explain the situation and grab our bags and head off. I told the room my plan, with nods of agreement, we left the suite.
Lissa raised a brow at Abe, I had told her the truth about him being my father when I returned from Russia, and now she could finally put a face to the name. "You do look a lot like him," She whispered to me.
I eyed Abe and shook my head. "It's just the hair. I look much better than him."
"I also believe your ability to find trouble around every corner is also from me, little girl," Abe commented.
I rolled my eyes, "Whatever you say, old man."
Lissa glanced between us, "And the personality as well."
Everyone was still at Lissa's townhouse, all waiting for news about what had happened to me, and Dimitri after he had been requested. As soon as I passed through the door, I was bombarded with questions from Lissa, a bit of scolding thrown in there as well. After assuring her I wasn't going to jail or having my guardian status stripped, she calmed down somewhat.
Before arriving, Dimitri and I agreed it would be best to leave out the specifics of our task, not wanting to mention that we were looking for Lissa's sibling or tracking down Sonya seeing Mikhail was still here as well.
All of them looked at us in shock and concern when it was revealed that Dimitri and I would be travelling together for this secret task that the Queen had personally assigned us.
When Dimitri went to retrieve his bag from upstairs, Mikhail had been quick to follow. It was easy to guess he was threatening Dimitri in some way to look after me. I was surprised by how protective Mikhail had become of me, but I was grateful for it.
Once he returned to the group Tasha went upstairs to find Dimitri; I was less pleased about that. Lissa had been quick to distract me.
Christian edged closer to us, arm going around Lissa's waist. "Is it true Zmey breaks people's legs? I heard that he did." Christian had been astounded by the reveal of my father, not surprisingly knowing the stories of Zmey.
I gave him a sweet smile, "I could ask him if he will break yours."
His eyes widened, not knowing if I was joking or not. Amusement floating through the bond from Lissa. It was a strange feeling, my bond with her now because I could feel her still, but now I could catch glimpses of Christian's feelings as well. Soon I'm going to have the ability to read the minds of three people.
I didn't want to reveal that to Lissa, though, knowing it would just upset her. Despite having no control of it, it was still difficult to accept I had so much access to them both. Even Dimitri was put off by the access I had to his emotions.
Leaving the two of them to their sickly sweet thoughts, I walked over to Eddie, where he leaned up against the wall, observing the room.
I nudged him with my elbow, "Thanks for bringing my stuff back here."
"Thanks for not getting thrown in jail. If you had, there would have been no stopping Lissa."
I laughed, glad that we could joke again. I had missed his friendship. "I need you to do a favour for me while I'm gone."
He gave me a knowing look, "Yes, I will keep an eye on Lissa and her soulmate that doesn't keep his hands off her. It's kind of gross, honestly." Eddie made a gagging noise, earning him two disgruntled shouts. He grinned, then his face turned serious, "You need to be careful and watch out for yourself. While I like Belikov, I don't want you to get hurt again."
I glanced down at my feet, "I won't. It'll be okay, and hopefully, this won't take long."
The room's conversations cut off when Dimitri reentered the lounge room, a despondent Tasha trailing behind him. His eyes found mine before turning away.
I won't let Dimitri hurt me again. I hope...
"Is that everything?" Abe asked; at both of our nods, he clasped his hands, "Wonderful. Shall we go then, have a long drive ahead of us."
After some hugs and promises to Lissa that I would check in when I could, I stood beside the SUV Abe owned. At first, I was going to let Dimitri take the front seat, but I was feeling the weariness of not having any contact for the last hour or so, the last time being when I had laid against him when we first got to Abe's room. It was irritating to ask, but I needed it before the pain became too much to bear again.
"Dimitri," I gained his attention, "could you… I mean," I sighed, frustrated. "Could you sit in the back with me? I need…"
Understanding crossed his face, moving from the front door to the back. Abe switched to the front so that the three of us weren't crowded in the backseat. As soon as we were buckled in, I laid my head on Dimitri's shoulder, a soft sigh of pleasure escaping.
I threaded my fingers through his, letting our arms lay together between our thighs. Once comfortable, I asked Abe, "So where are we meeting this associate of yours?"
Abe replied, winking at me in the rearview mirror, "West Virginia."
So I am going to be following the events of the last books, but with some obvious changes and some of my own stuff.
And maybe, just maybe, things will get better for Rose and Dimitri soon :P
