Dimitri is going to love his surprise. When discussing who we wanted to punish back in Novosibirsk, he had mentioned wanting to find his father, but that it would either be too risky getting to him or challenging to find. Fortunately for me, Dimitri never took into account that I would approach my moroi father in a business request, but I run the risk of the backlash when he finds out I disobey his one request – to stay away from Abe Mazur.
Walking into the living room, I meet Dominic's gaze, and I'm confused about the awkward look that crosses his face. Frowning at him as I round the corner, my curious gaze turns to stone seeing a red-haired woman perched on Dimitri's lap, hands splayed on his chest.
"Uh. Who is this?" I demand, tossing my clutch onto the coffee table and placing my hands on my hips.
The red-head smiles at me and crosses her legs. "I'm Delilah, you are?" she says in a snippy tone. I grit my teeth together and look at Dimitri, who has a stoic look on his face.
"Rose. What are you doing on my man's lap?" I bite back, glaring at the two of them. I am vibrating from anger, and when neither of them answers, I turn to look at Dominic, and he stands from his seat, bolting from the room.
"Fine. Don't let me interrupt then." I snarl and stalk out of the room towards our bedroom, yanking my earring out as I kick the door open. Who the hell does he think he is, bringing that into our home and having the balls to do that? I'm sure if I was capable of crying, I'd have angry tears rolling down my cheeks.
Throwing my earrings down on the dresser and grabbing the first thing my hands reach, I turn and whip a vase across the room, shattering it against the wall in rage. "That seems a little adolescent," Dimitri grumbles from behind me, causing me to spin around and pin him with my glare.
"If you'd like to keep your limbs, you'd fuck off!" I snap, walking into the closet to change. But the dumbass that he is thinks he's smart and follows me into the closet.
"Where were you?" he asks coldly. I ignore him and reach around to unclasp the eye and hook on my dress. Grappling for a moment and hissing in frustration, I feel a larger set of hands bat mine out of the way and unhook and pull the zipper down enough for me to reach it. I jerk away and shimmy out of my dress, kicking it to the side.
"I was out taking care of something; I don't need to report my every move to you. Why were you all cozied up with that whore?" I snark, bending to unbuckle my heels. Stepping out of them and pulling out clothes to change into, keeping my back to him while I silently fume.
Dressing and shoving past him back into the bedroom, I move towards the door, and he yanks me back. "You didn't answer my question," he growls, and I react on instinct, and slap him across the face.
"Let. Go. Of. Me!" I hiss, yanking back from him, but he grips my arm harder. "And, to be frank, you never answered mine."
"Why were you meeting Zmey?"
I scoff and shake my head. Of course, he already knew where I was; he is just being spiteful. I have to force myself from tearing into him because I know that if I start, there is a very good chance one of us would not be making it out of that fight. I may be pissed at him, but I still need him just as much as he needs me.
We stare each other down, flames dancing in his eyes, his jaw twitching as he grinds his teeth together. I raise my brows at him and glare at him, waiting for him to answer me.
"I think you know exactly why I was meeting with my father. " I say, moving closer and getting into his face. "We have people we are looking for, and if you can't find them, Abe can," I whisper, jabbing him in the chest with my finger and ripping myself from his grip.
"But none of that matters now. Go back to your skank; I'm not here to keep your cock warm. We are supposed to be a team, and I wanted to do something nice, but that is clearly wasted," I say, stalking out of the bedroom and slamming the door behind me.
Three days later, and I still haven't spoken to the asshole I consider a partner, and you can feel the tension in the house. It turns out that Delilah is a recruit for the team, but I really want to pretend that she isn't there. Dominic has avoided me since the showdown between Dimitri and me, but now that I've cornered him in the basement, he will talk.
"I told you not a word, and you told him!" I scream at him, pacing like a cat on a hot tin roof. He looks down at the floor and squares his shoulders, preparing the verbal smackdown I'm about to deliver.
"I know," he says quietly, and I snap at him, shoving him back into the wall six feet behind him. He staggers and stands back up.
"You had ONE job, Dominic!"
"I get that! But you don't understand what it's like to have him bearing down on you," he says, and I clutch my hair in my hands.
"I don't understand?! I had to deal with him while I was still a dhampir! I had to deal with his anger while I was strung out, and yet I still didn't cower away like you!" I screech. I have dealt with worse when it comes to Dimitri, but at least I can own up to my mistakes and misjudgments. "Grow a fucking pair, Dominic. I expected more from you." I say, retreating from the room.
One more hour, one more hour and I can get out of this house for a little bit.
"What?!" I snap into my phone when it rings, breaking the perfect silence of the room.
"Hello to you too," Abe says into the phone with a chuckle.
"Hi. What do you have?" I ask, leaning against the wall, watching the sliver of light darken beneath the blackout curtain.
"He's in Northern Michigan. He's been hanging out in a dhampir community."
"Thank you. I'll send you your payment," I reply and end the call stuffing my phone back into my pocket with a huff. Not like that matters anymore.
Going upstairs to go and change into something appropriate for a night out, Delilah exists Dimitri's study and I shoulder past her, glaring at her and Dimitri when he steps out after her. Dimitri says something to her quietly and follows me down the hall.
I ignore him while changing and brush past him where he is leaning against the dresser with his arms crossed, I sit down at the vanity table and proceed to put my make up on.
"Roza," he says softly, and I meet his gaze in the reflection of the mirror and return my attention to my makeup. He watches me while I put it on, his eyes following every movement with an eagle's precision. Adding the final line of eyeliner and dabbing red lipstick to my lips, I rub my lips together and fluff my hair.
I feel weird, we don't perceive feelings the way we used to, but I hate fighting with him. We live in a world now where there is no love, but sometimes I can still feel my heart speed up when he smiles at me, or my blood coursing in my veins when he touches me. It scares me to know that he holds that kind of hold over me still, and there is an ache in my chest. "What do you want?"
He comes to kneel behind me, running his hands over the top of my arms, holding my gaze in the mirror.
"I overreacted," he says, and I snort a laugh and shake my head. I stand up and step around him, grabbing my leather jacket off the bed. "Rose. Please."
I stop in my tracks and bite my tongue, turning to look at him while pulling my jacket on.
"You think?" I say, crossing my arms over my chest. He moves closer to me and places his hands on my waist.
"Why were you asking Abe for help?" he asks, pulling me closer to him, splaying his hands over my back and running the tip of his nose over my forehead.
"I asked him to track down Randall, he found him. Abe just called a half-hour ago," I say, staring at his chest.
"Why?"
I sigh and rest my head against his chest and groan. "Because of what he put you through. He's a piece of shit royal who thinks that he can just do whatever he wants and not pay the consequences," I mumble, making him chuckle, and I can feel the vibration of it run through him. "Why are you laughing at me?"
"Because you are the most extraordinary woman I've ever met," he says, kissing my head. I pull my head back and narrow my eyes at him.
"I'm still mad at you," I growl, and he frowns at me. I step back to pull out of his hands, but he stops me and gently pulls me back – gentle for a strigoi.
"Nothing happened between Delilah and me. She was trying to seduce me when you came in. I was baiting you, which was wrong. She thought that getting into my bed would help her climb ranks, but it backfired when the other on the team mocked her for it." He says quietly, resting his lips back on my head. "I'm sorry."
"Why should I believe you?" I ask but sounding angrier than I felt. Him apologizing was enough to soften me up, because he's not one to admit his mistakes now.
He hums and runs his hands over my back. "Because I was an ass. But I mean it when I say that it was wrong what I did."
I sigh deeply and wrap my arms around his waist and rest my face against his chest. Listening to his slow heartbeat, I contemplate asking him the question that I've had running through my head since the night he awoke me.
"Can I ask you something at the risk of sounding absolutely crazy?"
"Of course, Roza. You can ask me anything."
Do you still feel it?" I ask, looking up at him, gnawing at my lip. "That shock- that hum when we touch. I used to feel it when we had those small moments, but even now, I sometimes feel it. It feels like a jolt of electricity through my body."
He stills and looks down at me, tucking a stubborn curl behind my ear. Running his thumb over my bottom lip, he leans down and brushes his lips over mine. "I feel it every time I touch you. You aren't crazy," he whispers against my lips and pressing his to mine gently.
I smile against his lips and move to wrap my arms around his neck and stretch on my toes to get closer to him. He pulls back from my lips with a smirk, and I pout at him.
"I have something for you," He says, squeezing my waist and letting go of me, walking to his bedside table. "Close your eyes."
I roll my eyes before closing them and shift on my feet as I listen to him walk closer to me. I creak a crack of fabric and cold metal against my neck, making me flinch. He chuckles at my action and clasping whatever it is at the nape of my neck.
Moving around me and positioning the metal just above the valley of my breasts, he drags his fingers across my décolletage. "You can open your eyes now."
I open and look down to see a mystic topaz the size of a quarter hanging from a gold chain. Cut into a teardrop and cased at the top, it has to be one of the most beautiful gems I've ever seen.
My mouth gaps open, and I drag my eyes back up to him. Where the hell did he get that?
"I've rendered the infamous Rose Hathaway speechless, I think I've earned a medal," he jokes, and I smack him, smiling at him.
"When did you get this? It's beautiful," I say, stretching back up and wrapping my arms around his neck.
"A few days ago. Saw it and thought you would like it," he said. Biting down on my lip and then running my tongue over it, and slowly drag my hands down his back, scratching my nails over the fabric of his shirt, bringing them down between us and playing with the waist of his slack.
"How about we go out tonight. No lackeys, just you and me," I say flirtatiously, batting my eyes him.
"Where do you want to go? Dinner, clubbing, hunting?" he says thoughtfully, rocking against my hands and nipping at me. I dip my fingers beneath and running my fingers along his skin, giving him a considerate look.
"I want to go clubbing. I want to dance tonight," I say, stepping away from him and walking to the closet to change into something better to dance in. Pulling on a gold drape halter dress that comes to midthigh and switch shoes, I meet Dimitri in the hall and take his hand, dragging him down the hall.
"Have you two seen this?" Jasper asks us when we descend the stairs and see him, Dominic, Delilah and Jane in the living room. We walk over to see Jasper holding a newspaper in his hands before handing it to Dimitri.
He reads it over and lets a sly grin spread across his lips before tilting it towards me to read.
Death Toll Rises to 150 as Murder Spree Continues Across Country.
I laugh and wink towards Dominic, knowing that he had his fair share in the rising body count. "How much has leaked to the moroi society?" I ask, taking the paper from Dimitri and moving to lean over the counter, flicking from the front page to read the rest of the article. I can feel Jasper's eyes on the exposed skin of my breasts from where my dress has hung away from my body, and I flick up eyes up to him and narrow them.
"See something you like?"
He seems startled by my question and looks at Dimitri and then back to me. "Yes, I do."
Feeling Dimitri's mammoth presence behind me, placing his hands on my hips and leaning against me, he growls at Jasper, asserting his dominance over all of us. If it were anyone else trying to asset dominance on me, I would kill them, Dimitri, on the other hand, is the exception.
"Don't worry Comrade, I only have eyes for you," I say, continuing to read the paper.
"After you killed Tasha and Adrian, along with the other moroi, it started to spread like wildfire through court. They just don't know who is causing the killings." Dominic says, interrupting the tension in the room. I fold the paper up and flash him a smile, nodding and wiggling back into Dimitri's groin before standing up and pulling Dimitri towards the door.
"We are heading out; we'll be back," I call over my shoulder and squeal when he swats my ass while I walk in front of him.
Nightlife is probably my favourite part of being a strigoi, being able to spend all night absorbing my addictive energy of those around me, breathing in the smell of alcohol and blood. It is euphoric.
Reaching my hands up to wrap them around Dimitri, who is pressed against my back, I smirk and swing my hips against him, moving to the music. We haven't had time to go out just the two of us, and it feels good to be able to go out without an entourage.
I push back against him as he leaves open-mouthed kisses on my neck and shoulders, sucking the closer he gets to my ear, and I tilt my head to give him more access. Gripping his hands on my hips tighter, guiding my hips against him, he moves one hand up my waist and stopping just up my breast.
"I like this dress, gives me a great view from here," he says into my ear, squeezing my hip tighter in his hand and grinding against me. I smile and let go of him to turn in his arms.
"Well, how about the view from here?" I ask flirtatiously, pulling him down to kiss me and continuing to grind against him.
Smirking against my lips, he slides his hands around to cup my butt, biting my bottom lip and tugging with a growl rumbling through his chest. "It's better."
Feeling him hard pressed against me, I slip my tongue into his mouth and massage it against his, moaning at the taste of whiskey lingering in his mouth.
The club is crowded tonight, packed to capacity, and I have caught many hungry glances from other men – and some women. Some stare at me, some at Dimitri - but some at the two of us as a pair. Dominic once said that he could feel the power radiating off us, and I like the idea of people being able to feel how strong we are.
"I want to get out of here," I say into his ear, snacking my hand between us and palming him through his slack, he moves his hands to mine and directs me out of the club and moving around back towards our car. Me being impatient, pull him towards the wall and push him against it, smirking at him when he grins.
"I thought you said you wanted to get out of here," he says, pulling me closer to him, and I chuckle under my breath, kissing up his neck and licking the shell of his ear.
"I do bu-" I start to say before Dimitri tosses me to the side and blocking the body flying at him. Stumbling, I regain my composure and move to assist him, but the minute I see the other person's face, I falter.
In Dimitri's headlock, is standing my childhood friend, Edison Castile.
"Eddie, what are you doing?" I laugh, shaking my head and straightening my dress. He struggles to get out of Dimitri's grip, but sadly it's futile. We called Dimitri a God for a reason, and his strength has increased by a tenfold since being awakened.
"Doing what you would have done for me, freeing your soul." Eddie chokes out, trying to land a blow on Dimitri's abdomen. I look up at Dimitri with a sinister smile.
"Don't kill him, Comrade. We could use him."
Dimitri smiles and shifts his grip around Eddie, putting him into a sleeper hold instead, rendering him unconscious.
A/N: I know this chapter is a little different than the others, but it is essential to the plot development. I am the only one to edit this chapter, and I apologize if there are errors. Let me know what you think :)
Disclosure: I own nothing