Ch. 12
Songs: Us Against the World - Coldplay, White Winter Hymnal - Fleet Foxes, It Was A Sin - The Revivalists
A smell wrapped around me, something familiar yet, not. The only way I could think to describe it was warm. It was nothing like that dingy, dirty alley coated in Strigoi blood. I must have been moved since then. I could hear hushed voices in the background. I couldn't tell if they were speaking English or something else; there was a light ringing in my ears distracting my senses and I was still too tired to open my eyes.
I involuntarily let out a soft groan as the dull ringing bounced off my skull. My head felt like it weighed 50 lbs. Considering all the spirits it had been housing earlier I wasn't surprised. I felt a tender, calloused hand lovingly rest on my arm to settle me. My eyelids began to flutter open and I could make out features of a blurred face. Dimitri's brown eyes were looking down at me, but they didn't belong to him.
I looked around the room and saw another pair, and another pair; all the same as Dimitri's but none were his. Where was he? Where was I? The figure above me must have recognized my rising panic and spoke to me, "Shh. There, there it's alright dear."
It was a woman's voice. Within her soothing tone, I could detect the faintest trace of a Russian accent. I blinked a few times to focus my vision and for the first time, I could see her properly. Her resemblance to Dimitri was uncanny, but she had wrinkles from years of worry around her mouth and eyes. I should have felt unnerved by being in a strange place with a strange woman I didn't know, but something about her told me I could trust her. "Where are—"
Before I could finish my query, loud footsteps came booming down some stairs nearby along with smaller more frantic steps in tow. I could hear a child giggling and speaking in, what I assumed was, Russian. Shortly after, Eddie whipped around the corner with a bouncing baby girl on his head and a small boy running at his heels. A dark-haired woman, slightly older than Dimitri, smiled and reached for the baby. Her smile sparked a familiarity in me, recognizing it as the full grin Dimitri rarely wore and only reserved for me. Even the small boy behind Eddie looked like a mini version of Dimitri. It was like he was everywhere, but not here.
When the woman settled the baby in her arms, Eddie turned to the room I was in and noticed I was awake. "Rose! Glad to see you up. You gave us a bit of a scare back there," he strode over to the couch I was laying on and knelt down beside me. The older woman from earlier stood up, allowing him to get closer to me.
"Eddie," I sat up so that we were at eye level. "What the hell is going on? Where are we?" He chuckled at my uneasiness and looked up at the older woman.
"This is Olena Belikova. We are in her home." Olena nodded her head towards me and responded, "It's nice to officially meet you, Rose."
Eddie spent the next few minutes catching me up to speed. It turns out Olena Belikova had a reputation among her peers for healing—not the sort of magical healing I had recently grown accustomed to. She'd had medical training and was the person other Dhampirs—and even some Moroi—went to see in this region when they wanted to avoid human attention. Oh, and on top of that...she was Dimitri's mother.
After I collapsed, they had taken me here via a private jet to Omsk then a short car ride over to Baia, Dimitri's hometown. I had been out of it for nearly two days but was assured my recovery would speed up from here on out. When I asked Eddie more specific questions, like how two lowly Dhampirs got access to a private jet, he gave a sidelong glance to Olena. She flashed me a friendly smile and replied, "It's probably best my son fill you in on the rest of the details."
I was confused why they were keeping information from me but realized I was more confused why he wasn't here. "Where is Dimitri?"
Eddie stayed quiet with an apprehensive look on his face and let Olena answer again. "He is probably still at the old gym. Eddie, maybe if Rose is feeling up for it you could show her the way? I need you to run a couple errands for me in town, so you could drop her by there on your way out. I'm sure she would like to stretch her legs." Before her last statement left her mouth, I could feel my muscles ache from the lack of exercise.
"Sure thing Ms. Belikova. I'll just go grab our coats." Eddie jumped up and headed towards the stairs he had barreled down earlier.
"Sweetheart, how many times must I tell you, please call me Olena." He gave her a cheeky smile and disappeared up the stairs. Errands? Sweetheart? I felt like I had entered the twilight zone and landed in some episode of Leave it to Beaver.
Olena motioned for the younger woman and two kids to enter the room. "Rose, this is my daughter Karolina and her children Paul and Zoya." Karolina wore her Dimitri grin with the baby on her hip and I tried my best to give her a polite smile in return, which probably came out as more of a scowl as I stretched my stiff legs out over the edge of the couch. The little boy plopped down next to me and began drilling me with questions. "Did you really fight Strigoi with my uncle Dimka? How many have you killed? Do you have tattoos?"
"Paul," Karolina chastised. "Where are your manners?"
"It's okay." Weirdly, I found the little stranger's questions more amusing than annoying. Maybe I hit my head when I passed out in the alley. Or maybe it was just the naive curiosity dancing in his eyes that prompted me to indulge. I sat up straighter and turned my back to him, lifting my hair to show my bare neck. I heard gasps simultaneously from Paul and Karolina.
"Woah! I've never seen that one before! What is it?" Karolina seemed to be in awe as she responded to her son. "That's a Zvezda. Only Dhampirs who have fought in battle wear them. Too many kills to count."
I felt my cheeks flush with pride during their admiration of my marks, but the gratified glow completely drained when I was reminded of that day. The words "battle" and "kills" echoed through my ears. I soberly dropped my hair and looked down at my hands, remembering them soaked in blood and fragments of scorched skin. My fingertips began to quiver as the gruesome memories of those I'd slain threatened to rear their heads.
Suddenly, a small, gentle hand hovered over mine before hesitantly giving my palm a squeeze. It was notably strong for how small it was. I looked over to Paul sitting next to me, his curiosity gone and a knowing look resting on his face. My grisly thoughts melted away and I felt instantly calmed under his comforting gaze. We sat there looking at each other for a moment as he studied my face. I wondered what was going on in his head. Had he seen that cryptic look on my face before, and where?
I let out a nervous laugh at the fact that a 10-year-old had just prevented me from having an anxiety attack and abruptly stood up off the couch. My legs felt a little unsteady at first, but I quickly righted myself and felt grounded.
As if on cue, Eddie scrambled into the living room and interrupted my embarrassment. "Ready to go Hathaway?" He stood in the entryway holding my coat out towards me.
"Yeah. Let's go." I walked towards Eddie and snatched my coat from his hand. "It was uh, nice meeting you," I called over my shoulder as we walked out the front door.
There was a brisk chill in the air, but with the sun shining it was relatively pleasant out. Not at all what I expected from Siberia. My legs still didn't feel quite right, but the more we walked the better I felt. Eddie pleasantly chatted along our walk, pointing out little details here and there. As we came closer to town, I was intrigued by what I saw. Baia wasn't a big city by any means, like Saint Petersburg or Novosibirsk, but it was an actual town with a surprisingly dense human population. From rumored descriptions of Blood Whore communes I had heard over the years I was almost expecting a rural camp or farm settlement, but the whole setting was remarkably normal. When we reached what Eddie called downtown the streets were lined with local shops and restaurants, and it too seemed like any other place in the world people might reside. Traditionally modern, just with a slight village feel.
Eddie was pointing out a drugstore that Dimitri's sister, Sonya, worked at when I heard someone call out his name. I looked over to the left to see a girl about our age waving in our direction. She had the same brown hair as the Belikovas, but with golden streaks peeking out under the sun's gaze. She was standing with a young, very cute, Dhampir guy. Eddie waved back and made his way over, I obligingly followed.
"Hey, Vika. How's it goin?"
"Hi Eddie," she smiled at him before turning towards me. "It's good to see you up, Rose." I stood there with a questioning look. "Oh, sorry." She giggled and stuck out her hand. "I'm Viktoria Belikova. Dimitri's sister."
"Geeze how many of you are there," I said sarcastically, accepting her hand.
She laughed and continued to introduce the guy next to her, "This is my friend from school, Nikolai," he had bronze hair and dark eyes, his age falling somewhere near mine and Eddie's. He smiled at me politely then turned his attention back to Viktoria, watching her adoringly. "What are you two up to today? Has my mother got you running more errands," Viktoria teased.
Eddie sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, just a few. But I'm showing Rose the way to the gym first."
Viktoria shot me a look somewhere between pity and amusement. "Hmm well, good luck with that. Hopefully, he's in a better mood than yesterday." She and Eddie shared a light chuckle and I suddenly felt out of the loop.
Growing annoyed, I steered the conversation in a new direction. "Well, it was nice meeting you Viktoria, but we should really get going." Sensing my irritation, an apologetic look crossed Viktoria's face.
"Sorry Rose. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. Dimitri's just been a bit of a grump since he arrived home. But I understand, you two probably have a lot to talk about. I'll see you guys back at the house later." I felt a little bad for my attitude slipping out and gave another attempt at my "polite" smile as Eddie and I set out.
"Oh, and Rose," Viktoria called to us. "Call me Vika, okay?"
"Sure Vika. It was nice meeting you too, Nikolai." They gave us friendly waves as Eddie and I continued on our way. I was starting to wonder if all the Belikovs had some hidden power that could lighten any mood.
We finally approached an older, gray building. Eddie awkwardly slapped my back and stumbled, "So, uh there's the gym. You can just, uh go on in, and—yeah." I, unsuccessfully, attempted a Dimitri Belikov one raised eyebrow look, but I'm pretty sure Eddie still got the point. His expression turned somewhat sympathetic and he gave my arm a supportive squeeze. "I'll see you later Rose." He turned and headed back towards town and for the first time since waking up, I accepted my nervousness.
I decided there was no point in stalling and pushed through the gym door. I could hear muted grunts and hits against a punching bag lightly drumming along to the beat of an 80's anthem. He must not have noticed my entrance and continued his rhythmic assault. I cleared my throat and he hung his arms down with his back to me. He muttered something in Russian that I didn't understand.
"Uh, you do know I practically cheated my way through foreign language?" He spun his body around at the sound of my voice, pieces of his damp hair that never quite stayed in his ponytail stuck to his jaw. His face shifted from surprise, concern, to relief all in an instant, before throwing up his stoic Guardian mask. The subtle changes would have gone unnoticed by most, but I had mastered the art of detecting his hidden emotions.
"I thought you were Karo," he said in a monotone voice, all the earlier signs of sentiment completely vanished. Unable to resist myself, I indulged in the opportunity to break down those infuriating walls of his the best way I knew how—throw out my infamous Rose Hathaway sarcasm.
"Yeah, about that. I'm attacked by a band of demented spirits, Paranormal Activity style, and you take me home to your mom? Not really what I would have expected, Comrade." He stubbornly held onto that impassive look and turned away from me while he began unraveling his hand wraps.
Determined to break his reserved attitude I asserted more sass. "You'd think with access to a private jet you could have taken us to—I don't know—Thailand? Bermuda? Anywhere other than Siberia, really."
Fed up with my antics, Dimitri whipped around with lightning speed to face me full on. His gaze mirrored the same look he wore in the alley after the Strigoi fight, and I felt like spiders were prickling up my arms. "Do you really think this is some joking matter? What you did was reckless. It was dangerous and stupid, Rose."
My anger retaliated, "Lissa needed me. I had to do something! I couldn't just sit around and do nothing while I waited for you to find a way to convince me to leave it alone." I could see the faintest hint of hurt in his eyes suppressed by anger.
"You could have gotten yourself killed! You could have gotten both of you killed." The thought of Eddie's still, bloodied body lying in that alley ripped at my insides. Another one of my friends gone because of me. I could tell Dimitri regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth, but I didn't care.
"Oh, you're so high and mighty! You always know the right thing to do. I'm sorry I'm not perfect like you and don't consider every precise detail before acting, but the consequences were worth the risk. I have to help her." My retribution started out angry and malicious, but by the end of it, my voice sounded desperate. My chest felt tight and my breathing became shallow and quick. Red eyes that should have been jade green flashed through my vision and I fought the urge to fall to my knees.
"I have to help her," I whispered, my hands starting to shake.
"Roza," his voice was calmer and quiet now like he was approaching a wounded animal. "I understand. I do." He took a few steps towards me but stopped before getting too close. I saw his hand itching to reach out to me and my body stiffened, torn between want and fear. Lissa Comes First. Lissa Comes First.
His hand stilled and glued to his side as he continued. "I wasn't going to stop you. I just wanted some time to come up with a plan. I want to help you, Rose. I know things are...different, but the promises I made to you still stand. I said I will always be there for you and I meant it. Even after everything that's happened, I hoped you could still trust me." Those last words hung heavy in the air, his stone mask cracked revealing the full weight of them. The realization of what I had done completely sank in. The others had known the consequences and agreed to the plan, but Dimitri—I had looked him in the face and lied to him. I knew things would never be the same between us; I could never give into my feelings for him again and had completely closed my heart off to him, but it didn't mean I didn't still trust him. He had been there for me more times than I could count, and I repaid him with dishonesty and betrayal.
"I...I'm sorry." He looked surprised by my response. "You're right. I wasn't thinking clearly," I looked into his deep eyes so he could see my sincerity. "There's just so much going on in my head, and I can't sort out what's right and wrong. All I know is that she needs me, and if there's even the smallest chance that I can help her, I have to take it." Dimitri stood there, completely still, soaking up everything I was saying. "I trust you Dimitri, more than anyone, and I'm sorry I fractured that."
He remained still for a moment longer and nodded his head in understanding. "Thank you, Rose," his words came out barely above a whisper. "And I promise I won't give you a reason to doubt me ever again. We'll figure this out...together."
His words soothed me and even though I had spent the past few weeks pushing him away, I realized my best chances of getting to Lissa were with Dimitri by my side. Not only were his battle skills unmatched, the proof was ingrained on his skin and in my mind, but he knew the darkest parts of me and had this unspoken way of bringing me back to the light when they threatened to overtake me. My control had been teetering on the border of madness and restraint, and standing there with the Russian god, for the first time I truly felt confident that we could formulate a plan to successfully reach Lissa. In that moment I realized I didn't only need him there—I wanted him there. I shook those thoughts from my head and returned to my former bravado to ease the tension in the old gym.
"Well, now that that's settled...why don't you tell me how the hell you got access to a private jet."
A/N: Bonus track Livin' on a Prayer. I can totally see Dimitri smashing some bags while jamming out to Bon Jovi lol.