Rose POV

The speed with which the guardians resolved problems always impressed me. Whether it was a rescue mission, neutralizing an attacker, attacking Strigois, or chasing a fugitive, their response was always immediate and effective. Well, usually. That was also the case this time.

When the Palace was attacked, the royal guardians, including me, threw ourselves into defense and responded to the attack. Those who were Lissa's close guardians that day stayed with her and Christian in a safe room so they could defend the queen if the attackers got that close to her. Half of my team and I were sent outside to fend off the attack before the enemy breached the Palace. To our surprise, instead of trying to attack us to get into the Palace, the attackers threw us into a van and drove us outside the Court.

This wasn't the first time I had been tied up in the basement by my tormentors, but I'll admit it always took me by surprise. The rough ropes on my wrists, hands, and ankles irritated my skin as I began tugging at my bonds, looking for some weak point I could exploit to get out.

At this time, the kidnappers gave an extremely poignant talk about how they were the true allies of the Moroi kind and only wanted justice, and to make sure that the rule of law would prevail among us, they obviously saw no other way than to use violence. It was hard not to roll my eyes. They claimed to kidnap us for 'valuable information' and intended to 'interrogate' each of us. We all knew that this involved torture. We looked at each other with equal determination not to say anything to them and to find a way to get out of this shithole as quickly as possible.

Pierre was the first one to be interrogated. He followed them quietly, wearing a disgusted expression, as if he found the situation unsavory and unnecessary, but not frightening.

We were left alone and tried to get out of the ropes put on our wrists. I had never seen this pattern of ties before. The rough material abraded the skin on my wrists, and threaded through the insides of my hands, painfully carving into them. They tied our hands above our heads to limit our maneuver options and induce fatigue quickly.

I was never good at sitting still, so long after my companions gave up on our bonds, I pulled and tugged at the ropes. A burning sensation made me realize that I had scraped my skin down to the blood, but at the same time, I felt the ropes let go a little, which propelled me into action. When I was close to loosening the rope, my skin burned deeply, trying to warn me not to abuse it again, but I couldn't let my previous efforts be in vain. With a gasp of pain, I released my left hand. My colleagues whistled approvingly and began trying to free themselves.

I managed to take out my phone and send a message with directions on how to reach us to Dimitri. He wrote back that they were on their way to us. We were trying to free ourselves when the kidnappers brought in a semi-conscious Pierre, with a bloody, battered face. I froze with my hands upward, but these idiots didn't even check to see if our bonds were intact. They took Marlene next, who didn't go without a right.

We tried to revive Pierre, but he lost consciousness. We worried about Marlene, but before I could untie the rope on my right hand and try to help her, we heard gunshots and screams upstairs. I started tugging even harder on the ropes, but it didn't take long when our guardians stood in the doorway and began freeing us.

Dimitri appeared third at our door. He rushed into our basement with a gun in his hand, full of determination and power, leaving no doubt that he was ready to kill the enemies in his path. Cold, deadly fury was written all over his face as he scanned the basement with his eyes until his gaze stopped on me. His eyes softened as he quickly made his way over to me, looking at me intently, checking to make sure I wasn't injured.

I smiled cheerfully as he took a knife from his pocket to cut the ropes on my wrists.

„You guys are too early. You didn't give me time to get both hands out," I said with a playful accusation in my voice. Amusement sparked in his eyes, but his expression remained serious.

„Forgive me. If I had known, I would have slowed down the rescue mission," he replied with a slight sneer in his voice, cutting the ropes carefully so as not to irritate my skin. When he released my hand, he gently caught my face in his hands. „Are you hurt?"

His eyes pierced me with the utmost concern. He continued to wear the mask of a tough, deadly guardian, but worry and tenderness shone through his eyes.

„They didn't even scratch me," I replied, gently moving forward and kissing him hastily on the lips. It seemed to me as if the features of his face had softened even more.

He knelt in front of me and carefully cut the ropes around my ankles, helping me to free myself from them. When everyone was, we helped the others take Pierre upstairs. He and Marlene were rushed in a medical cart toward the Court without delay. Harvey, the head of the royal guards, arrived in person and greeted me with a pat on the back. He was pleased that I was all right and thanked me for sending the information to Dimitri. I asked who was guarding Lissa since he was here, but he promised that my friend was in good hands, and he wanted to make sure his guardians were safe.

The guardians were questioning the kidnappers and gathering evidence in their hideout. I was already about to join when Dimitri stopped me.

„Not so fast. First, we have to take care of your hands," he gently grasped my irritated palms. I grimaced at the sight of them. The rope burns were vividly red, and there were blisters in some places.

„It's nothing. Really, of all the bad things that could happen to me and others, this is irrelevant."

Dimitri gently ran his finger over the skin, careful not to touch the abrasions.

„This is relevant to me. Come on."

He put his arm around me and gently led me to the bathroom on the sidelines. I don't know when he prepared a first aid kit, but he spread it out on the counter and rolled up his sleeves. I leaned comfortably against the countertop and let him attend to my hands, which he was now examining carefully. He then let the water run, adjusting the temperature and checking it with his own hands. He slid my hands under the running water, and I hissed quietly at the burning sensation.

„I'm sorry," he apologized softly, stroking my back up and down.

„It's okay," I replied.

He wiped my hands dry, with delicate motions, and pulled out the anti-burn cream. With gentle, soothing motions, he massaged it into my hands and wrists, and I felt immediate relief. When he was done, he cleaned his hands and began putting bandages on my hands. He secured the burns on my wrists and inside my palms.

When he was finished, he held my bandaged hands in his palms and looked at them. I squeezed his fingers and tried to look him in the eye.

„Thanks, comrade. Even if you only took care of irrelevant abrasions."

„I'm glad I could help at least a little. And that you are okay."

He said the last sentence more quietly as if the prospect of me not being okay was a little too clear in his imagination. I spread our hands apart and hugged him tightly, hiding in his warm, familiar arms. He embraced me as well, pulling me close. We stood in silence for a while, engulfed in each other's arms, and for a moment I forgot why we were there. All I could think about was wanting to stay in his embrace forever.

However, I knew we didn't have that much time. I moved away gently, and he let me go. With deft fingers, he stroked my face affectionately, lifting my chin for a kiss. We took our time kissing, savoring every slow movement of our lips. When Dimitri finally pulled away from me, he pressed his forehead against mine, as if he didn't want to move away from me even for a second.

„I think we should go back before they start a new search mission," he murmured regretfully.

„Maybe we should let them practice search missions more? They're doing pretty fucking bad without our help."

Dimitri snorted with laughter.

„Maybe next time. Now I want to take you home."

I rolled my eyes playfully, but did not protest when he started leading me to the car. I sat down next to him and, snuggling into his shoulder, fell fast asleep, knowing that I was totally and completely safe.