ʺJust be careful. Please. I donʹt want to see you in a cell, too. I donʹt have time for jail visits with everything else going on.ʺ Her amusement faded, and her outspoken activist mode kicked in. ʺOur familyʹs being ridiculous, you know. Can you believe theyʹre actually talking about running Esmond for us? Good God. Weʹve already had one tragedy after another around here. At the very least, we should try to salvage something out of this mess.ʺ
ʺI donʹt think I know Esmond,ʺ said Christian.
ʺMoron,ʺ she said matter-of-factly. ʺHim, I mean. Not you. Someoneʹs got to talk sense into our family before they embarrass themselves.ʺ
Christian grinned. ʺAnd let me guess: youʹre just the one to do it?ʺ
ʺOf course,ʺ she said, a mischievous gleam in her eye. ʺIʹve already drawn up a list of ideal candidates. Our family just needs some persuasion to see how ideal they are.ʺ
ʺIʹd feel bad for them if they werenʹt still being assholes to us,ʺ Christian remarked, watching his aunt walk away. The stigma of his parents turning Strigoi still lingered after all these years. Tasha accepted it more gracefully—despite her complaining—if only to be able to participate in the Ozera familyʹs larger decisions. Christian made no such attempts at civility. It was terrible enough to be treated as less than other Moroi, to be denied guardians and other things royals were entitled to. But from his own family? It was especially harsh. He refused to pretend it was acceptable.
ʺTheyʹll come around eventually,ʺ said Lissa, sounding more optimistic than she felt.
Any response of Christianʹs was swallowed when a new companion fell into step with them: my father. His abrupt appearance startled both of my friends, but I wasnʹt surprised. He probably knew about Lissaʹs interrogation and had been skulking outside the building, waiting to talk to her.
ʺItʹs nice out,ʺ said Abe amiably, looking around at the trees and flowers as though the three of them were on a nature walk through Court. ʺBut itʹs going to be scorching when the sun comes up.ʺ
The darkness that was giving me so much trouble in the woods of West Virginia made for pleasant, ʺmiddayʺ conditions for those on a vampiric schedule. Lissa gave Abe a sidelong glance. With eyes well-tuned to low light, she had no difficulty taking in the brilliant teal dress shirt under his beige sports jacket. A blind person could have probably seen him in that color.
Lissa scoffed at Abeʹs faked casualness. It was a habit of his, opening with small talk before moving on to more sinister topics. ʺYouʹre not here to talk about the weather.ʺ
ʺTrying to be civilized, thatʹs all.ʺ He fell silent as a couple of Moroi girls passed them. Once they were well out of ear-shot, he asked in a low voice, ʺI assume everything went well at your little meeting?ʺ
ʺFine,ʺ she said, not bothering to fill him in about ʺirrational affection.ʺ She knew all heʹd care about was that none of their associates had been implicated.
ʺThe guardians have Eddie now,ʺ said Christian. ʺAnd want me later, but I think thatʹll be it for all of us.ʺ
Lissa sighed. ʺHonestly, I have a feeling the interrogation was the easy part, compared to whatʹs coming.ʺ She meant figuring out who had really killed Tatiana.
ʺOne step at a time,ʺ murmured Abe. ʺNo point in letting the larger picture overwhelm us. Weʹll just start at the beginning.ʺ
ʺThatʹs the problem,ʺ said Lissa, kicking irritably at a branch lying across the cobblestone path in front of her. ʺI have no idea where to start. Whoever killed Tatiana did a good job covering their tracks and shifting it all to Rose.ʺ
ʺOne step at a time,ʺ repeated Abe.
He spoke in that sly tone of his that annoyed me sometimes, but to Lissa today, it was grating. Until now, all of her energy had been focused on getting me out of jail and somewhere safe. That was the goal that had driven her and kept her going in my escapeʹs aftermath.
Now, after some of the intensity had faded, the pressure of it all was beginning to crash down on her. Christian put an arm around her shoulders, sensing her dismay. He turned to Abe, unusually serious.
ʺDo you have any ideas?ʺ Christian asked Abe. ʺWe certainly donʹt have any real evidence.ʺ
ʺWe have reasonable assumptions,ʺ Abe replied. ʺLike that whoever killed Tatiana would have had access to her private rooms. Thatʹs not a long list.ʺ
ʺIt′s not short either.ʺ Lissa ticked off people on her fingers. ʺThe royal guards, her friends and family . . . and thatʹs assuming no one altered the guardiansʹ records of her visitors. And for all we know, some visits were never logged at all. She probably had secret business meetings all the time.ʺ
ʺUnlikely sheʹd have business meetings in her bedroom, in her nightgown,ʺ mused Abe. ʺOf course, it depends on the type of business, I suppose.ʺ
Lissa stumbled, realization stunning her. ʺAmbrose.ʺ
ʺWho?ʺ
ʺHe′s a dhampir . . . really good-looking . . . He and Tatiana were, um . . .ʺ
ʺInvolved?ʺ said Christian with a smile, echoing the interrogation.
Now Abe came to a stop. Lissa did the same, and his dark eyes met hers. ʺIʹve seen him. Sort of a pool boy type.ʺ
ʺHeʹd have access to her bedroom,ʺ said Lissa. ʺBut I just canʹt—I donʹt know. I canʹt see him doing this.ʺ
ʺAppearances are deceiving,ʺ said Abe. ʺHe was terribly interested in Rose back in the courtroom.ʺ
More surprise for Lissa. ʺWhat are you talking about?ʺ
Abe stroked his chin in an evil-villain sort of way. ʺHe spoke to her . . . or gave her some signal. Iʹm not really sure, but there was some kind of interaction between them.ʺ
Clever, watchful Abe. Heʹd noticed Ambrose giving me the note but hadnʹt fully realized what had happened.
ʺWe should talk to him then,ʺ said Christian.
Lissa nodded. Conflicting feelings churned inside of her. She was excited by a lead—but upset that it meant kind, gentle Ambrose might be a suspect.
ʺIʹll take care of it,ʺ said Abe breezily.
I felt her gaze fall heavily on him. I couldnʹt see her expression, but I did see Abe take an involuntary step back, the faintest glimmer of surprise in his eyes. Even Christian flinched. ʺAnd Iʹm going to be there when you do,ʺ she said, steel in her voice. ʺDo not attempt some crazy torture-style interrogation without me.ʺ
ʺYou want to be there for the torture?ʺ asked Abe, recovering.
ʺThere wonʹt be any. Weʹll talk to Ambrose like civilized people, understand?ʺ She stared hard at him again, and Abe finally shrugged in acquiescence, as though being overpowered by a woman half his age was no big deal.
ʺFine. Weʹll do it together.ʺ
Lissa was a little suspicious at his willingness, and he must have picked up on that.
ʺWe will,ʺ he said, continuing walking. ʺThis is a good time—well, as good as any time—for an investigation. Courtʹs going to get chaotic as the monarch elections get under way. Everyone here will be busy, and new people will start pouring in.ʺ
A breeze, heavy with humidity, ruffled Lissaʹs hair. The promise of heat was on it, and she knew Abe would be right about sunrise. It would be worth going to bed early.
ʺWhen will the elections happen?ʺ she asked.
ʺAs soon as they put dear Tatiana to rest. These things move fast. We need our government restored. Sheʹll be buried tomorrow at the church with a ceremony and service, but thereʹll be no repeat of the procession. Theyʹre still too uneasy.ʺ
I felt kind of bad that she hadnʹt received a full queenly funeral in the end, but then, if it meant her true murderer was found, maybe she would have preferred it that way.
ʺOnce the burial happens and elections begin,ʺ Abe continued, ʺany family who wants to put out a candidate for the crown will do so—and of course theyʹll want to. Youʹve never seen a monarchial election, have you? Itʹs quite a spectacle. Of course, before the voting occurs, all the candidates will have to be tested.ʺ
There was something ominous in the way he said ʺtested,ʺ but Li
ssaʹs thoughts were elsewhere. Tatiana had been the only queen sheʹd ever known, and the full impact of a regime change was staggering. ʺA new king or queen can affect everything—for better or worse. I hope itʹs someone good. One of the Ozeras, maybe. One of Tashaʹs people.ʺ She glanced hopefully at Christian, who could only shrug. ʺOr Ariana Szelsky. I like her. Not that it matters who I want,ʺ she added bitterly. ʺSeeing as I canʹt vote.ʺ The Councilʹs votes determined the electionʹs winner, so again, she was locked out of the Moroi legal process.
ʺA lot of work will go into the nominations,ʺ Abe explained, avoiding her last comment. ʺEach family will want someone to further their interests but who also has a chance of getting votes from—ʺ
ʺOomph!ʺ
I was thrust harshly out of the calculating world of Moroi politics and back into the wilds of West Virginia—very painfully so. Something solid and fierce slammed me against the hard-packed earth, leaves and branches cutting my face and hands. Strong hands held me down, and Dimitriʹs voice spoke in my ear.
ʺYou should have just hidden in town,ʺ he said, a little amused. His weight and position allowed me no room to move. ʺIt would have been the last place I looked. Instead, I knew exactly where youʹd go.ʺ
ʺWhatever. Donʹt act so smart,ʺ I said through gritted teeth, trying to break out of his hold. Goddamn it. He was smart. And once again, the closeness of him was disorienting. Earlier, it had seemed to affect him too, but heʹd apparently learned his lesson. ʺYou made a lucky guess, thatʹs all.ʺ
ʺI donʹt need luck, Roza. Iʹll always find you. So, really itʹs up to you how difficult you want this situation to be.ʺ There was an almost conversational tone to his voice, made all the more ridiculous by the situation we were in. ʺWe can do this over and over, or you can do the reasonable thing and just stay put with Sydney and me.ʺ
ʺItʹs not reasonable! Itʹs wasteful.ʺ
He was sweating, from the heat and undoubtedly because heʹd had to run pretty hard to catch up with me. Adrian wore a cologne that always made me heady, but the natural scent of Dimitriʹs warm skin was intoxicating too. It was amazing to me that I could keep noticing these little things—and be attracted to them—even when I was legitimately mad at him for keeping me captive. Maybe anger was a turn-on for me.
ʺHow many times do I have to explain the logic behind what weʹre doing?ʺ he asked in exasperation.
ʺUntil you give up.ʺ I pushed back against him, trying again to get loose, but all it did was put us closer together. I had a feeling the kissing trick wouldnʹt work this time.
He jerked me to my feet, keeping my arms and hands pinned behind my back. I had a little more room to maneuver than I had on the ground, but not quite enough to break free. Slowly, he began trying to make me walk back toward the direction Iʹd come from.
ʺI am not letting you and Sydney risk getting in trouble with me. Iʹll take care of myself, so just let me go!ʺ I said, literally dragging my feet. Seeing a tall, skinny tree, I stuck one leg out and hooked myself onto the trunk, completely bringing us to a halt.
Dimitri groaned and shifted his grip to get me away from the tree. It almost gave me an escape opportunity, but I didnʹt even manage two steps before he had a hold of me again.
ʺRose,ʺ he said wearily. ʺYou canʹt win.ʺ
ʺHowʹs your face feeling?ʺ I asked. I couldnʹt see any marks in the poor lighting but knew the punch Iʹd given him would leave a mark tomorrow. It was a shame to damage his face like that, but heʹd heal, and maybe it would teach him a lesson about messing with Rose Hathaway.
Or not. He began dragging me again. ʺIʹm seconds away from just tossing you over my shoulder,ʺ he warned.
ʺIʹd like to see you try.ʺ
ʺHow do you think Lissa would feel if you got killed?ʺ His grip tightened, and while I had a feeling heʹd make good on his over-the-shoulder threat, I also suspected he wanted to shake me. He was that upset. ʺCan you imagine what it would do to her if she lost you?ʺ
For a moment, I was out of snappy retorts. I didnʹt want to die, but risking my life was exactly that: risking my life. No one elseʹs. Still, I knew he was right. Lissa would be devastated if anything happened to me. And yet . . . it was a risk I had to take.
ʺHave a little faith, comrade. I wonʹt get killed,ʺ I said stubbornly. ʺIʹll stay alive.ʺ
Not the answer heʹd wanted. He shifted his hold. ʺThere are other ways to help her than whatever insanity youʹre thinking of.ʺ
I suddenly went limp. Dimitri stumbled, caught by surprise at my sudden lack of resistance. ʺWhatʹs wrong?ʺ he asked, both puzzled and suspicious.
I stared off into the night, my eyes not really focused on anything. Instead, I was seeing Lissa and Abe back at Court, remembering Lissaʹs feeling of powerlessness and longing for her vote. Tatianaʹs note came back to me, and for a moment, I could hear her voice in my head. She is not the last Dragomir. Another lives.
ʺYou′re right,ʺ I said at last.
ʺRight about . . . ?ʺ Dimitri was at a total loss. It was a common reaction for people when I agreed to something reasonable.
ʺRushing back to Court wonʹt help Lissa.ʺ
Silence. I couldnʹt fully make out his expression, but it was probably filled with shock.
ʺIʹll go back to the motel with you, and I wonʹt go running off to Court.ʺ Another Dragomir. Another Dragomir needing to be found. I took a deep breath. ʺBut Iʹm not going to sit around and do nothing. I am going to do something for Lissa—and you and Sydney are going to help me.ʺ
EIGHT
IT TURNED OUT I WAS wrong about the local police department comprising of one guy and a dog. When Dimitri and I walked back to the motel, we saw flashing red and blue lights in the parking lot and a few bystanders trying to see what was happening.
ʺThe whole town turned out,ʺ I said.
Dimitri sighed. ʺYou just had to say something to the desk clerk, didnʹt you?ʺ
Weʹd stopped some distance away, hidden in the shadow of a run-down building. ʺI thought it would slow you down.ʺ
ʺItʹs going to slow us down now.ʺ His eyes did a sweep of the scene, taking in all the details in the flickering light. ʺSydneyʹs car is gone. Thatʹs something, at least.ʺ
My earlier cockiness faded. ʺIs it? We just lost our ride!ʺ
ʺShe wouldnʹt leave us, but she was smart enough to get out before the police came knocking on her door.ʺ He turned and surveyed the townʹs one main road. ʺCome on. She has to be close, and thereʹs a good chance the police might actually start searching around if they thought some defenseless girl was being chased down.ʺ The tone he used for ʺdefenselessʺ spoke legions.
Dimitri made an executive decision to walk back toward the road that had led us into town, assuming Sydney would want to get out of there now that Iʹd blown our cover. Getting the police involved had created complications, but I felt little regret over what Iʹd done. I was excited about the plan that had occurred to me in the woods and wanted, as usual, to get moving on it right away. If Iʹd helped get us out of this hole of a town, so much the better.
Dimitriʹs instincts about Sydney were right. About a half-mile outside of town, we spotted a CR-V pulled off on the roadʹs shoulder. The engine was off, the lights dark, but I could see well enough to identify the Louisiana plates. I walked over to the driver side window and knocked on the glass. Inside, Sydney flinched. She rolled down the window, face incredulous.
ʺWhat did you do? Never mind. Donʹt bother. Just get in.ʺ
Dimitri and I complied. I felt like a naughty child under her disapproving glare. She started the car without a word and began driving in the direction weʹd originally come from, eventually merging with the small state highway that led back to the interstate. That was promising. Only, once weʹd driven a few miles, she pulled off again, this time at a dark exit that didnʹt seem to have anything at it.
She turned off the car and turned to peer at me in the backseat. ʺYou ran, didnʹt you?ʺ
ʺYeah, but I
got this—ʺ
Sydney held up a hand to silence me. ʺNo, donʹt. Not yet. I wish you could have pulled off your daring escape without attracting the authorities.ʺ
ʺMe too,ʺ said Dimitri.
I scowled at them both. ʺHey, I came back, didnʹt I?ʺ Dimitri arched an eyebrow at that, apparently questioning just how voluntary that had been. ʺAnd now I know what we have to do to help Lissa.ʺ
ʺWhat we have to do,ʺ said Sydney, ʺis find a safe place to stay.ʺ
ʺJust go back to civilization and pick a hotel. One with room service. We can make that our base of operation while we work on the next plan.ʺ
ʺWe researched that town specifically!ʺ she said. ʺWe canʹt go to some random place—at least not nearby. I doubt they took down my plates, but they could put out a call to look for this kind of car. If theyʹve got that and our descriptions, and it gets to the state police, itʹll get to the Alchemists and then itʹll—ʺ
ʺCalm down,ʺ said Dimitri, touching her arm. There was nothing intimate about that, but I still felt a spark of envy, particularly after the tough love Iʹd just had being nearly dragged through the woods. ʺWe donʹt know that any of thatʹs going to happen. Why donʹt you just call Abe?ʺ
ʺYeah,ʺ she said glumly. ʺThatʹs exactly what I want. To tell him I messed up the plan in less than twenty-four hours.ʺ
ʺWell,ʺ I said, ʺif it makes you feel better, the planʹs about to change anyway—ʺ
ʺBe quiet,ʺ she snapped. ʺBoth of you. I need to think.ʺ
Dimitri and I exchanged glances, but stayed silent. When Iʹd told him I knew a way to seriously help Lissa, heʹd been intrigued. I knew he wanted details now, but we both had to wait for Sydney.
She flipped on the dome light and produced a paper map of the state. After studying it for a minute, she folded it back up and simply stared ahead. I couldnʹt see her face but suspected she was frowning. Finally, she sighed in that woeful way of hers, turned off the light, and started the car. I watched as she punched in Altswood, West Virginia into her GPS.
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