26. Rosalie
Chapter 26
Rosalie
“ N o!” Rosalie shot into gasping wakefulness. “No, no, no!” She tipped her head back and closed her eyes.
But if it had been difficult to sleep before, it was impossible now. Dimitri had said he loved her. He had thought it was merely a dream, but she knew it had been the real him. And she hadn’t been able to say it back.
But as little as she wanted to admit it, it didn’t matter that she couldn’t return to sleep. She hadn’t been the one to cut their dream connection. Dimitri was no longer sleeping but truly unconscious.
Just unconscious , she told herself, refusing to think of anything else that might have severed the connection between them.
She slowly straightened and opened her eyes, still trying to calm her breathing. At least she had succeeded in getting a message out. Her brothers would be coming for her.
But she couldn’t just sit and wait. Dimitri didn’t have the time. She needed to do something to speed her brothers up and help them find her. She had to find a way to make enough noise that it would travel through the trees.
She considered her limited options. If she started screaming, she would quickly end up gagged, which would only make her situation worse. And if she acted too soon, her brothers wouldn’t be close enough to hear, no matter what she did. Even if Daphne ran flat out, it would take her some minutes to reach and locate Rosalie’s brothers—especially if they were invisible and asleep.
Assuming her brothers set out immediately to search for her, it would still take them some time to get deep enough into the trees to have a chance of hearing her. So as difficult as it was, the first thing she had to do was wait.
She marked off the minutes in her head, forcing herself to count steadily and not to rush. Focusing on the numbers actually helped, pushing the endless, rushing, consuming fears for Dimitri into the background.
While she counted, she felt around carefully with her foot until she located a small stone just within reach. It took a little maneuvering, but she positioned it in the perfect spot and waited as the minutes rolled out in her mind.
When she had finally counted enough, she flicked her foot upward in one swift movement. Thanks to the possession of three younger brothers, Rosalie had perfected a great many useless life skills. But on this occasion, being able to flick a stone with her foot with great accuracy turned out not to be as useless as she’d always imagined.
The stone sailed unerringly through the gold-toned early light of day and hit the snoring man in the side of the face. He grunted and shot upright, glaring around him.
“Who was that?” he bellowed, far louder than any shout Rosalie could have achieved.
“It was him!” she said quickly, inclining her head toward the second largest of Jace’s men. He had been given the dawn shift and had been looking surly and grumpy ever since the snorer had handed the watch over to him and fallen asleep.
She expected him to deny it, and for both of them to quickly figure out who was really to blame. But it didn’t matter if they turned on her. She didn’t care who was being yelled at, just as long as they kept yelling.
But the accused man leered at the snorer. “At least we don’t all have to listen to your racket now.”
The snorer surged to his feet and crossed the clearing in several quick strides. His approach made the other man look nervous, but he didn’t back down.
“I don’t even know what your problem is,” the man on watch said coldly. “I didn’t do anything.”
“What?” The snorer grabbed him by his collar. “You’re going to blame the girl with her hands tied to a tree, are you?” His voice rose. “You think I’m a fool?”
The accused’s temper overcame the last of his good sense, and he shouted back. “Biggest one I ever met!”
She wasn’t sure who pulled their arm back first, but they both managed to land a punch. They fell back, the force of the blows pushing them away from each other. But with an ear-shattering bellow, the sleeper rushed forward again, and the two fell into a brawl.
The remaining two men had woken from all the noise, and they cheered the fighters on, calling encouragement to first one and then the other, laughing at the early morning spectacle. If Rosalie’s brothers were anywhere in the area, they would surely hear the commotion.
The fight swung in her direction, and Rosalie pulled her legs up, bending her knees and scrunching her body into as small a space as her binds allowed. She had been even more successful at causing chaos than she had hoped, but she didn’t want to be injured in the process.
The rope tying her to the tree shifted and pulled. She strained to see if someone was behind her, but the trunk blocked her view. She wanted to call out, but she didn’t dare risk it in case it was her brothers. But could they really have made it all the way to her that quickly?
“Quiet for now,” an unfamiliar female voice whispered. “This should only take a moment.” The ropes vibrated, tugging back and forth. Were they being cut with a knife?
“Can you move?” the woman asked after a moment. “Once these are loose, we’ll have to get out of here quickly. We might not have much time before they notice you’re free.”
Rosalie didn’t know the identity of her rescuer, but she wasn’t going to turn down assistance.
“I can run,” she breathed. She hoped it was true.
She scanned the clearing for Jace, but there was no sign of him. He had stepped out just after dawn—either leaving for some unknown mission or else doing the day’s necessaries at some distance from the rest of them. Hopefully he stayed away a bit longer.
With a final rasp, the tension in the ropes collapsed. They dropped loosely around her, setting her free. Rosalie whisked her feet under her, crouching for a moment and being sure nothing had gone to sleep.
As soon as she was certain she had control of her body, she sidled sideways around the curve of the tree trunk, still in a crouch. Every nerve was screaming at her to run, but she forced herself to move slowly and smoothly, trying to avoid anything that might draw the men’s eyes.
The second she reached the other side of the trunk, two slender hands grasped her and pulled her into the trees. She stumbled after the woman, her body less coordinated than she would have liked after the cold, uncomfortable hours.
The two of them wove between tree trunks, trying to watch their steps and make no noise until the woman pointed at a particularly dense clump of bushes.
“There!” she said quietly and disappeared into the depths of the clump.
Rosalie hesitated only a moment before following. It was surprisingly roomy beyond the first layer of branches, and she finally relaxed enough to catch her breath, leaning over to brace herself on her knees.
“Are you all right?” the woman asked, her voice setting off a wisp of memory in Rosalie’s mind.
Rosalie peered up at her. The day had already grown brighter, and even in the middle of the clump of bushes, she was able to see long wavy hair, so dark it was almost black, and full lips.
She straightened with a startled exclamation. “You’re Avery! The peddler! But whatever are you doing here? Why did you rescue me?”
“I prefer roving merchant,” the other young woman said with dignity, but her eyes were amused. “As to what I’m doing here…Originally I was passing through the woods. But that commotion would have attracted anyone’s attention.”
Rosalie grinned. “That was the idea.”
She wanted to ask why Avery had been so far from any roads, but she didn’t want to respond to a rescue with an inquisition.
“I’m glad it worked,” she said instead. “Although you weren’t the one I was hoping to alert.”
Avery’s eyebrows rose. “You did that on purpose? I’m impressed.”
Rosalie flushed. Avery might not be much older than she was, but she had always admired the woman’s independence and capability. Few people could endure the rigors of constant travel between the kingdoms.
“I’m sorry for getting in the way of your rescue,” Avery said with a laugh. “Perhaps I shouldn’t have gotten involved. But when I saw a group of angry men fighting each other and a lone girl tied to a tree, it didn’t require a lot of discernment to work out whose side I was on.”
“Thank you!” Rosalie said fervently. “I really do appreciate your intervention, and I don’t want to seem ungrateful, but I have to leave quickly. There’s a situation, and it’s urgent. You see, I?—”
“If it’s urgent, don’t waste any more time talking to me,” Avery said. “But will you be all right? Do you need help?”
Rosalie shook her head. “Thank you, but it’s something only I can do. I just have to get there quickly.”
Avery nodded, not questioning her further, although her eyes were alight with curiosity.
Rosalie turned to leave but paused and looked back. “But what about you? Is your camp far away? What if Jace’s men find you while they’re searching for me?”
“Jace?” Avery frowned. “I heard about him last time I traveled through Thebarton. He’s back?”
Rosalie sighed. “Unfortunately, yes. Those are his mercenaries.” Her lip curled. “As you can see, he’s put my family’s money to good use.”
Avery’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t worry about me. I can take care of myself. But…” She hesitated before drawing something from her boot and holding it out to Rosalie. “You should take this.”
Rosalie responded instinctively, accepting the tiny dagger and its scabbard before she realized what she was holding. She looked from the miniature weapon to Avery.
“Thank you?” It came out more hesitantly than she’d intended.
Avery chuckled. “Don’t worry, size is deceiving in the case of that little beauty. Plus it fits in your boot, which is very convenient!”
Rosalie slipped it into her boot as instructed, despite her continued confusion. She wasn’t in the position to turn down a weapon, no matter how insufficient.
As she straightened, Avery murmured, “It was gifted to me by a talented Oakdenian herbalist.”
Rosalie eyes widened. “Ohhh,” she breathed, looking down at her boot.
In Oakden, they had herbs infused with their Legacy that could be used to make powerful sleeping potions. The potions were sold to doctors throughout the kingdoms and were highly prized. But she’d heard rumors that the herbs could be used to make a different type of substance—a more potent version that they rubbed on the blades of weapons. One prick was enough to send someone to sleep. Possession of the weapons gave the Oakdenian armed forces an advantage, and neither the herbs nor the weapons were ever traded to outside merchants.
“I can’t take such a valuable gift!” she exclaimed. “What if you need it?”
“Don’t worry. He gave me more than one.” She winked. “He was extremely grateful.”
“If you go around rescuing strangers in need, I’m not surprised!” Rosalie said. “But are you really sure?—”
Avery held up a hand to silence her. “I hear something! If your mission is so urgent, you’d better go now or else we might end up trapped here for some time.”
Rosalie’s breath caught as she heard the voices a beat behind Avery. She recognized Jace’s tones among them, so he must have returned to the clearing. Obviously he had discovered what his men had failed to notice.
“Thank you,” she murmured a final time and plunged through the branches, moving in the opposite direction to the voices.
She was running toward the distant road and the manor, but she had lingered too long. Almost immediately a shout of discovery went up. She risked a look back over her shoulder. One of Jace’s men was pointing in her direction, the others turning to look.
Avery burst from the bushes behind her, emerging almost on top of the men. She let out a piercing scream of surprise.
Her unexpected appearance distracted Rosalie’s pursuers, but Rosalie hesitated to use the opportunity to escape. She couldn’t leave Avery to be captured in her stead.
As she faltered, Avery looked once in her direction and mouthed, “Go!” before sprinting off into the trees in the opposite direction, trailing several of the men behind her. She must have staged the entire thing to create a diversion for Rosalie.
Rosalie resumed her own flight, feeling the dagger in her boot as she ran. Avery was clearly equipped with far more tricks than Rosalie. If she believed she could protect herself, Rosalie believed it too.
Unfortunately, footsteps and shouts still followed Rosalie as she ran. The men must have split up to pursue both girls. She risked a glance behind her and saw Jace and two of his men on her tail.
She bit her lip and increased her pace, panting as she ran. She knew she couldn’t keep up the headlong speed indefinitely. If she didn’t find a way to evade them soon, they would catch her.
Hands grabbed her, jerking her body sideways between two tree trunks. Her forward momentum sent both her and her new attacker careening into a tree. They smashed against each other, and both fell to the ground.
A male voice groaned, but it sounded much younger than any of Jace’s men. Rosalie jumped to her feet and groped around blindly, trying to find her brother and haul him to his feet. As she searched, she peered back toward her pursuers.
They were calling out in surprise at her sudden disappearance, increasing their speed in an attempt to reach her. As they neared her position, a length of rope sprang up from the detritus on the ground, held taut between two invisible posts. Jace’s followers both ran into it at speed and were knocked off their feet.
They rolled on the ground, clutching their midriffs and groaning. Before either had a chance to recover, their bodies contorted, as if kicked by invisible feet.
Rosalie’s hand finally found a collar, and she hauled her unnamed brother to his feet. Dragging him behind her, she raced toward the others.
“Stop!” she cried, and the two men on the ground stilled, both groaning even more deeply than before. “We don’t have time for this.”
Her eyes caught on Jace, lingering far back and watching his men with wide, horrified eyes. They didn’t have time to deal with Jace either. He appeared terrified by the invisible attack, and she didn’t think he would continue the pursuit alone. He was too much of a coward for that. She hated to leave him free, but she couldn’t let anything else slow her down.
“We need to get to Dimitri,” she said more quietly.
She started running again, not waiting to hear her brothers’ assent. Thankfully, their footsteps kept pace with her, assuring her of their presence, although she couldn’t see anyone.
One of the sets of footsteps veered close, and Vernon’s voice sounded between puffs. “I’m sorry, Rosalie!” he sounded both guilty and angry, but she knew his anger was for himself and for Jace. “We meant to take it in turns keeping watch, but…”
“Save your breath for running,” she managed between gasping breaths of her own. She didn’t have the energy to either scold or forgive them when all her attention was focused on getting to Dimitri as quickly as possible.
Much to her dismay, her body couldn’t keep pace with her will, and they had to alternate between walking and running. Each time she dropped to a walk, the lack of speed chafed so badly that she broke into a jog again as soon as she’d even slightly caught her breath. All she could think of was Dimitri collapsing in their shared dream.
Finally the road came into view. She staggered through the last of the trees and stood panting as she tried to orient herself. With a burst of joy, she realized she had emerged some distance north of where she had been taken. The land bordering the road to the west was already the manor grounds. They were nearly at the drive.
She took off jogging again before she had properly caught her breath, riding a new wave of energy as she left her brothers behind. As she turned down the drive and raced toward the house, she scanned the garden on either side. He had been outside in their dream, but she hadn’t been able to see exactly where.
When she reached the manor without spotting him, she burst through the doors. But she only made it a few steps into the entryway before she was hit with the chilling certainty that the manor was empty. She couldn’t have said how she was so certain, but she immediately turned around.
Hurrying back into the gardens, she hesitated, looking left, then right. She could see nothing to indicate which way she should go. Turning left at random, she moved at a half jog, peering between hedges and flower beds.
“Rosalie!” Daphne’s voice called from behind a hedge, and Rosalie raced toward it.
She rounded the end of the hedge, and her eyes fell on Dimitri. She forgot all about Daphne at the sight of his unmoving body stretched out on the ground, his face gray.
She could see his still features clearly. His unnatural long hair was gone, and his original appearance had been restored. She was too late. She had been too slow. He was already dead.
“No!” She threw herself onto his unmoving chest.
She had tried so hard. It couldn’t all be for nothing. Dimitri couldn’t be gone from her life without even a farewell. He was too full of life to be felled like this.
“He isn’t dead!” Daphne’s hurried words penetrated the haze of her grief. “Not yet. He’s been holding on. Just.”
As if triggered by her words, Rosalie felt the subtle rise and fall of his chest. The breath was labored, but it had happened. He really was alive.
She sat up, feeling foolish. If he was still alive then she needed to act quickly. But as she stared down at him, she saw his features for the first time in weeks. Her breath caught as his face blurred, and she saw another in its place.
Jace.
She shuddered, but she couldn’t delay. No matter what tricks her mind was playing on her, she had to speak the words that would save Dimitri.
“Don’t die, Beast,” she croaked out, the words of her role tasting sour on her tongue. “I l…” She faltered. Pulling herself together, she tried again and got it out. “I love you.”
Nothing happened.
She looked in the direction of Daphne’s voice, desperate.
“I don’t think it’s enough to playact this part,” her friend said. “I think you have to mean it.”
Rosalie’s stomach clenched. She had meant it. She loved Dimitri.
She looked at him again, still seeing Jace’s face. She tried to shake away the effect, but while she had physically escaped from Jace, he still had poisonous hooks in her mind.
She trusted Dimitri, but she didn’t trust herself. What did she know of her own heart or the hearts of others? She thought she loved him, but what if her supposed love was as hollow as her love for Jace had been? Had the Legacy seen the truth and rejected her confession?
After everything they’d done, she wasn’t enough to save him. Pain tore through her middle. She had to try again.
But the words lodged in her throat. She had thrown off the shackles of being the merchant’s third daughter, but she was still weighed down by her own mistakes. How could she ever trust herself after getting it so badly wrong?
Dimitri’s eyes fluttered open, meeting hers. They were dull, their light almost extinguished, but they were also familiar. They were the eyes of both Beast Dimitri and regular Dimitri. He had looked at her with those eyes when he told her he loved her.
Staring into them, she no longer saw Jace or the reminder of her past weakness. The man in front of her wasn’t a stronger, more vibrant, more handsome version of Jace. He was just Dimitri. And her love for him was real. The Legacy was wrong.
Dimitri had helped her walk away from the burden of the Legacy without expecting anything in return. He hadn’t tricked or trapped her. He hadn’t taken anything from her at all. He had merely offered to help her. He had literally put his life on the line and lay dying as a result.
She didn’t love Dimitri because of the Legacy, as she had loved Jace. She loved him in spite of it. She and Dimitri had met in their dreams when she had never been able to meet Jace. And while she might have misjudged Jace, she had learned many hard lessons in the year since he’d left. She was stronger and wiser than she had been then.
Daphne had been right all along. From the moment Rosalie met Dimitri, she had been attracted to him, and she had judged him as a result. After the pain of Jace’s betrayal, she had acted just like the original merchant’s daughter. The historical daughter had been unable to see past the Beast’s form, forcing him to approach her in her dreams with his true face. Rosalie had been the opposite, only opening up to Dimitri when he gave up his true face and took the form of a Beast.
She gazed down at his strong features and allowed herself to feel the full force of the attraction she had been suppressing. She acknowledged that she loved him inside and out—his whole person. He didn’t have to become someone else for her.
This was what the Legacy had been testing. It was the reason it had restored his true face before her confession. It wanted to know that she could see beyond his appearance despite her past hurt. And finally she had passed. They had completed the story the Legacy insisted on foisting on them.
She cupped Dimitri’s face with both hands, watching as his eyes lit up in response.
“I love you,” she murmured, tears dropping from her eyes to run down his cheeks. “I love your brave, determined heart, your clever mind, your thoughtfulness, your natural skill with people—even your strong arms. I loved you as the Beast, but I love you even more as a man. Being around you makes my heart beat uncomfortably fast. It always has. I’m sorry I tried to close my eyes and my heart to you.”
The change was instantaneous. Even as she was speaking, his color returned, and the moment she spoke the final words, he surged upward. With one movement, he had her on his lap and his lips melded to hers.
She returned the embrace, and he wrapped her in his arms, cradling her close as he deepened the kiss. She closed her eyes and sank into it, kissing him back with an enthusiasm that matched her previous fear. His arms tightened around her in response, a low rumble sounding in his chest.
“I see we made it back in time,” a nauseated voice said from above them.
Rosalie gasped and pulled away, but Dimitri’s lips followed hers, a growling, wordless protest in his throat.
Daphne laughed, and Dimitri straightened with a resigned sigh. He kept his arms around Rosalie, though.
“Would all invisible people please take themselves off,” he said, his eyes still on Rosalie. “Preferably somewhere very far away.”
She blushed, her eyes dropping while her lips curled into a smile.
“Actually, we’re not invisible anymore,” Daphne said, making both of them finally look up.
Rosalie blushed further and scrambled up from Dimitri’s lap, although she didn’t know why it made a difference. It wasn’t as if she and Dimitri were the ones who’d been invisible.
Standing, she gazed around the garden, looking for any other obvious differences. It looked the same as far as she could tell, with plants growing in profusion everywhere.
She felt the difference inside her, though. They had done it. They had managed to beat the Legacy.