Page 19 of Legacy of Roses

“Come on,” she muttered as she passed him. “We should get out of here before they change their minds about the letting us go part.”

Once again, he smiled despite the situation. There was something so irrepressibly Rosalie about her. It relieved him to see it after her interaction with the man from her past.

He glanced back at Jace once, reluctant to let him go so easily. But the other men had closed ranks behind their leader, and Dimitri knew Rosalie was right. This wasn’t the moment to call Jace to account for whatever he had done in the past.

Instead, Dimitri fell into step behind Rosalie, guarding her from the rear until they could gain some distance from her abductors.

Rosalie didn’t appear to take note of the signs he had tracked through the trees, but she must have had a good sense of direction because she led them unerringly back the way they had come. Dimitri trailed behind with frequent glances back to make sure they weren’t being followed. As far as he could tell, they weren’t.

They had nearly made it back to the road—still moving in silence—when he heard the mysterious voice again.

“This way!” it called. “Over here!”

He stopped instantly. It had sounded close that time, as if the other captives were mere steps away. He looked around, but just like on the previous occasions he could see no sign of anyone. And there had been no indication back in the clearing that Jace was holding other captives.

Rosalie continued forward as if she hadn’t heard the cry, only stopping when she no longer heard his footsteps behind. She swung around to stare at him.

“Did you hear that?” he murmured quietly in case there were more of Jace’s men somewhere near.

Rosalie strode back to him, rolling her eyes. “Really?” She propped both hands on her hips.

Dimitri frowned, but he couldn’t ignore the voice. Not now that Rosalie was free, and there was no urgent need for him to keep moving.

“I heard them on my way to you as well,” he murmured. “It sounds like someone is in trouble.”

Rosalie regarded him silently for a moment before sighing and indicating for him to follow her. She crept toward a nearby tree, stopping only when she reached its trunk. Tipping her head back she stared directly upward, pointing into the canopy.

Dimitri crowded beside her and stared upward as well, bemused. A brightly colored bird—some kind of parrot, he guessed—sat on a branch, the foliage concealing its position.

As they stood there, the bird opened its beak.

“Over here! Right here!” it called in such startlingly clean tones that Dimitri fell back a step.

“It was a bird?” he gasped. “I was hearing a bird?” It was hard to absorb. He had noticed the voice sounded a little strange,but he had never doubted it was human. “What is a parrot even doing here? Don’t they usually live in jungles?”

Rosalie shook her head. “You really don’t know anything about Glandore, do you? They might not have lived here originally, but they’re everywhere now. And absolute nuisances, the lot of them.” She glared up at the bird as if it was the one who had abducted her. “It’s all because of the Legacy, of course. The original Beast’s castle had invisible servants who used the parrots to talk for them. So now we’re all blessed with these pests. Not only can they talk, but they have a knack for saying the most disconcerting thing in any given situation. We can thank the Legacy for that, too, I assume.”

Dimitri grimaced. He had delayed finding Rosalie because of one of those birds. It wouldn’t have happened if not for his ignorance, and it was only luck that those extra minutes hadn’t meant dire consequences for her.

Rosalie stared at him. “You really don’t have any idea what you’re doing, do you? But you still refuse to leave! Surely you must see the necessity of it now. As long as you stay in this castle, your mere presence puts us all in danger. You’re worse than useless.”

She stalked off, heading toward the road again, and Dimitri followed. Despite his self-condemnation, her words felt excessive.

“I did come rushing to rescue you,” he pointed out. “I didn’t do it for the sake of your gratitude, but surely it’s worth something, at least?”

“Gratitude?!” Rosalie stared at him. “Do you seriously think you helped me back there? I know you were busy playing the gallant hero, but surely you noticed they let us go!”

Dimitri frowned. Given the numbers they had been facing, he had been grateful for the easy escape, but clearly he was missing something significant.

“I did notice, yes,” he said slowly.

“And did you think they were doing that out of the goodness of their hearts?” Rosalie fixed him with a withering look.

Dimitri considered his words carefully. “It looked like you had some sort of…history with their leader. Jace, you called him?”

Rosalie instantly stiffened. “Jace doesn’t do anything unless it benefits him. Thanks to your heroics, he now believes there’s a connection between us, and he intends to turn that into a payday for him and his men. I’m never going to be able to shake him off now. Who knows what he’ll do next!”

“But at least you’re free,” Dimitri said quietly. Whatever Rosalie thought, he saw a great deal of good in that.

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