Rosalyn and the Secret of the Bluebloods

Chapter Fifteen

  While Hawk and Cass recruit Bluebloods to rescue Damien, I borrow a pair of scissors. Over the past week, my long, dark hair has gotten unruly and difficult to handle, and I'm going to change that.
  The only mirror underground is the one in the makeshift bar, so I slide behind the counter with a wary look around. Thankfully, I'm still alone, so I grab my hair roughly with one hand and position the scissors with the other. My reflection looks back at me, hesitant and uncertain.
  "Screw it."
  Brazenly, I cut off a few inches in one try. My hair is all over the ground twenty minutes later, barely coming past my shoulders. I gaze at myself in wonder, running my fingers softly through the strands.
  "Rosalyn?"
  Startled, I whirl around, finding Cass staring at me in awe.
  "You're . . .I . . .wow."
  I grin. "I take it you like it."
  He smiles adorably. "Yeah. I do."
  We look at each other in silence for a moment.
  "Cass!" Hawk calls from down the corridor.
  "Yeah?" Cass shouts, his eyes never leaving mine.
  At the sound of footsteps, I quickly deposit my fallen hair into the trash can.
  "I found some people that may want to help," Hawk declares, leading about five people into the room.
  "The only problem is, we don't have enough horses for everyone," he drawls. "We'll have to go on foot."
  He appraises me from my new hair to the bottom of my dress, turning to a foreign woman behind him.
  "Do you have any clothes she can borrow?" he sighs, gesturing in my direction.
  The woman nods, motioning for me to follow.
  "Now," Hawk starts as I trail her down the tunnel. "Let's talk strategy. . ."
  I resolve to catch up on that later, speeding up to stride side-by-side with the Blueblood.
  "I'm Rosalyn," I greet awkwardly.
  "Mei."
  She smiles at me in a friendly manner. Her short, layered onyx hair swishes as she walks, matching her tight black clothes perfectly. She seems slightly older than me, but growing up in the West Province may have just hardened her to the outside world. Yet she still walks beside me, willing to face even more hardship for someone she's never met.
  "Thank you," I say suddenly, looking at her with gratitude.
  "No need to thank me. It's only clothes," she laughs.
  "Not just for that," I recover, embarrassed.
"For volunteering to save my friend."
"Ah."
  Her eyes turn cold with memory.
  "I lost my little sister a few years ago," she says unexpectedly. "One day some East Province people just swept on into the city and took her. Hawk had to hold me back. If it wasn't for him, they'd have taken me too."
  Empathy floods through me.
"I lost my sister too," I admit quietly.
We turn into another minimalistic bedroom, and Mei pulls open a drawer to the wooden dresser in the corner.
"Try these on," she recommends, tossing a handful of dark garments onto the bed.
She turns around to give me privacy as I wriggle into them. My pearls abruptly seem out of place in the sexy crop top, leather leggings, and combat boots. Self-consciously, I pull at the silky shirt.
"Uh . . .Mei?"
"Yes?"
"I think this top is a little small."
She pivots to face me, shaking her head with a smile at my exposed chest.
"That's the intention," she winks slyly. "You'll get used to it."
"I don't think I could ever face Cass or Hawk in this," I chuckle. "Especially not Cass."
Mei sits on the bed, arching one brow in interest.
"Are you two together?" she asks carefully.
"Not exactly."
She sighs. "He's a good one. I guess he never told you that we were a couple."
I look at her in alarm.
"It was a few years ago, and it only lasted six months," she quickly elaborates. "The breakup was mutual."
"Oh," I say, trying not to sound too relieved.
"Don't worry," Mei smirks, standing up again.
"He's all yours."
She leans over to whisper in my ear. "Between you and me, I've got my eye on Hawk."
I grin as she sweeps past me in his direction. I've been so caught up in all this Cass-Damien drama that I haven't realize how good it'd feel to talk to another woman my age. It was . . .liberating, almost, acting like two careless schoolgirls gossiping about their crushes. I roll my eyes at the thought, adjust my top again, and chase after my new friend.
~
I was told to assemble the following morning in the lounge. When I arrive, Hawk and Mei are talking quietly on the couch, giggling every now and then. I stare, bewildered, and decide to hover awkwardly at the edge of the room until everyone else shows up.
"Business trip?" Cass asks from behind, scaring me half to death.
Over my shoulder hangs a small brown handbag that Mei lent me. The contents consist of a few bottles of water, some canned food, and my mother's dress. I turn to face him, admiring the way his apparel hugs his muscular body.
"I was thinking more along the lines of pleasure," I murmur, running my index finger tauntingly down his chest.
He returns the favor, lustful gaze skimming over my crop top.
"God, Rosalyn," he sighs, jerking his head away. "You have no idea what you're doing to me."
I bite my lip smugly as Hawk calls for attention.
"Good, we're all here," he announces. "Before we leave, I want everyone to listen."
The room is instantly silent.
"What we're about to do is going to be dangerous," he begins, daring anyone to challenge him. "Especially dangerous."
He pauses. "These people want our blood!" he shouts, glaring at each of us.
"And if they catch you, they will find out what you are, and they will kill you. If you aren't prepared for that, speak now or forever hold your peace."
A beat of tense silence reverberates through the room. No one moves.
"Good," Hawk growls. "Let's head out."
~
When we're only a stone's throw from Clean Water Industries, the night becomes unbearably cold. We all huddle in the dark forest together, shivering miserably, I wrapped in Cass' arms. The only sound is our chattering teeth. He'd made a small fire earlier in the center of the group, but hadn't been able to find anything but twigs. Not one of us thought to bring jackets or blankets, either.
As my arm brushes Mei's bag, a desperate idea begins to take hold. I fumble for the latch, pulling out my mother's dress with trembling fingers.
"Rosalyn, what are you doing?" Cass groans.
"Keeping us alive," I mumble, leaning forward.
He pulls me back into his embrace.
"No," he hisses, his breath hot against my neck.
"You told me how much your mother's dress means to you. Don't do this."
"Cass, it's okay," I promise, twisting to meet his eyes. "I have these, remember?"
I touch my freezing pearls, reminded of when I tried to give these up, too. Reminded of Damien.
"Ma would have wanted me to keep us warm," I say firmly. "Besides . . . look at them."
Cass stares guiltily at our quivering circle. This time, he doesn't try to stop me as I lower my dress into the flames, careful not to smother them. Within minutes, the fire blazes powerfully, and we're forced to move back from the heat. Mei gives me a grateful smile from across the flames, her head cradled on Hawk's shoulder, and, content, I snuggle into Cass' arms.
~
"Rosalyn?" someone whispers urgently.
"Rosalyn!"
Reluctantly, I blink awake, finding myself propped upright in front of the sunny remnants of last night's fire. No one else is in sight.
"Rosalyn," Cass groans again, his hands brushing mine, and with a sharp intake of breath, I realize.
We're tied back to back.
"Cass!" I yell, straining to move.
The rope chafes our wrists painfully, causing Cass to wince.
"Don't," he sighs. "I've already tried."
"What the hell happened? They betrayed us?!" I snap furiously.
"Yes and no," Cass manages. "I know Hawk like the back of my hand, and vice versa. He knew we were going to try to take Haleigh down anyway and saw it as his duty to stop us."
I close my eyes in disbelief.
"Trust me, they're still going to rescue Damien, and they'll be back for us."
"They don't even know what he looks like!"
"I may have told Hawk a few days ago."
I grit my teeth. "And how did that come up?"
"He asked me why you care so much about him, if you have a thing for him, etcetera."
"And when I said maybe," he continues, "he said that Damien must be good-looking, and asked what he looked like. It was all a set-up."
I lean my head against Cass'. "I just can't believe Mei was in on it the whole time. I thought we were friends."
"She thought she was protecting us," Cass theorizes. "Sounds pretty friendly to me."
I snort, scanning the woods for anything to cut our ropes on. A moss-covered boulder stands about twenty-five feet away.
"There's a rock over there we can use to get free," I tell Cass quickly. "Stand up on three, okay? One."
His back muscles tense against mine.
"Two. Three!"
We struggle desperately to rise, only to fall back to the grass with a thump.
"Again. One, two, three!"
This time, we make it, letting out excited cries.
"Left, right, left, right!" I instruct, putting our feet in time.
We arrive at the boulder, positioning ourselves uncomfortably on either side of it, and begin to saw at the ropes. My wrists sting, eliciting a silent moan.
"Almost there," Cass says encouragingly.
With a snap, the ropes break free, and I whip around, throwing myself into his arms. He tucks my head against his chest in relief.
"We can still make it," he whispers, stroking my hair as I breathe in his familiar scent.
He pulls back, holding my face in his hands.
"We can still make it!"
With a quick glance at the sun to determine east, we take off through the trees, racing each other to Damien's side. Maybe, just maybe, there's hope for him yet.