Chapter Six

Eventually, Eddie came searching for me, despite the risk of being on the receiving end of my fury.

"Hey Rose, there you are. I've been looking all over for you."

I was perched at a nearby stream, listening to the sloshing water as I tried to calm my nerves. I didn't bother turning around as Eddie approached so he took it upon himself to plop down next to me.

"I heard what happened at the sparring station."

"Let me guess, Mason couldn't wait to tell you how I flipped out," I sneered.

"No. Well, I mean yeah Mason told me. But I also heard it from Murray, Alto, a couple guys on the wall—" I let out a loud groan interrupting his rambling and dropped my face into my hands. "Why are you so bothered? I heard it was badass."

"It was not badass, Eddie. It was stupid and impulsive. Something the old Rose would do."

"What's so wrong with the old Rose? From what I remember, she used to be fun," Eddie nudged my shoulder, jostling my head out of my hands so I was forced to finally look at him.

"Now you're starting to sound like Lissa." He stared at me blankly, waiting for me to elaborate. I let out a deep sigh, the rest of my anger falling with it. "I just want to do this right. I've been working my whole life for an opportunity like this, to really make an impact here. If I fuck it all up by being careless or rebellious, Lissa's safety could be at risk. I can't afford to lose control." I thought about the amount of responsibility I truly held, the weight of it was enough to suffocate me if I let it.

"Seriously? That's it," Eddie looked rather entertained and I suddenly felt the urge to smack that clever grin off his face.

"That's it?! Oh, you mean other than the protection of my sister, the Last Dragomir, the ultimate safety of the entire kingdom, and not to mention my goddamn reputation? Yeah, that's it."

Eddie let out an amused huff and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Look, Rose, it's great you want to take this role seriously and be the best leader that you can, but it doesn't mean you have to change who you are in the process. Alberta and Lord Dashkov saw something in you—despite all the shit you used to pull—and have faith that you can achieve greatness. Being Field Marshall Hathaway doesn't mean you can't also still be just Rose." His warm smile soothed that earlier frustration and I was having a hard time keeping my stern facade in place.

"If some guy is acting out of line and you want to throw a knife at him, who gives a shit?! You're in charge here and if old Rose comes out to set a gobshite straight, then by all means, "Eddie leaned closer and pressed his forehead to mine, wearing that shit-eating grin he coveted, "we'll welcome her with open arms." I let out a small laugh, finally relenting to his encouragement.

I placed my hand on his opposite shoulder and gave it a small squeeze before leaning back. "Thanks, Eddie."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, don't get all soft on me now Hathaway. We've still got work to do." Eddie jumped to stand in one fluid motion and reached down to help me up. I mimicked his maneuver and landed next to him, ready to take on any more challenges the night threatened to throw at me.

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The rest of training proved relatively uneventful. I made my rounds to some of the other stations and I noticed a few men straightening up as I walked by. It appeared that my antics from earlier instilled a semblance of fear in some of their eyes rather than amusement, so I chalked it up to a win. I finished my route near the archers before it was time to disperse.

I thought it best on a night like this to eat supper with the troops and save face, but I had already promised Lissa I would join her back at the castle and after what I had seen tonight I felt comfortable enough to leave them to their own devices. I decided since the last few meals we shared together I had been dressed in my dirty training gear I would put on a dress. If anything, it was an effort to prevent Lissa's nose from turning up any higher at the sight of my ensemble. I grabbed one of my plain dresses and fastened it on. It was dark, mossy green like the forest on a cloudy day and it made me long for my early morning strolls around the valley. As I pulled my necklace out of the bodice of the dress, I considered waking up early to take a stroll to the woods' end.

When I made my way down to the dining hall Lissa was already there waiting for me, sipping on a steaming bowl of soup. "You're not usually one to be late for a meal," she teased. "Long day at training?"

"You could say that." I plopped down in my seat across from her and snagged a slice of bread from the center of the wooden table. Not long after I sat down, one of the kitchen maids brought over a bowl of stew and placed it in front of me. I devoured it in record time and used the last bits of bread to soak up the delectable juices.

"Your eating habits never cease to amaze me," Lissa sarcastically drolled. I looked up to see her eyeing the mess of stew on my face and used the sleeve of my dress to wipe it off.

I leaned back in my seat comfortably and plopped my feet up onto the table's edge. "Well lucky for you, your Highness, I aim to please."

She shook her head at my objective vulgarness and quickly changed the subject. "So, how's training been going? Anything exciting happen?" I couldn't help but notice the enthusiasm in her voice and wondered how bored she must have been today if she was really that interested in training camp.

"I wouldn't say exciting," I indulged, "but it's going well so far. Some of the new recruits definitely have potential, and some—" I thought about how eager I was about the prospects of a certain Dhampir and how that was quickly swallowed by my disappointment. "And some, not so much."

"What's that look for?" Even though I knew our bond was one-sided and I was the one who could get into Lissa's head, I sometimes got the feeling she possessed the ability to get into mine as well.

"Nothing. I just…" Lissa was my best friend and I could tell her anything that was bothering me, but she was also the soon-to-be Queen. I knew she didn't have any doubts about my capabilities of manning the troops; nonetheless, I was still a little self-conscious about the way I acted and didn't want to leave any room for scrutiny. "I've been having difficulties with one of the recruits. I can tell there's talent there but for some reason, he's holding back. When he acted out tonight I may or may not have lost my temper and overreacted," I began twirling a loose strand of my hair, avoiding her gaze. "Now I'm not really sure what to do about it."

She studied me for a moment, identifying my familiar tells. The aporetic look on her face told me she knew there was more to the story and that I was holding back, but true to form, she didn't press me any further. "Well, have you tried talking to him one-on-one?"

I had to physically keep myself from scoffing at that suggestion. After today, the last thing I wanted to do was talk to the brut. "Maybe there's more to his story than you know," Lissa coaxed. "Uprooting your life and moving to a camp full of strangers can't be easy. He could just be having a hard time adjusting. Maybe if you approached him as a friend instead of his superior you could help him come out of his shell a little."

Lissa's sweet voice made it nearly impossible to hold onto my anger at Belikov, and as much as I hated to admit it, she had a point. I had lived here my whole life and couldn't imagine what it would be like having to depart from the familiarity of St. Vlad's Valley and suddenly start anew. To top it off, she was proving her final point as she spoke. Here Lissa was, not only my superior but the head of the entire kingdom, giving me advice as my friend rather than my ruler and I already felt more at ease. She quietly watched me as the thoughts rolled through my head and I let out a relenting groan when I finally conceded to her advice. "Ughh alright. I'll go talk to him. But if this ends badly, I'm putting pine cones in your bedding."

"You wouldn't dare," she practically squealed. I gave her a mischievous smile knowing that she would probably be poking her mattress the next few nights before plopping in.

After supper, I made my way back down to the camp. It was past curfew already, but not so late that the troops would all be asleep. I figured I'd walk by Belikov's tent and if he was up, I'd give this "one-on-one" chat a shot. Besides, I supposed I at least owed him somewhat of an apology for throwing a dagger at his face—not to mention, I wanted my knife back. As I walked down the paved path between some of the shops, I noticed that the area was much more lively than usual for this time of night. I could hear muffled shouts in the distance and momentarily thought there might be trouble. I increased my pace, but as I got closer it became obvious they were actually boisterous conversations and obnoxious laughing. There was an alehouse nearby and I rerouted my course in that direction.

When I neared the entrance a few familiar voices rang into the night and my steps became heavy with determination. A laugh that sounded thick with alcohol, a few shouts laced with a distinct Gaelic accent, and one other foreign voice that echoed above them all. I pushed through the hefty swinging doors to find that my assumptions had been correct. My men.