DISCLAIMER: I in no way own anything relating to Vampire Academy including story and characters.
Chapter 1
Slowly I trudged along the highway thinking about what I'd just done, what I was about to do, none of it was pretty. I'd just walked away from my best friend, the one I'd sworn to protect all my life, Lissa, the last of the Dragomirs, in order to go kill my soul mate, the man I love, Dimitri. What a screwed up life I lead, I just walked out on the Academy a few months from graduation, meaning I'm not even a guardian yet. I wonder if they'd let me back in if I returned and if Lissa would forgive me for the treacherous betrayal I bestowed on her. Not that I had any intention of returning, I knew full well that I might die, I mean I'm going to face off against Strigoi and even if I did succeed I don't think I'd be able to return or even live out my life. I know that there is a wonderful guy waiting for my return at the academy who likes me and whom I promised to return to when all this was over but it wouldn't be right, he wasn't Dimitri and I was damn sure I would never love another. You can't mend a broken heart, let alone a broken soul. My eyes began to burn with tears but I held them back before they could spill over my cheeks.
I continued walking sticking my thumb up when a car was near. I'd hitchhiked before with Christian back when we were on our way to save our friends Eddie, Mia and Mason from facing off against a rouge group of Strigoi. Unfortunately I couldn't save them all and I will never see Mason again. Thinking about it brought an ache to my chest like it always did, but Mason was at rest now, peaceful I hoped. Even though I was an 18 year old girl hitchhiking alone I figured I'd be able to take on any human attackers, I'd been training all my life to fight Strigoi and I had succeeded, what was a human next to one of them. Besides I carried a silver stake with me, I'm sure it would do as much damage to a human as a Strigoi. A car began to slow in front of me and pulled over to the curb, an old rusty Ford Ute. I walked to the passenger side, opened the door and sat down, trying to be confident and make it seem like I did this all the time. To my surprise when I looked at the driver it was a middle aged woman with short greying hair and a pleasant smile, far from what I expected. I greeted her with a smile and told her my name, first only, and where I was heading, Missoula. She stated that she was heading there herself and told me how she was going to visit family, I only half listened to her upbeat banter as my mind kept wandering elsewhere, past, present and future.
When we finally arrived on the outskirts of town I asked if she knew where the bank was that Adrian had told me to go to and if she could leave me there. I promptly thanked her when we arrived and wished her and her family well. I walked up the steps and into the main lobby, I was struck by the magnificence of the building, polished marble floors, gold encrusted Grecian pillars, mahogany desks, illustrious artworks, I couldn't believe this was a bank, but I guess if the wealthiest Moroi could entrust their money to this bank, what do you expect? Looking lost the concierge asked if I needed any assistance, I told him I was here to finish opening account and he led me toward an office on the side. I sat down at the desk opposite a man in a well groomed suit. I told him who I was and what I wanted and he promptly collected the forms and asked me to sign. I felt terrible for using Adrian like this, when I knew how much he like me and how I can never return his sentiment, but I had more important things to worry about now. I couldn't quite believe how much money was in the account, but I didn't want to use it so I only took what little I needed to get by before leaving.
I had some idea where Dimitri might be, I'd spent a lot of time thinking it through before leaving the academy. He'd said that if he was ever turned that he'd want to be killed and that is what I was going to do for him, and for me. I headed toward the bus station, purchased my ticket to Spokane, brought a few supplies and boarded the bus. It was a long journey with a few stops on the way. I slept for most of the trip, thinking that I would need all my energy for when it really mattered.