I was standing in a narrow alley. The street light had flickered a few times and then gone out. The heavy rain blurred my vision and I tried to see the body at the corner.

It was a strigoi.

I went towards it and took out a small tranparent vial from my purse and poured a few drops over the body and tried not to shiver. Strigoi's still made my blood cold.

As I watched the body started decomposing and finally disappeard.

I went to my car and drove away.

It's been five years since i was back in Russia, my post before I was invovled in the Rose debacle. Five years since i left the gang in Palm Springs...including Adrian.

I had not wanted to do it but the alchemists had left me no choice.

It had only beens a few weeks since i had found out i was pregnant. The alchemists had come to know and had told me to either leave Adrian and continue as one of them or loose both Adrian and my baby and be sent to re-education.

I had chosen to keep my baby and was next day transferred to Russia. For Adrian, Jill and Eddie, i had just disappeared from the planet.

I turned on the corner and stoped in front of a house with a large green yard. Alchemists still paid a good salary.

I parked my car and rang the bell. The girl I had hired to babysit my daughter, when i had received an alert from the alchemists, opened the door. I thanked her and went to my four year old wonder. With green emerald eyes and her charming smile she looked like just like Adrian, except her hair which were blond like mine.

"Mamma!" Taylor rushed to me and wrapped herself around my legs.

I took her in my arms and smiled at her.

"What has my little angel been doing?"

"I have been painting. See. "

She waved a sheet in front of me. It was filled with splashes of colours. It seemed to be modern art. I remembered Adrian showing me his paintings and chiding me for not understanding them.

I carried Taylor to her room which had a big photo of Adrian and me laughing. I had many of our photos around the house. The one thing that the alchemists couldn't take from me were my memories.

I tucked my daughter in her bed and went in my room. I opened my laptop and typed the report. I went to the bed and tried to sleep.

The next morning the sun shined and i got Taylor ready for school. She was a cheerful and charming girl. At first I was a little afraid of telling my little damphir that she might be a little different from other children but she had taken it in a stride.

I left her at the school and went for my daytime job. I worked as a professor at the university. I had gone to college and got a degree in ancient architecture.

I entered the campus and stopped short. Getting out of a bright yellow mustang was none other than Jill Dragomir, Princess of the Moroi.