It only took several hours for me to arrive at Court from the time I got off the phone with Rose to the time I actually set foot in Court, though it seemed to take about ten lifetimes with how anxious I was to get this plan set in motion. Plus, Jill had called me when I was in the middle of packing, having seen and heard everything in the bond and she wanted to wish me good luck and she told me to bring Sydney back safe and sound. And then I received a call from Eddie, insisting on coming along so that he could be in on the plan to get Sydney back—considering how guilty he felt for allegedly "letting" her get taken. I adamantly refused his offer, though, assuring him that I'd be just fine and he was needed here to keep Jill safe. After all, she was his top priority—as well as my own. I loved Sydney more than anything, but there was no way in hell I was going to risk Jill's safety by taking away her best protector for my own purposes here. If all went well, I told him, I'd have plenty of back-up in Rose and hopefully Dimitri, and I didn't want anyone else getting involved in this.
When I denied him, Eddie then tried to convince me to at least take Neil or Angeline with me, just so that he could feel better in knowing he hadn't let me run off completely unprotected, but I fed him the same argument that Jill needed protection a hell of a lot more than I did—she was our top priority in all of this—and I would not risk her safety for anything…not even to get Sydney back, as painful as that was. I was going to get her back or I was gonna die trying, but I wasn't going to let anyone else take the fall for me. Like Marcus had said, it was my fault that Sydney was taken in the first place, so it was my responsibility to bring her back.
My heart rate sped up erratically as we approached the palace with the knowledge that I was getting closer and closer to Sydney with each step I took, and it was only a matter of time before I could hold her in my arms again. Almost there, I thought, almost there!
The car slowed down once we had reached the palace, and I had flung my door open and put my foot on the ground before the driver could even bring the car to a full stop. He seemed startled by my abruptness, but he didn't comment on it. Instead, he just turned back to look at me and politely addressed me. "Do you require an escort, Lord Ivashkov?"
Not even a few months ago, I would've shot the guy a knowing grin and then offered up some wise-ass remark about how I always require an escort, and I was insulted that he even had to ask…but I couldn't bring myself to crack a joke this time. There was nothing funny about the situation I was in, and I could waste no time in setting to it.
"No thank you, I've got it," I said hastily. "Thanks, Louis." I tossed a 50 to him and then quickly grabbed my bag and was out of the vehicle before he could so much as blink in response. I slammed the door behind me and then started running toward the entrance, only too eager to get inside and get a plan hashed out.
My uncharacteristic haste and scurrying about earned a few startled looks from some passers-by, who all knew me well as the late queen's notorious great nephew, the spoiled rich kid who sat on his ass his entire life and got everything handed to him on a silver platter. So, seeing me in action, actually running of my own free will toward something, no doubt came as a shock to all. I couldn't pay them any mind, though. Sydney was running out of time, and every second I delayed was another second lost.
I came barreling into the throne room and nearly collapsed from how hard I had run up here. I doubled over to catch my breath, which was now coming out in sharp, painful gasps, and clutched at my side, which was cramping up. "Rose," I gasped out. "Rose…where's…Rose? I need to…ugh, cramp!" I tried to straighten up and look for her, but doing so made the world start spinning and my vision became blurred. "I am…seeing spots." I squeezed my eyes tightly shut and brought a hand up to my head until I knew the world would right itself.
"Okay, I think he's trying to tell us something," a familiar voice spoke, clearly amused by my current state. "Quick, get the verbs."
"Shut it, Ozera," I grumbled. "Dizzy or not, I can still kick your ass if I really wanted to." That earned me a snort from him, followed by a muttered, "I'd like to see you try."
"Adrian!" Lissa exclaimed happily, and then she pulled me into a giant bear hug.
"Whoa, cousin!" I staggered back a couple steps and then quickly regained my footing and returned her hug just as eagerly. "Nice to see you too." I chuckled.
"We've missed you so much around here," she said, squeezing me tightly before letting go of the hug and taking a step back. "We need someone around to put Christian in his place. He's gotten rather cocky since you've left."
"Hey!" Rose's voice issued from the plush love seat, where she sat, hand-in-hand, with Dimitri Belikov, her well-renowned, badass guardian boyfriend. "What the hell am I, chopped liver? I put him in his place all the time."
Christian opened his mouth to protest, but Lissa silenced him with a look and chuckled. "Yeah, but it's just not the same without Adrian here. No one can do it like him."
"That's what all the ladies tell me," I said, just because I knew some snarky comment like that was expected from me when I was around them and I couldn't have them suspecting that I might actually be in love with Sydney. I didn't think they would be willing to help me if they knew.
That comment just earned a lot of eye rolls and world-weary sighs. "Oh, Adrian," Lissa said, shaking her head. "Same old Adrian. I really have forgotten just how delightful it can be having you around. As if that's possible."
"I told you time and time again not to take me for granted," I reminded her, "otherwise you were gonna lose me. It's cold and dark here, huh?"
"To say the least," Rose replied, rising to her feet and walking over to where I stood with Lissa. Chuckling, she gave me a hug and patted me on the back a couple times before stepping back and regarding me with a beaming smile. "So, what can I do for you?"
I immediately sobered up as I was brought back to the task at hand. "Um…actually, can we…go somewhere and talk in private? If you don't mind?"
"Sure." She nodded, and then turned back and shared a knowing glance with Dimitri. "You okay here?"
He nodded curtly and rose to his feet and took a stance over by the far wall. "Go do your thing. We'll be fine."
"God," Christian scoffed, "you guys act like you're our babysitter or something. It's rather insulting, I've gotta say."
"Well, in all fairness here, with you here, Christian, they might as well be," I said, offering him my trademark smirk in response to his glower.
"Don't you have somewhere to be?" he retorted.
"Lissa, control your woman," I said, inclining my head toward Christian and smiling broadly at him as Rose nudged me toward the door.
"Okay, that's enough out of you," she sighed. "Let's go."
"I hope this is okay," Rose said, her voice almost apologetic as she led me into her shared suite with Dimitri, where they lived together here at Court. Her motions were slow and hesitant as we stepped further into the suite and she kept eyeing me cautiously, like she expected me to have a total breakdown at any given moment.
Glancing around, I could definitely spot the tell-tale signs of their cohabitation—namely, one of Dimitri's old, battered western books sitting on the end table, clothes—both his and hers—haphazardly strewn about the open space, probably since keeping up with household chores ranked pretty low on the guardians' priority list, as indicated by the pile of dirty dishes in the sink. And most telling of all, hanging on the wall as you first walk in, was a picture frame displaying four photographs: one of the two of them standing together outside of St. Vladimir's Academy, where they first met and fell in love; beside that was another picture of the two of them in what looked like St. Petersburg with the fancy cathedral and elaborate Russian-style buildings in the background; below that was a picture of the two of them that was taken at Sonya and Mikhail's wedding; and the fourth one was of the two of them with Christian and Lissa at the wedding.
In the background of that last picture, I could spot Sydney and me dancing, clear as day…when I had boldly approached her and asked her to dance—as a sign of civility and attempted amends between our people as far as everyone else was concerned. In reality, she had just looked so excruciatingly gorgeous that I couldn't stand it any longer. I wanted to dance with her, and I didn't care what anyone else thought. I was too wrapped up in Sydney and my all-encompassing feelings for her; that was all that mattered. All that could matter. All that still mattered.
"If it makes you uncomfortable," Rose continued awkwardly, clearly oblivious to my traitorous thoughts, "we can go somewhere else. I know how hard this must be for you, and I don't wanna make you—"
"This is fine," I said abruptly, stunning her into silence.
"Okay," she said at long last. "Well. Can I get you anything? You've been traveling all day; I'm sure you must be starving—"
"Rose," I said firmly, though I couldn't help the hint of amusement at her frigid attempts at hospitality here. "Really, I'm okay. You don't have to go to any trouble to entertain me or anything. That's not why I'm here."
"Right," she murmured, breathing a small sigh of relief. "That gigantic favor of yours. So tell me…what can I do for you?"
"For me, nothing," I said matter-of-factly. "This has nothing to do with me. This favor is for Sydney."
Rose flinched in surprise at the unexpected mention of our mutual friend. "Sydney?" she repeated, her voice mirroring the surprise her face conveyed. "What about her? She's okay, isn't she?"
"No, she's really not," I returned, in a hard voice, and Rose looked to me in confusion as she waited for me to elaborate. "I'm not surprised Lissa didn't get around to telling you, considering all the other crap she has going on lately," I relented, though I couldn't help the note of bitterness lacing my words. "But Sydney got taken away by the Alchemists about three weeks back, and I need you to help me find her."
Surprise once again registered on Rose's face, indicating she hadn't been notified of Sydney's abduction, but she apparently hadn't hit panic mode just yet. "What do you mean, they took her?" she asked slowly. "Took her where?"
"Off to some Alchemist prison, essentially," I explained. "It's called Re-education, where they put bad Alchemists who grow too close to the Moroi and dhampirs. When an Alchemist gets too friendly with one of us or starts to see us as human—or God forbid—as anything more than evil hell spawn, then they get taken away to Re-education, and…well." I chuckled once, a low bitter sound. "They re-educate them. They use our compulsion, taking it from the Moroi blood they inject into their tattoos, and twist the compulsion to do their bidding. You see, the compulsion put into the blood is very basic and general compulsion, but the Alchemists give the command once the blood has been injected to reinforce group loyalty and remind them that the Moroi are the anti-Christ. But when someone like Sydney is strong enough to fight through the initial compulsion and develops a mind of her own, they slam her with even more compulsion—stronger compulsion—and then they guide the compulsion that we give them and force it to them against us once again." I didn't explain it nearly as well as Sydney would have if she were here, but hopefully, Rose could see how dire the situation was with just my sloppy description of the phenomenon.
"It's essentially like mind rape, you can say," I practically choked on the words as they left my lips. "Mind control in its worst possible form. They are forcing her to believe things she doesn't wanna believe, to do things she doesn't wanna do, to hate the people she really doesn't wanna hate. And they're doing this to Sydney, right now, even as we speak. They took her away, and they're punishing her because—"
My words came to an abrupt halt and my tongue locked up. I couldn't tell Rose everything—even I knew that. If she knew that Sydney and I were together, she would be utterly disgusted. She wouldn't want to help; hell, she'd probably want to just leave her there.
"Because she got too close to us," I said lamely. "And when her sister came in to 'help' balance the Alchemist responsibilities, she wanted to be their daddy's golden child, so she turned Sydney in to their superiors and they took her away. We can't get in touch with her; we've tried everything. I've tried reaching her in spirit dreams, but all I get is blackness, like—"
"She's being drugged," Rose finished for me, having recognized the signs for herself. "Oh, my God," she breathed, closing her eyes and hanging her head in sadness. "Poor Sydney. That is just awful. I can't believe they would do that to her just because—" Her head snapped up and a sudden fierceness and outrage that I recognized well filled her features. "Is she—?" She swallowed audibly and shook her head, not daring to believe her next words. "She's not in there because of me, is she? Because she helped me escape?"
No, that lovely honor would fall to me, I thought bitterly. Out loud, I just shook my head and said, "No, it wasn't you. It's because…she's grown really close to our group in Palm Springs, just from spending more time around us and starting to see for herself that we're not all the spawn of Satan, anyway. She has come to see Jill as a younger sister of sorts—she really cares about her and she was so great at looking after her and making sure she was safe. Jill's happiness meant so much to her, and she always went out of her way to help our beloved princess. And as for Eddie…Eddie's like the brother she never had…" I choked up again as I recalled seeing Eddie on that awful night after Sydney's capture. Memories played back in my mind and I winced, hoping I wasn't openly wearing my agony on my face.
"Eddie was there," I continued, nearly choking on the words as they passed through my lips, "when she got captured. He tried to fight off her attackers, but…she gave herself up to save him. The Alchemists were shooting at him, and she couldn't bear to let him take the fall for her. So she insisted that they split up and then she handed herself over to the Alchemists so that Eddie could escape unscathed. And Angeline needs someone to keep her in line, and Sydney was always the best at cleaning up her messes."
"Please tell me that's not the only reason you want her back, is to clean up Angeline's messes," Rose tried her hand at a joke, when she was finally able to speak again, but I couldn't find anything funny right now.
"I want her back because she's a good person with a tremendous heart, and she doesn't deserve to be kept prisoner in that hellhole after everything she's done for us," I stated matter-of-factly, somehow managing to maintain that emotional neutrality in my voice, just like Sydney would have done when discussing one of us. She would've been proud of me, had she been here. "She doesn't deserve this, Rose; she doesn't deserve any of this, and you know it!"
"You're right," Rose initially agreed. "She doesn't deserve this. And I'm sorry for her; truly, I am. It's not right what they're doing to her, and I wish, more than anything, that I could do something—anything—to help her. But what would you have me do here, Adrian?"
I regarded her knowingly, with mockery and astonishment. "Oh, gee, I don't know," I said sarcastically. "It's not like you staged a break-in to some maximum security prison and wound up freeing a dangerous fugitive for your own personal gain. No, not at all."
"You want me to break in to a highly guarded Alchemist facility and bust her out of there?!" she exclaimed, clearly appalled that I would even suggest such a thing.
"No, I want you to sit here like a panty waist with your thumbs firmly planted up your ass while Sydney continues to rot away in there," I retorted, earning a groan from her.
"Are you out of your mind?!" Her eyes widened in shock as she realized what I came here to ask her to do. "Adrian, you can't ask me to do this! Look, I am sorry for what happened to Sydney. My heart breaks for her, and I really wish I could help her out here, I do. I care about you both, and I would do anything else in the world for you. But you can't make me do this. I won't."
"And why the hell not?" I demanded, struggling to keep my emotions in check and not lash out at her in my anger. After all, this was quite possibly my only chance to get Sydney back, and I couldn't blow it by being antagonistic toward Rose.
"You know why," she said, and I could hear the sorrow and regret in her voice, even as she spoke those contradictory words. She really did see Sydney as a dear friend, and she couldn't stand to see any of her friends suffer…but apparently, even she had limits to how far she'd go to help a friend in need. "If I bust in there, guns blazing, and tear out of there with someone they view as a traitor, the entire Moroi world would be implicated. The Alchemists already think we're creatures of hell; we don't need to give them any more reason to believe that."
"They already believe that," I pointed out. "You sitting here, doing nothing isn't going to change that."
"I know it won't," she agreed, "but you know as well as I do that if I do this…war will be brought down on the Moroi race, and the Alchemists will seek to destroy us."
"They already wanna destroy us," I snapped. "Sydney discovered evidence suggesting that the Alchemists are in it with the vampire hunters. And while the Strigoi might be their priority right now, once they're all gone…we're next. They will come after us and take us down, one-by-one. It's only a matter of time."
"Well, we're just gonna have to cross that bridge when we get to it," she said calmly, "But in the meantime, I'm not going to give them a reason to come after us a moment sooner. We need the Alchemists, Adrian, you know we do. As flawed and fucked-up as their belief system might be in regards to us, they do still help us. They found a safe, out-of-the-way place and helped us to hide Jill. What do you think they would do to her if it got out that we deliberately struck out against them? They would have no reason to help us anymore. Hell, they'd probably go after her themselves just to make a statement. You really wanna risk that?"
"And you're really going to sit here arguing the logistics of right and wrong and irrational risks when you literally sacrificed everything to save Belikov?" I shot back. "I mean, what would you do if roles were reversed and he were the one locked in there. Or if it was Lissa in there. Don't tell me you wouldn't be storming over there right now, ready to tear the Alchemists apart to get them back. I've seen what you're willing to do when the people you love are at risk, and really, this pales in comparison. Don't you think?"
Rose winced like I had just slapped her, and then she shifted her weight uncomfortably under the weight of my scrutiny. "That's different," she murmured, shaking her head in disbelief that I even dared to bring that up. "I did that because…I loved him."
"Yeah, right!" I nearly shouted, as if the concept were oh, so obvious. And then, realizing that I nearly busted myself on my feelings for Sydney, I quickly made amends. "And how'd that work out for you? Pretty good? Because the way I remember it, you wound up getting framed and imprisoned for murder and becoming a wanted fugitive yourself when your friends helped you to escape. And I can't remember, who was there for you when you needed it? Oh, right. Sydney. She put herself on the line and risked everything she had to help you, didn't she? She dragged herself all over kingdom come to help you and Dimitri when she really had no reason to. She was terrified out of her mind about what would happen to her if she was caught. You understand that? She didn't have to help you; she did it because it was the right thing to do. And now, she's the one who's wrongfully being imprisoned, and she needs you to help her. You owe it to her—after everything she risked for you—you owe it to her to save her. It's only fair."
"I'm sorry…" she repeated lamely, looking like she was on the verge of tears. "I really am. I'll do anything else for you…but not this. If there's anything else I can do for you—"
"Don't bother," I scoffed, turning away and making to leave. "You've done plenty. Clearly. I'm sorry to bother you with this. I guess I should've just left well enough alone, huh?"
"No, wait!" She came after me and put her hand on my shoulder, jerking me around to face her. "Adrian, please don't go. You have to understand. If this were anything else, I would be there for you in a heartbeat. You know that. But I can't risk bringing war down upon our heads—upon Lissa's head—just to break Sydney out of there. Some things are worth the risk, and some things aren't."
"Oh, so Sydney's not worth the risk?!" I snapped back.
"That's not what I'm saying," she returned. "I'm just saying that this is a lot for us to risk—too much—just to bring her back."
"I see," I said, nodding my head slightly in my anger and taking a step back. "So what would you have me do, then? If it were you—if you were in this situation—what would you do?"
"I don't know," she said honestly. "But I wouldn't risk the safety—the future—of my people just for one person. It's not worth it. If it were Dimitri…or even, God forbid, Lissa—" She flinched and pain distorted her features as she imagined her loved ones taking Sydney's place. "It would be hell. It would be excruciating for me to come to terms with, but I would just accept what was. I would find another way—using legal channels—to get them out of there."
I snorted in disgust. "Come on, Hathaway, let's be honest here. If nothing else. I've seen you when your loved ones are endangered and the channels you resort to are anything but legal. Dropping out of school to go after Belikov in Russia, breaking out Victor on the slim chance that you were able to save your guy,, being on the run as an escaped fugitive yourself…Rose Hathaway and legal are two terms that have never really meshed well together, wouldn't you say?"
"Maybe…maybe she'll be able to resist the compulsion," she said weakly, after a long moment's pause, but even I could tell that she knew it was too much to hope for. "Maybe they'll give up if it doesn't work after a while and just…let her go?"
"Not really the way it works," I sneered. "According to my informant, if the compulsion doesn't take, they won't just let her go. They'll kill her. They can't risk having another vamp lover out in the world—they'd see it as too great a risk. You know, kind of like you are now. They think that if she gets in good with us, that it's only a matter of time before she'll be lining up to serve the Strigoi. I give her a couple months or so, and if she doesn't give into them and give them what they want, they're gonna take what they want from her. One way or another, they're going to get it. Even if they have to force it out of her."
Rose exhaled shakily and ran a trembling hand through her hair. "I'm sorry," she repeated for what had to be the millionth time tonight.
"Don't tell me," I returned. "Tell it to her. She's the one you're betraying here."
"Adrian, wait—"
"Spare me," I grumbled miserably, going to leave again. "Just spare me." Once again, she placed her hand on my arm and stood in front of me, blocking my path.
"Adrian," she said, her voice much harder. "Listen to me, please, okay? I might not be able to help her out in the way you want, but that's not to say I can't help her. I can try to help you get in touch with her."
"Oh, yeah? What are you gonna do, call on a favor from Papa Mazur? And all it'll cost me is my soul? No thanks, I'll find something else—"
"No!" She took me by my arms and shook me slightly in her frustration. "Look, you remember when I was in Russia, how that spirit user, Oksana, enabled me to help you and Lissa in that fight against Avery?"
Hearing those names brought up was enough to catch my attention. "Yeah?" I replied, unsure as to where she was going with this. "What about them?"
"You said you can't reach Sydney in a spirit dream because you think she's being drugged, right?" I just nodded, not wanting to go through this all again. "Well, what if Sonya and Lissa were to combine their strength with yours and act as a medium to enable you to penetrate the barrier brought on by the drugs…and then you could have a few moments with Sydney. Just enough to see where she is and how she's holding up. It's not much…but it is something, right? I can't just stand by and do nothing. Like you said, Sydney is my friend too, and I might not be able to rush in there half-cocked…but I can do this for her, if nothing else. I don't know. What do you say?"
I shrugged, contemplating her suggestion and turning it over in my head, trying to see if it would be enough to break through the drugs and reach her. "I say, I'll try anything once," I said, trying my hand at a joke—and failing horribly, if Rose's lack of reaction was any indication. I paused for half a millisecond longer and then gave a curt nod. "Sure. Let's give it a shot. There's no harm in trying, right?"