New Tracks: Chapter 2

The good news? We were back on the road in less than an hour. The bad? We were split up and I was not getting to go to Baia. At least not yet. Apparently, that was just too obvious, especially if the Strigoi were looking for Papa or his family. This was all explained to me as I sat pouting in the back of the rent a car.

Grandma Olena was telling me the plan. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I wish I could have told you earlier but you know how your father gets. It took him months to come and tell us he was back," she patted my hand and I smiled. The time Papa spent as a Strigoi was a topic that didn't come up at a lot of family meals.

See, apparently when my mother was young, Papa was turned and then unturned thanks to Aunt Lissa into a Strigoi. He won't talk about it and Mom usually tries to stay away from the subject too. She's secretly thankful for it now because she thinks the healing had something to do with how I ended up being born. But I don't really want to go into details on my conception. That's one mind scarring I don't need thank you very much.

Of course, just me being born is a miracle in itself. Like I've said before, dhampirs shouldn't be able to have kids, yet here I am. (And yes, there were some blood tests involved to make sure, even though Mom told Papa that there was no way I wasn't his daughter). So when I was first born Papa had to hid me away.

Watching the hills of southern Siberia pass by, I thought back to the last time I was here about ten years ago, hiding from the world just as I was now. I felt myself dozing off again, leaning against Emilia's shoulder. As I closed my eyes I could hear children's laughter in my ear and I was transported back to that last day in Baia.

"Levi!" I called after my older cousin. "Levi, wait up!" I stumbled after him as my church dress got caught on the brambles as I ran after him.

"You're going to have to be faster than then that if you want some of Grandma's Easter eggs Lucya!" he taunted me. Up ahead I could see him waving a blue and green egg back and forth that Grandma had hidden.

"Hey she said those ones were for me Levi!" I yelled after him. I caught up and jumped for it but he had at least four inches on me. "Give it! You're not playing fair!" I accused him, putting my hands on my hips.

"Finders keepers, losers weepers,"

My bottom lip began to tremble. "I'm going to tell Aunt Viktoria on you, you meanie," I turned around and promptly ran into my Papa, who was a giant to me back then. I used to think I could see the whole world from on top of his shoulders. He smiled down at me and patted my head.

"Now now my little Roza, what would your mother say to me if she heard you had become a tattletale?"

I hiccupped a bit, fighting back tears. You didn't cry in my house. We were a guardian family after all. "But Papa what am I suppose to do?" He smiled and kneeled down next to my ear, whispering. My eyes lit up and I got a huge grin on my face.

Five minutes later I had a basket filled with blue green Easter eggs and Levi was nursing a fat lip I had just given him. He gave me the evil eye and I just stuck my tongue out at him. "You're a boy, you can take it," I told him, repeating what Papa had just told me. Papa chuckled and put me on his shoulders so I could see the world.

When we got home Papa got Levi an ice pack before going into the living room. I had already settled on the kitchen floor with my other cousins who had gotten home and was eating my chocolate. Paul was watching us from the table, having been given the day off by his Moroi. I looked up at him expectantly.

"What? You think I have a treat for you just because it's Easter?" he asked me. I didn't take my eyes off him and with a sigh he pulled a cookie and marshmallow sandwich out of his pocket. I smiled wide and ripped open the wrapper. Papa smiled at me one last time and went out of the room.

"Thank you Paulie," I mumbled through the food. He shook his head and went back to his book, something that Papa had given him for Easter. I licked my fingers and crawled up into his lap, looking down at the words and pointing out the few I recognized. "What's this one about Paulie?"

He shook his head and turned the page, ignoring me. I frowned and smacked him on the side of the head. He looked at me and sighed again. He might act like we kids tortured him but he loved us all like crazy. That's why he always brought us goodies. "It's a cowboy book," he told me.

"Of course it is, Papa gave it to you. That's all he reads,"

He smiled. "And he reads you these books for a bedtime story right?"

I nodded. "He edits out some parts though," There was a knock at the front door and I heard Grandma get up to get it. "So which one is this one?"

"All the Pretty Horses," he told me. "Has he read you that one?"

I shook my head. "Not that I remember. What's the main character's name?"

"John, he's sixteen,"

"Oh," Paul began to explain the book as I traced patterns on the kitchen table. He had just started telling me about John's friend Jimmy when Papa came back into the room followed by a stranger with brown hair and blue green eyes like my Easter eggs. This guy had an easy smile about him but even to me it was obvious he was nervous here. I didn't get why, Grandma's house was one of the safest places on Earth.

Papa picked me up from Paul's lap and took me over to greet the stranger. He smiled at me. "Hello Lucya, it's nice to meet you," he spoke with a terrible accent.

I tightened my grip on Papa's shoulder. "Hello," I replied, eying him warily.

"Lucya," Papa said slowly "I'd like you to meet my… friend Adrian Ivashkov,"

Adrian waved at me. "You can call me Uncle,"

Papa gave "Uncle Adrian" a hard smile and handed me over to Grandma before taking him to the other room and talking to him in a different language. Meanwhile Grandma took me upstairs to the room I shared with my cousins and aunts.

"Grandma, what's going on?" I asked her. "Why is that man here? I don't like him,"

She scolded me. "Lucya that's a terrible thing to say. You don't even know him. He's here to help you and Papa,"

I crossed my arms. "How? We have everything we need," Something about Adrian gave me the creeps.

She smiled at me and shook her head. "You remind me so much of your mother sometimes Lucya Roza," I glanced at the picture on the nightstand as she said so. It showed a beautiful women with dark hair holding a tiny, bald infant. I picked it up and smiled. I hadn't met her yet but Papa told me all sorts of wonderful stories about my American mother. I knew he missed her.

"I can't wait to see her. Grandma, when is she coming to see us?"

"She's not. You're going to her," I spun around and stared in amazement.

"When?" I asked eagerly.

"Tonight. That is why Adrian is here. He's helping with some paper work,"

"And then we're coming back right?" Grandma didn't answer me. "Right Grandma? I said a bit louder. Grandma was just about to answer me when there was a knock at the door. I opened it up to find a tall girl with dirty blonde hair and eyes just like my Easter eggs standing there.

"Hello," she said nervously, glancing around the room. "I'm Brandie," she stuck out her hand and I just stared at it until she dropped it. "I'm here to help pack, Dad made me a list," she said with the same accent as Adrian. I let her in to give Grandma the list and then she left. "It was nice to meet you,"

Grandma studied it for a minute before throwing some things into a suitcase she had open on the floor. Already in it was Papa's extra cowboy duster. "He'd never forgive me if I forgot it," she muttered to herself. She finished packing and led me downstairs to the living room where everyone was waiting.

Adrian jumped up as if he couldn't wait to leave. He said a few more words to my dad before leaving the house, Brandie right on his heels.

Papa came over to me, a sad , gentle look in his eyes. I always hated that look. The last time he had it was to tell me my pet bunny had run away. "Lucya, you have to go say good bye to everyone now. We're leaving to be with your mother,"

"But we'll be back soon, won't we Papa," I held back my tears, but the expected truth was just too terrible.

Papa paused. "Not for a long while little Roza," he said quietly. I felt my lip quiver and I turned away from Papa to run upstairs to Great Grandma Yeva, who was sitting quietly in her bed. I climbed on the bed and hugged her.

"Oh, what's wrong my angel? Are you sad you will have to go now?" I looked up into her eyes and nodded. She smiled down at me and patted her head. "You know you will be back to see me again," she told me.

"You won't leave until then right?" I asked her urgently.

"Of course not," She paused and reached for a box on her side table. "Here, keep this safe for me. Don't open yet though," she told me, handing it over. I turned the box over and looked at her.

"When will I get to open it?"

"Oh, you'll know when," she promised. I glanced at it again before giving her a huge hug.

"Good bye GranGran Yeva,"

"Good bye my dear, I love you. And remember, be brave in that America. People aren't as nice there as they are here. And some of them are just plain rude,"

I smiled at her. "Okay," After that I went back downstairs and said good bye to the rest of the family while Papa went upstairs. Soon he came back down to collect me and we were off in "Uncle" Adrian's limo to the airport and to our new lives with my mother that I had never known.