She slept with

wolves without

fear, for the

wolves knew a

lion was among

them.

Blood

Rose´s POV

My belly is bigger than I thought it would be, this baby is going to be huge, like his or her father. I´m eight and a half months now, so that means it´s almost time for this baby to come into the world.

I went to the doctor´s and he said that I need to be on bed rest for the last month, it´s something about high blood pressure and stress, why would i be stressed? I´m only having a baby with a man that doesn´t love me and doesn´t even know that I´m having a baby, his baby. Dimitri won´t be here when the baby is born and my baby will probably never meet his or her father. I will have to be the father and a mother to this unborn miracle.

Baba´s back so Olena and Vika went back home, but they come to check on me almost everyday. It´s nice having them around all the time. Baba works a lot, he tries to be here as much as he can but I know he has other responsibilities and I don´t blame him.

Olena and her mother have made at least five blankets each in all different colors, since I don´t know the sex of the baby. We also set up a nursery next to my room. The nursery is big but not to big, two of the walls are grey and the other two are white. The crib baba bought is white and has brown designs carved into the sides that look like a full grown tree. In the crib is a brown blanket and the stuffed bear from the Belikov family. The changing table is white like the crib and has green baskets in the shelves under the actual table, the baskets are filled with with diapers, bottles and a lot of other baby stuff. In one corner there is a big comfortable brown rocking chair, it has green fluffy pillows on it along side one of the blankets Olena made. The floor is wooden and has a big white mat in the middle of the room. There are also a lot of shelves and there is a big bookcase standing on the right side of the crib filled with books in Russian, English and Turkish. I want the baby to know all three languages.

My eighteenth birthday was a few weeks ago, baba and I went out to dinner and when I came home Olena had baked a cake, sliced some apples and bought a new jar of peanut butter, that was the best thing she could have given me. She also gave me a stuffed brown bear and a full bag of new baby blankets. I gave them all a big hug and then I started to cry, for no reason at all.

These hormones are really pissing me off. The only thing I can think or dream about is Dimitri, Naked, touching me, kissing me and whispering dirty things in my ear with his thick Russian accent. All I can think about is that night in the cabin, when he had made love to me. His hands are all over me, from my jaw going south. I can hear my own moans and I can hear him hiss through his teeth

"Roza, I Love…"

I snap out of my dream as the baby turns and kicks my bladder, making the need to pee unbearable.

"Shit"

I struggle out of bed, since I´m pregnant running is very hard so I have to walk like a penguin. It´s not very pleasing to the eye, but hey I get from one place to the other. I have to run, try to run, past baba´s office and I see that the door Is open and baba is sitting at his desk looking at some papers and tipping on the computer.

"Why are you not in bed?"

He says not looking up from his papers

"I´m just going to pee Old man"

I shout over my shoulder, just making it to the bathroom before I pee on my leg. I sigh, relived. It takes a good two minutes before I´m done and I feel so much better.

It´s getting really uncomfortable having this huge belly in front of me, and it doesn´t help that on my chest are two watermelons, making my back hurt when I walk, sit, lay down, move or even breathe, Okay i´m being a little dramatic but I want this baby out of me.

I´ve finished peeing when I hear Olena´s voice out side

"Rose, dear are you alright in there?"

"Yeah, I´m fine, i´ll be out in a minute"

I´m about to stand up when I realize I can´t, I can´t get of the fucking toilet on my own.

"God damn it, Olena can you help me? I can´t stand up"

Olena comes in, Thank god I didn´t have time to lock the door. She smiles and takes my hands making it able for me to stand up, she turns around so I can pull up my pants and wash my hands. I walk out the door where Olena is waiting for me with a bag of chocolate donuts, I take in the smell of them and I smile. She hands me the bag and put a hand around my waist leading me to my bed room

"Thank you for helping me of that damn toilet"

I take a bite out of one of my doughnuts, and she smiles at me

"Your welcome. This baby is going to be big when it comes into this world"

Olena says looking at my belly

"I was about that size when I was pregnant with my son Dimitri, he was a large boy"

I stiffen and she stops to look at me

"What is it Rose?"

"nothing, I just need to lay down, I feel a little wobbly"

She helps be get in my bed. She brings me a glass of water and opens a window to let in some fresh air. Olena comes over to me, she strokes my head and smiles

"Two weeks darling, two weeks"

And then she walks out and I drift off to sleep.

Abe´s POV

Since the meeting in Tokyo I have been receiving threats from all around the world, from those who don´t like my decisions about checking each and every single circle member in every single circle of the men and women around the world I have been in business with throughout the years and execute those who have stolen from me

We will come for your daughter.

You don´t know when, where or how many. But we will come and we will take everything you care about and destroy it.

You nor your family will ever be safe again.

The child your daughter bares, will not live longer than it´s first months and your daughter will die protecting it.

There will be nothing you can do and nowhere you can go to escape your fate and neither will your lovely daughter Rosemarie.

No one makes threats to me or my child and gets away with it, the only thing these people have achieved is making me angry and even more dangerous than before.

I have my ways.

-Three weeks later

Rose´s POV

One week ago my baby should have been born, but NO, this child of mine has decided in its stubbornness to stay inside my womb and the kicks this child uses, are just a conformation that this little bundle of joy will be one of the best guardians this world has ever seen, being mine and Dimitri´ child.

"WHY WON´T YOU COME OUT?"

I scream at my belly

"I WANT YOU OUT OF ME"

"Rose the doctor said that it will happen in the next two days"

Vicka says smirking at me from the other end of the couch, where she´s reading a magazine. Suddenly the front door slams open and baba comes in along with a bunch of guardians I have never seen before, and he´s shouting orders. Vicka stands up and turns to me, I put my hands out and she helps me get off the couch, supporting my back and arm, and we walk over to my dad.

"Baba, what´s going on?"

He doesn´t answer me and continues to shout orders and all the guardians skater to different parts of the mansion in large groups.

"Baba"

"ROSEMARIE, I WILL GET TO YOU IN A MINUTE. NOW GO TO YOUR ROOM AND STAY THERE"

I gape at him. Who the HELL does he think he is, sending me to my room and scolding me like a five year old child. I narrow my eyes of him and cross my arms awkwardly because of my huge belly and breasts, and I stand my ground raising an eyebrow looking very angry. Baba soon realizes I´m still in the same spot and he turns around. narrowing his eyes at me and then he growls

"ROSEMARIE HATHAWAY-MAZUR, WILL YOU DO AS I SAY BEFORE I HAVE SOMEONE DO IT BY FORCE. I WILL NOT ASK YOU AGAIN"

Now it´s not baba talking, it´s Zmey. He is scarier than I thought he could ever be, and for the first time I know why they call him Zmey.

"just tell me what´s going on and I will go"

He sighs an irritable sigh

"Since the meeting in Tokyo, I have been receiving threat´s on our lives, so I am bringing in more protection for you and the baby"

"What ? but I´m about to give birth, I can´t have thirty people with me at the hospital when that happens"

"Which is why you will have the baby here and not outside these walls. Now go upstairs and stay there."

I´m to shocked to say anything or move so Vicka has to pull me to the elevator and up.

Dimitri´s POV

Tasha has been rambling for days about "That Turkish bastard" as she calls him. I haven´t told her that ´This Turkish bastard´ has saved my Babushka, my mother and my sisters countless times from my father while I was away.

"Who does this man think he is? he thinks he can just execute whoever he feels like executing, whenever he feels like it. I am not some plaything he can boss around and make me do whatever he wants. And he thinks one of my people are stealing money from him, It´s not like he doesn´t have enough of it by the way he dresses"

I run my hands up and down my face, thinking about the best way to make this woman shut up and stop drinking so much. She has been drinking all day and all night since the meeting in Tokyo and she is making me go crazy. It´s hard to stay calm around her and not shout at her.

"Tasha, you remember I am going home in a few days. Is there anything you need me to do before leave you?"

"WHAT? NO, DIMKA YOU CAN´T LEAVE ME"

"Tasha we talked about this, I am leaving for home in five days and I will be there for three months, then I will meet you at court. Aren´t you going to go see your nephew and his girlfriend princess Vasilissa?"

Tasha gags

"God, I hate that girl. She makes Christian weak and stupid. He needs to find someone better. And that friend of hers, that dark haired little slut who thinks she´s better than everyone else"

I growl under my breath

"Don´t talk about Rose that way"

"Did you say something Dimka?"

I clear my throat and stand up from the chair I´m sitting in and put on my duster

"I´m going for a walk, I need to think"

"About what?"

"THIS. TASHA"

I say pointing between us, she looks confused and shocked at my sudden burst of anger.

"what do you mean? What is there to think about?"

"I don´t know if I can work for you anymore"

"WHAT? NO, I CAN´T LOOSE YOU DIMKA."

She let´s out a desperate cry and grabs the collar on my duster, dragging me closer to her. I grab her hands and take them of me, then I walk out of the hotel room in Italy and slam the door, behind me I can hear screaming after me

"DIMKA, DIMITRI GET BACK IN HERE. AS YOUR CHARGE I COMMAND YOU TO COME BACK. DIMITRI."

I hear a bottle brake as she throws it at the door

"DIMITRI"

I shake my head and keep walking as fast as I can. When I get outside I take a deep breath and start walking.

Rose´s POV

I´m sitting in the nursery rocking chair, clutching the fluffy stuffed bear tight to my chest. I´m afraid. Why would someone come after me or my baby. My baby. I rub my belly

"Maybe you should just stay in here, at least I know you´re safe. I WILL keep you safe, no one will ever take you from me, as long as i´m alive you will be safe"

"Rose dear, your father wanted me to check on you"

Olena strokes my cheek and wipes a tear away with her thumb, then the tears come streaming down my face. I put my arms around her neck

"I´m scared, what If something happens to my baby, what if ...what if ...someone comes in and…."

Olena tries to calm me down. She begins singing and stroking my back

I continue to sob but I relax, I dry my tears and lay my head on the chair. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Olena strokes my hair and kisses my forehead, then she puts a blanket over me and I fall asleep with my hands resting on my huge belly.

I wake up to myself screaming in pain, my eyes flash open and there is a man standing over me with a knife dripping with blood in his hand. I can feel the blood running down my stomach and then I scream, I scream louder than I have ever screamed in my life. The man is a little surprised by my screaming and takes a step back. I take that second to my advantage and I start to throw at him the stuff I can reach and he takes another step back, I manage to stand up and I don´t stop screaming

"BABA, OLENA, SOMEONE, PLEASE HELP ME"

I hate being so weak, but I can´t risk getting into a fight, not with a baby on board.

The man is coming at me again flashing his knife trying to slash me, when the door opens and at least fifteen guardians come running in. Ten of them surround the man and the last five surround me and lead me out of the room and down stairs.

Olena is the first one to wrap her arms around my shaking body, she puts one hand on the back of my head and the other on my back. I´m not as close to her as I would like to be because of my belly, but I´m close enough to grip her tightly not wanting to let her go.

Olena leads me to the couch, Viktoria takes my hand and then she puts an arm over my shoulder and presses her forehead to mine. Olena lifts up my shirt and gasps sending me into a panic

"WHAT? IS MY BABY OKAY, TELL ME"

"Everything will be fine dear, I´m going to go get something to clean you up"

She takes a better look at the wound

"The cut isn´t very deep and the baby is just fine, Everything will be fine"

She gives me a small smile and then she stands up and walks into the kitchen.

"Where´s baba?"

I say looking over at Viktoria

"He will be here in a few minutes, I called him when I figured out that there was something wrong. Everything is going to be alright, mama and babushka are going to take care of you, I´m going to see is they need anything"

She´s about to stand up when I grab her hand and pull her back down

"Please, don´t go"

She smiles and nods, I give her a weak smile and try to calm my breathing.

Olena and her mother come back into the living room holding a towel, a bowl with warm water and then a full glass of water for me to drink. Yeva is holding the bowl and my glass while Olena cleans the wound. I stiffen when Olena puts the wet towel at the wound and Viktoria is squeezing my hand, suddenly Yeva turns to me and says something in Russian

"Tрудности часто готовят обычные люди внеочередного судьбы."

As always I look at Olena for translation, Olena smiles

"Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny."

Right when I´m about to say something the front door opens and Baba rushes in, he looks around for a moment, he sees me and he runs to me. The emotions on his face are confusing, they go from angry to worried, to painful and back to angry. Olena moves away to make room for him, he kneels at my feet and puts both hands on each cheek.

"Are you alright? What about the baby?"

"Everything is fine, they are both fine. A bit shaken up but no harm came to the child"

Olena says putting one hand on his shoulder. Baba closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. When he looks at me again the anger is back and the man kneeling in front of me is no longer my father, now he´s full on Zmey.

Baba gets up and heads up the stairs to where the unknown man is, and I know that right now, I should not ask him any questions. There is one thing I manage to say

"Not in the nursery, baba"

He stops for a moment, looks at me and nods. With that he´s gone.