You were all really excited to read the part where Alexei scolds Grace, so without further ado, here it is!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Embassy Row series and all the characters (except for Tanner who is my own creation). They belong to Ally Carter. I am merely using her characters and plotline to create this fanfiction. This fanfiction is purely for entertainment purposes and would not exist without Ally Carter's wonderful works.


Chapter Four: Chain of Blame

As quickly as I threw her against the fence, I released my grip on her. I expected Grace to start walking but she only fell, clearly still in shock. I quickly caught her before she could hit the ground. I wondered if she was finally starting to realize that rescuing the scarf was a bad idea. I tightened my grip on her arm and settled for half dragging, half carrying her down Embassy Row. She started shaking, no doubt from her soaking wet clothes and the cold night air.

We walked back in silence. I didn't trust myself to speak without lacing my words in anger. I was fighting hard to stay in control of myself, which was getting more difficult by the second. There were too many emotions going through me right now: shock, anger, disappointment. The fact that she was so close to me wasn't helping either.

"Grace!" someone yelled. I didn't dare turn around. I wanted to get Grace home as quickly as possible before someone, say, her grandfather, found her out of bed in the middle of the night. I felt Grace stop at the sound of her name but I tugged her forward, to keep her moving towards the American embassy.

"I am taking you home," I said, gritting my teeth. It was the only way I could say something without it coming out as an anger-laced shout.

"Grace!" that same person yelled again. I kept on walking and forced Grace to do the same. I had to focus on staying in control of myself and getting Grace home. Distractions would only make both those tasks harder. I heard heavy, loud footsteps behind me but kept walking. We were forced to stop when that person caught up to us and cut us off. I was surprised to see Noah in front of us, leaning over at the waist, trying to catch his breath.

"Are you okay?" Noah asked. I wondered how he knew Grace, as he and Lila only moved to Adria three years ago, after Grace stopped coming. Maybe they had met at the party, although I had no idea how Grace would have even known about that party. Perhaps she had stumbled upon it while exploring, in her typical Grace fashion.

"I'm fine," Grace said.

"She won't be when I'm finished with her," I snarled. Noah gave me a weird look, almost like he was scared of me for saying that. Well, he should have known not to interfere with me when I was angry. I hadn't intended for it to come out so harshly but my mind was so clouded with anger and rage right now that I couldn't think straight. It was my responsibility to make sure that Grace stayed out of trouble in Adria. Thus, I also felt it was my duty to make sure she received appropriate punishment for stepping out of line.

I noticed that we were stopped in front of the German embassy. I saw Lila and Megan stepping onto the street. Lila's eyes immediately snapped to me, a suggestive look written all over her face.

"Hi, Alexei," Lila purred in a much too flirtatious tone. I was not in the mood to deal with her feelings for me right now. Her overly flirtatious behaviour was tolerable at best, but now, given that I was mad as hell, it was downright deplorable.

"Hi," I replied gruffly, hoping she would take the hint. "I'm taking Grace back to her embassy. I'd suggest you all go home as well." I tightened my hold on Grace's arm to prove my point. I hoped they would all listen to me, so I could have a word or two with Grace.

"How did you find me?" Grace asked, her voice cracking. I still felt her shaking underneath me and almost felt bad for her. However, I stopped before I could empathize with her. I had no reason to feel bad for her. She really should have known better than to dive into the sea or go into the Iranian embassy.

"Megan called me. She was worried," I said simply.

"It was that or call my mom," Megan said defiantly. Like her mother would have been much help in this situation.

"I can't believe you're okay," Noah said, with a nervous laugh. There was a look of relief in his eyes and I started wondering if he had feelings for Grace. I suddenly felt the need to keep Grace to myself, like no one else could have her. "You're okay. When you jumped I thought –"

"Say good night, Grace," I interrupted, tugging on her arm. I had just about lost my patience and Noah, Megan, and Lila certainly weren't helping. I forced myself to take a deep breath, before my control snapped. I needed to get them out of the picture as soon as possible so I could knock some sense into Grace.

"Here's your scarf," Grace said, pushing a torn and ragged fabric in Lila's direction. I was barely able to recognize it as the blue and white scarf that Lila wore all the time.

"Thanks," Lila said, although she looked at Grace like she was contagious. I wasn't surprised by that; after all, Grace had only been in Adria for less than twenty-four hours and she already seemed to have garnered herself a reputation as a troublemaker. Grace pushed herself out of my grip and started walking ahead of me. I let her go instead of trying to get a hold on her again. I decided it was for the best, so I could calm down and gain control over my emotions before talking some sense into her.

I followed behind her, watching as she stopped to lean against the fence that surrounded the American embassy. Again, I couldn't help but notice how she still managed to look beautiful, even with her soaking wet clothes and sand-covered body.

"What were you thinking?" I asked, as I stopped in front of her. As I took her in, studying her every feature, my feelings of anger slowly dissipated, turning into concern. She was rocking slightly, a sign that something was definitely wrong with her. I placed my hand on her arm to steady her.

"What is wrong with you?" I asked.

"I'm fine. Just cold. Tired." I had no idea why she was lying, as I once again saw right through her. She obviously wasn't okay and it wasn't just due to tonight's events.

"Grace –"

"Leave me alone, Alexei. I am not your problem." She tried pushing past me but I blocked her way.

"You're Jamie's problem. And since Jamie isn't here …" I said, drawing out the words to let her figure it out herself. I smiled at her, almost daring her to go against me. She knew I was right; she had to. I was in charge of her since Jamie wasn't here and I would do everything in my power to keep her safe and out of harm's way.

"You don't get to boss me around just because I'm a girl, you know."

"No." I stepped closer to her. "I get to be the boss of you because you're Jamie's kid sister and Jamie isn't here."

"Well, that's his problem."

"No. It's my problem." I leaned closer to her. She started shaking harder, as if my mere presence scared her. "Do you have any idea where you were? What would have happened if someone – anyone – had seen you in there?" I feared that I had gone too far but I needed to make her see reason, to make sure she understood that she did something wrong and intolerable.

"I paid the neighbors a visit. Sue me." Something about her tone of voice, maybe the sarcasm, unleashed my former anger, causing my self-control to briefly disappear.

"I'm going to do far worse than that," I snapped. Realizing how harsh that sounded, I softened, hoping that would get through to her better. Besides, my gut told me that I wasn't capable of hurting her. It wasn't due to my lack of strength or fighting ability but something else that I couldn't quite figure out.

"You are the daughter of a major in the United States Army," I continued. "You are the granddaughter of the United States' foremost ambassador to Europe. You cannot break into embassies of hostile governments, Grace. I didn't realize someone had to spell that out to you, but I'm spelling it out now." Hopefully, laying everything out clearly would make her see reason and make her understand that she couldn't just act impulsively.

"Leave me alone, Alexei," Grace said, her voice cracking. She was trying to sound like she didn't care about my lecture but it wasn't working. She was shaking so much now and I got the feeling that something else, something bigger, was wrong.

"There's something you're not telling me," I stated. "What is it, Grace? What is it you aren't telling me?" Her face suddenly blanched, like she was lost in thought. I knew she was deliberating, although over what, I wasn't sure. As she opened her mouth to speak, I half expected her to tell me what was really going on, the reason for her intense shaking. Instead, she simply bade me good night and started heading towards the gate. I didn't try to stop her, but followed behind her, to make sure she got inside safely.

"You're following me," Grace said.

"Yes, I am."

"That's really annoying."

"I'm sure it probably feels that way, yes." It was for her own good though. How else could I make sure that she was safe?

"I can take care of myself." Grace said, stopping to look at me.

"That's exactly what worries me." I watched as she stepped through the gate, heading inside the embassy. If I trusted her to take care of herself, she was only going to get herself killed. That was why I had to keep an eye on her. I knew that she definitely was not okay but I didn't understand why she was so reluctant to tell me what was wrong. It almost seemed like she was scared of letting others in and it made me wonder what she was hiding. As I headed back to the Russian embassy, I could only hope that Grace would start making the right decisions and eventually start trusting me, enough to let me into those walls she had built around herself.

I walked back up to my bedroom, hoping I'd be able to get to bed. I had stayed up much later than intended, thanks to that potential international crisis. I thought of Grace, hoping that our talk would make her rethink her actions, enough to stay out of trouble.

As I neared my room, I noticed that the light was on, shining through the crack under the door. I distinctly remembered turning the light off when I left. I suddenly realized who would be waiting for me on the other side of the door and felt another pit of dread forming in my stomach. As I gripped the door handle, I took a deep breath, bracing myself for the lecture that was going to come.

"I thought you weren't going to be making any more stupid decisions tonight," my father said, as soon as I walked in the door. He was sitting at my desk chair, his back to me. I sat down on my bed, so that I was facing him. I seriously wondered who had ratted me out. Or maybe I just wasn't careful enough tonight. Either way, I knew that my night was not going to end well.

"Something came up," I replied.

"Care to elaborate?" my father asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"There was a bit of a … situation at the party," I said, choosing my words carefully.

"A situation?" Looks like I wasn't going to be getting away with this one.

"Lila and Grace had a misunderstanding, leading to an interesting scenario involving a scarf rescue. I was called in for mediation." My father let out an annoyed sigh.

"Those children cannot always rely on you to sort out their petty problems."

"We were afraid it would lead to an international incident. Besides, I did what I thought was the right thing."

"Sometimes, the right thing is not always the best thing to do. Even though you may feel obligated to act as a peacekeeper, those children need to learn to resolve their issues on their own."

"They trust my authority the most."

"They need to learn to deal with situations themselves. You cannot always be coming to their rescue. What will happen when you cannot be there to resolve the situation?" I stayed silent. My father got me and he knew it. "See, you should not be helping those children so much. You have better things to focus your time and energy on. Understood?"

"Yes, father," I said, hanging my head down in shame. I just tried to do what I thought was right but I guess even that wasn't enough to please my father.

"Good. From now on, I do not want you sneaking out to deal with petty issues, especially between the other children. Is that clear?" My father looked at me expectantly.

"Yes, father," I simply replied.

"You mentioned the American girl's name. Did you sneak out to see her?" my father asked, giving me a hard look.

"No, of course not. I went to the party to deal with the situation," I replied, starting to feel angry again.

"The situation could have been a convenient cover story for a clandestine meeting with the American girl, no?"

"Grace is just a friend! I would not be sneaking out just to see her!" I shouted. I stopped short, suddenly realizing that part of the reason I had snuck out was to see Grace again. My father gave me a devilish smirk, like he knew he had caught me in a lie.

"You say one thing but your face says another thing. Is this American girl more than 'just a friend', as you put it?"

"No, I –" I started. Sure, Grace was my friend but that wouldn't explain why she looked so beautiful under the moonlight. Or why I felt that I wasn't capable of hurting her.

"See, that American girl is already starting to cloud your judgement. You should not be having any feelings, romantic or not, towards her, understood?"

"What, am I not allowed to be friends with Grace?" I snapped, unable to contain myself after hearing what my father said about Grace.

"I have no authority to tell who you should be friends with," my father started. "You are old enough to make those decisions yourself. However, certain friendships may be more beneficial than others, in terms of fostering diplomatic relations. I can tell you right now that a friendship, or a romantic relationship, with the American girl would only serve to weaken our ties with the United States."

"So you are trying to dictate my friendships," I shot back, my previous self-control gone. My father suddenly launched himself out of my desk chair, tackling me back against my bed. It didn't hurt but it was enough to take my breath away for a second.

"I am trying to help you do the right thing," my father said in a quiet, anger-laced tone. "You should know that things have been getting worse between us and the United States. Interacting with the American girl will only serve to harm our fragile relationship. Maybe I'll have to force you to stay away from the American girl, if you cannot do so on your own accord." I froze. Jamie wanted me to protect Grace. How could I do that if my father wanted me to stay away from her?

"Like I said earlier, that American girl has been clouding your judgement. Do I have to set parameters on your whereabouts, to ensure that you won't have secret meetings with her?" my father asked, with a condescending tone.

"No, I will stay away from Grace," I said, trying to keep my voice from shaking.

"You don't sound so sure of yourself," my father stated, picking up on my uncertainty.

"I will stay away from her, if that is what you want me to do."

"Is that what you want to do?" my father said, taunting me with my own words. I took a deep breath, forcing myself to stay in control of my emotions. Despite the anger flaring up inside me, I would not give in to my father's taunts. I would not give him the satisfaction of seeing me out of control again.

"Yes. I will stay away from Grace and avoid all interactions with her." I put as much resolve as I could into my voice.

"Are you sure?" My father raised an eyebrow at me. I could have sworn there was another devilish look on his face, almost like he was goading me again.

"Yes." I forced myself to stare hard into my father's eyes and meet his unwavering gaze.

"Good." My father got up and walked towards the door. At the last second, he turned around.

"The palace is hosting their annual ball in two days," my father stated. "As I`m sure you are aware, this ball is an extremely important event, as the ambassadors will present their credentials to the king. We are required to attend, courtesy of the ambassador. I expect that you will be on your best behaviour that night."

"Yes, of course," I replied. From a young age, I had been trained on how to act appropriately at formal occasions. I knew how to hold myself properly at balls. This was nothing new to me.

"That includes staying away from the American girl," my father said, looking right at me. I suddenly froze under his glare, not expecting another mention of Grace. I thought we were done arguing about her.

"Yes, I will," I said, after a moment's hesitation. My father just eyed me suspiciously before walking out of my bedroom, closing the door behind him. I let out a sigh of relief as I heard his footsteps fading away. I always hated getting lectures from my father; getting two in a night was even worse. For some reason, I felt like that was only the first of many lectures to follow. If my father kept up the lectures at that rate, then I was definitely going to be dead meat by the end of the summer.


Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! What did you think of the chapter title? I couldn't think of one that fit the chapter really well and went with 'Chain of Blame' because it seemed to work fine. Next chapter features a side of Alexei that isn't featured much in the books!