Inside the gates we followed a paved driveway a hundred yards or so before taking the left fork and driving for another few hundred yards, pulling up alongside Mom's car outside a large three story Gothic stone building. We piled out, looking about us curiously.
The building itself was majestic. It was clearly old. The front featured the entry door beneath an ornate timber balcony, but to each side were windowed circular turrets. There were plenty of wood-framed windows on the ground and first floors, the top floor featuring tiny dormer windows in the conical red-shingled roof. It was the sort of place you expected to see in a historic district of an old town – not here in a heavily treed enclosure on a mountain in the middle of nowhere.
"It's freezing," Eddie muttered, shivering despite the hoodie he was wearing.
"I hope it has heating," I said, eyeing the house dubiously.
"Let's stop grumbling and start moving," Mom said, not looking thrilled, herself. "Bring everything in downstairs; then we'll work out the sleeping arrangements."
Digging in the large yellow envelope, Janine pulled out a set of keys, climbing the two front stairs and crossing the deep porch to open the broad front door. Gesturing everyone inside, one by one we followed her into an enormous open area. To one side was a dining room, the other a formal lounge area with prissy old-fashioned sofas and armchairs.
"Put all the stuff in the lounge, then we'll explore," she ordered.
Dimitri, Stan, Eddie, Blake, Meredith and I made short work of bringing in our duffel bags, quilts, pillows, coolers and the groceries. Placing them in piles in the lounge room, we followed Mom through the house, taking careful reconnaissance of the layout.
The ground floor seemed to consist of communal areas. A large rectangle, to the right of the entry hall was the dining room. Featuring an enormous mahogany table seating eighteen, there was also a glass fronted sideboard displaying an ornate dinner set, crystal glassware, and silver. Although the place was relatively clean and dust free, somehow it had the air of a place that was rarely, if ever, used.
From the dining room, we filed through a doorway to an area my mother declared to be a butler's pantry before heading through another door to an enormous kitchen and meals area. Painted in white, the area was scrupulously clean. The closest end had a large wooden table with sturdy timber chairs. The other end featured a fully kitted turn of the century kitchen, including a massive cast iron range and a central butcher's block bench. Well lit by large windows on two walls, the room would be a nightmare to defend but was bright and pleasant.
"I haven't seen one of those since I was a bairn," my mother muttered, going over to look at the wood fired stove. "My Nan was in service and used to cook on one of these. I can remember visiting her as a wee thing and watching her bake."
I spun to face my mother in shock. I'd never heard anything about my grandmother, let alone my mother's grandmother! Somehow I'd assumed Mom knew as little about her family as I did of mine. It looked like there was a whole family history I knew nothing about. It was a depressing thought.
Checking the doors from the kitchen, one led to an enormous larder, which was empty other than a couple of modern deep freezers and a fridge. Stan stepped forward to open them, discovering they were empty and spotless; all ready to accommodate our food. I looked to the doorframes, noting there were light switches. So at least the house was wired. Here's hoping the power was on!
Another door off the kitchen led to a mudroom in the rear center of the house, which contained a washer, dryer, wood store, a door to a downstairs bathroom and the back door. The third door led back into the entry hall, to the side of the stairs leading upwards. On the other side of the entryway was the lounge room where we'd piled our belongings, a library with floor to ceiling bookcases, well stocked with leather-bound tomes and comfortable looking leather sofas. The library connected via an arch to what looked like a gentleman's study. Finally in the back left corner was what was probably meant to be a ladies' sitting room.
Heading back out into the entry, we followed Dimitri and my mother up the central carpeted stairs. Situated in the middle of the house, the stairs led to a large landing that was illuminated by a fancy stained glass window. From here, secondary stairs led to the right and the left – to the two wings of the home.
Arbitrarily choosing the left, Mom led as we followed her down the corridor. We passed two single bedrooms, then a bathroom, then a larger bedroom with twin beds, a door to stairs running upward, before arriving at double bedroom contained within the front left turret. With round walls and windows on almost every side, it was a gorgeous room. Decorated in a faded dusky pink, I noticed there were embroidered roses on some of the cushions and the curtains.
There was a landing running across the front of the house, with another two stained glass windows, and a set of doors leading out onto a verandah. We crossed this to check out the right-hand side of the building. Almost identical to the left, the turret bedroom here was decorated in more masculine dusky blues. Beside it was a twin, then the bathroom, then another two singles – much like the opposite side
"Eight bedrooms. Two will have to share," my mother commented.
For a fleeting moment, I allowed myself to fantasize that Dimitri and I would be the ones to share a room together. Yeah – I knew it would never happen – but a girl is allowed to dream, right?!
Returning to the left-hand wing, Mon cautiously opened the door leading to the top floor. Dimitri gingerly climbed the steep stairs, followed by my mother, ordering Stan, and us Novices to remain below while they checked it out. They were only gone a few minutes before they came back downstairs.
"Dusty and uninhabitable," my mother declared.
"There's a couple of unfurnished servant's bedrooms and an open area at the front. I say we leave it alone," Dimitri agreed with a smile.
"So where are we going to sleep?" Stan grumbled. It had just gone midday, but it had already been a trying day.
My mother paused and thought for a moment.
"I'll take the pink round room, Stan you have the turret room on the other side. Dimitri? Can you take the one to the right of the main landing? Rose, you take the one opposite on the left. Meredith and the Russian lass can each have a room in the left wing. Castile and Ayett, you'll share so the Russian lad can have his own room. Us girls can share the bathroom on this side; you guys the other."
As room allocations went, it was ok. I'd be across the landing from my Russian God, with only one neighbor, and at least I got my own room. Eddie and Blake both seemed irritated that they'd be sharing. If Dimitri was annoyed at the prospect of a single bed, he didn't let on – merely nodding at my mother's suggested arrangements.
"Sorry about the room," my mother muttered to Dimitri as Stan, and the others went downstairs to get their belongings. "You, Stan, Rosemarie and I are the strongest fighters. It makes sense to have us situated in each corner."
She hadn't come out and said it, but Dimitri was much better in a fight than Stan. Mom had put my Russian God on the corner diagonally opposite hers to balance the load in case of an attack. Still – it was flattering she'd chosen me as the fourth.
We quickly moved our belongings to our respective rooms before coming downstairs to put the food into the refrigerator and freezer. A quick flick of the light switches revealed we had power, although Dimitri soberly announced that there didn't appear to be any heating beyond the inefficient fireplaces, and that which was supplied by ductwork attached to the kitchen stove.
"We'll need to run it all day and night, but once these stoves are up and running they're surprisingly efficient," he said optimistically.
"How would you know?" Stan snapped, getting more irritated by the minute.
"Russia is one of the coldest places on earth, Guardian Alto," Dimitri explained as though he were conversing with a simpleton. "We tend to know a bit about heating…"
My room was plain but comfortable, decorated in a faded yet pretty blue toile. Someone had evidently been expecting us; the linens were fresh, and I was happy to note that when I flopped onto the bed, the mattress didn't squeak and was less lumpy than the one I'd had at St. Vlad's.
Meeting the others back downstairs in the kitchen, Mom was looking at the pile of groceries on the large kitchen table in bewilderment.
"I'd assumed there'd be a microwave…" she muttered.
"Shall I cook lunch, Janine?" Dimitri offered cheerfully as he walked in through the mudroom. He'd set Stan, Eddie, and Blake up outside chopping wood for the kitchen stove.
"Could you?" Janine replied gratefully. "I'm not much of a cook, and I need to get across the information about our mission," she explained holding up the envelope by way of explanation, hightailing it out of the kitchen as quickly as possible – but not before we all caught her relieved look.
"Let's do soup and bread for lunch," Dimitri suggested, gathering supplies off the table and bringing them across to the workbench to get started.
Almost immediately ascertaining I was hopeless at anything beyond basic food preparation, Dimitri had Meredith and I chopping meat and vegetables and then moving the kitchen supplies into the larder while he mixed and kneaded dough. Standing at the bench, humming as he worked, there was something manly and very sexy about the way he went about his preparations. Happy to find the kitchen well stocked with all the bowls and trays he needed, within half an hour he had a basic meat and vegetable soup simmering on the newly lit range, and five balls of dough rising.
"The secret is to let it rise twice," he explained to Meredith and me, showing us how he was putting the dough on a shelf above the stove to rise, covering each with a clean dishcloth. "We'll leave it there to double in size. Come on – let's help the guys bring in the logs."
We carted split logs inside, filling the large area beside the stove as well as a secondary area off the mudroom. While it seemed like a mountain of wood, Dimitri assured us we'd get through it quickly enough, and that we'd need to chop logs for at least an hour every day to keep up with the stove's demands. Soon enough, Dimitri was knocking the risen dough into oiled loaf tins and adding pearled barley to the soup to thicken it, before getting Meredith and me to set the table. I had to hand it to the man – the meal smelled mouth-watering.
Dimitri called us all to the table for our late lunch, spooning large serves of soup into plain white bowls. Helping ourselves to hunks of freshly baked bread, and smothering it with butter, the soup was awesome. Way better than anything we'd get at St. Vladimir's.
"That was delicious, thank you, Dimitri," my mother said after her third bowlful, the rest of us chiming in with our compliments. Rich, plentiful and meaty, it had been just the thing to satisfy Dhampir sized appetites; especially in this cold weather.
"So I've gone through the information provided, and it looks like we're here as a precautionary measure," my mother started to explain. "The Alchemists who work out of this location are also involved in tracking the movements of Strigoi. Recently, a few separate groups passed close to this area, heading north. In retrospect, we know they were probably part of the attack on St. Vladimir's. While it is not believed Strigoi are aware of this facility, until it's certain they are not returning this way our presence has been requested."
"How close are we talking?'" Dimitri asked.
"They used the main road we turned off to travel through the mountains, and they stayed for several days some twenty miles from here. The same spot was used by several groups over the course of a month."
It wasn't super close, but it was close enough for discomfort considering we were in the middle of nowhere. Plus the fact that different groups had stayed in the same place suggested a degree of coordination.
"Where did they stay?" I asked, trying to get a clearer picture of what we were up against.
"An old ranger's station. It's been abandoned for a couple of decades. There's no sign Strigoi have returned to it since the attacks on St. Vladimir's, but there's a chance they might."
"So we sit here and wait? Just in case they come back this way?" I asked incredulously.
"Pretty much," my mother admitted. "By all accounts, the chances of an attack are slim. We killed a lot of Strigoi during the St. Vladimir's attack and rescue, and those who survived might well be headed elsewhere. However, Strigoi are aware of the existence of the Alchemists, so it's prudent to be wary."
"Hope you like ward patrol at night, guys," Stan said with a sigh.
"Actually, that won't be necessary. We've been requested to do patrols of the ranger's cabin. The idea is to drive to between five and ten miles of the cabin, then hike in and out of the area in daylight hours."
Blake was staring at his empty soup bowl morosely. I was willing to bet if he hated running, he was going to despise hiking!
"I'll set up a schedule, but we'll go every second day, one Guardian with two Novices," she explained.
No one was thrilled about it, but we all knew better than to complain.
"What will the ones not hiking do?" Blake asked.
"When you're not involved in surveillance, you'll be cooking, doing housework, training, and occupied in teaching intensives," Mom said promptly.
Great! Hiking, and Guardian boot camp with Mom and Stan. The only redeeming feature of this gig was being with Dimitri! It was this, or him being sent to stay with Tasha, I quickly reminded myself.
Mom spent another half hour running us through the rules of the compound, which basically consisted of staying away from the as yet unseen 'main building' and not going near any human we might see. After that, she dismissed us to unpack.
I picked up the soup bowls, taking them across to the large apron front sink. Happy that the hot water was fast and plentiful, I found the dishwashing liquid in the supplies we'd brought, and half filled the sink, washing the bowls and spoons. Dimitri scooped the leftover soup into a bowl and covered it with cling film, putting it into the refrigerator before passing me the saucepan to wash. My mother stood to one side watching us. I really wanted to hang out and talk with Dimitri, but it looked like Mom had the same idea.
"Ok – I'll go unpack now," I said, putting the saucepan to dry on the drainer.
"Good idea. You could perhaps check on Vasilisa," Mom suggested.
"It's 4 pm there. Anything Liss and Christian are doing at this hour, believe me, I don't want to know about it," I joked, raising my eyebrows.
"You can see when she's doing that?" my mother gasped in surprise.
"I kind of feel with my mind before I slip into her head," I explained. "I get a sense of her mood first. If she's… occupied… I can tell and get out of there before I see anything. Unless I'm asleep. If I'm asleep, and she has strong emotions, I get sucked right in, and it's like I'm there." I shuddered. Nothing worse than being in someone else's head while they were getting it on!
"How horribly invasive!" my mother said with a revolted look.
"Yep, it's no picnic," I acknowledged.
"I meant for Vasilisa," Mom said almost absently.
I sighed, turning toward the door to the entry hall.
"Yeah. Yeah, of course you did."
Despite the new room and bed, I'd slept like a baby. It probably hadn't hurt that Dimitri had cooked an enormous roast with baked vegetables followed by an apple crumble for dessert. I had stuffed myself until I could barely move, as had the rest of us. Coming from the Academy, hot fresh food not congealing for hours in a bain-marie was a novelty.
Emerging into the kitchen the next morning, I was astounded to see Alto standing at the range working three cast iron frypans. As well as pan-fried sausages and bacon, he was making stack after stack of fluffy pancakes. Catching my astonished glance, he smiled and cheerily acknowledged, "I'm not much of a cook, but I can do a decent breakfast."
Mom was cutting up fruit at the butcher's block, while the rest of us loitered around, stomachs grumbling. Blake and Eddie set the table while Meredith and I helped bring over platters loaded with food.
"Eat up," Mom advised as she brought a dish with fruit salad to the table. "Dimitri is going to collect the Novices from St. Basil's today, and the rest of us will hike to the ranger's cabin."
My heart sank, and I tried to hide my disappointment. More than anything, I'd wanted some alone time with Dimitri - but there was no point complaining. My eyes flicked to Dimitri's where he sat at the end of the table, and I could tell he was also disappointed.
I was shoveling down Stan's admittedly superb pancakes when my phone rang. Fishing it out of my pants, I checked the caller ID.
"I'd better answer it," I said apologetically, seeing my mother's irritated look. "It's Lissa, and she promised not to call unless it was important."
I stood up and took my empty dish to the sink, answering then listening as Lissa spoke a million miles an hour, apologizing for forgetting my birthday the day before yesterday. Tapping into the bond, I could see she'd gone to write today's date on something a few minutes before, and it was then she'd twigged she'd completely forgotten my special day. Her guilt was off the Richter scale.
"Hey, calm down," I laughed. "It's ok, Liss. No harm done. Honestly, I've been so busy I almost forgot it myself!"
"Why didn't you remind me? I'm the worst best friend ever!" Lissa wailed. From her voice, I could tell she was crying.
Sure, I'd been upset that Dimitri had been the only one to remember the day I officially became an adult, but it didn't mean I wanted Lissa beating herself up about it.
"Seriously it's ok, Liss. I had a great day! I spent the whole day with Mom, and we all had dinner out in the town we stayed at on the way to our mission. They got me a big cake and sang happy birthday, and there were pressies and everything. It was every bit as embarrassing as you would have made it if you could have been there."
"But I forgot! It wasn't that I couldn't be there – I didn't remember," she wailed. "It's your biggest birthday, and I forgot!"
"Don't lose your head, Liss! You've had so much on. I know you didn't forget on purpose. I had a great day! Please don't waste any more time being upset about it. I was spoiled rotten, I promise!"
I was grateful when Liss was called to dinner, so I had an excuse to say goodbye. I could tell she still felt guilty, but she'd bought my bullshit, so was feeling a bit better about things. Pocketing my phone, I turned back to the breakfast table to see everyone looking at me in silence.
"It was your birthday, wasn't it?" Eddie finally asked, breaking the silence. "Your eighteenth?"
"On Tuesday," I said with a tight smile. "Lissa's flipping out because with everything going on she forgot."
The mood at the table was tense. Everyone was trying to look anywhere other than at my mother or me. My mother was avoiding my eyes as well, truth be told.
"Why did you lie to her?" Meredith asked.
"She's already beating herself up that she forgot," I replied with a shrug. "What good is it going to do if I tell her that no one else remembered, either?"
