Chapter 8

The Fox

One moment, everything was perfect. It was the type of moment I now knew I lived for.

And then, I blinked and it was gone.

Rose's playful smile and sparkling eyes morphed into a wide-eyed, terrified expression. Before I had a chance to process the change in mood, Rose was tearing away from me at a speed quicker than when she was training. The fear and concern on her face were burned into my mind as I chased after her.

Running at my full speed, I yelled after her, "Rose! Rose, stop! What's wrong?"

My attempts to get her attention were fruitless, but I was soon by her side. She was pale—beyond pale—and her eyes were searching ahead.

And then I understood what brought on this sudden change. Something was wrong with Valissa. She was in trouble. My instincts wanted to run faster, past Rose, to the princess's aide, but I didn't know where to find her. Through the bond, Rose knew, and I trusted her to lead me to my charge.

Rose's panic was alarming and I was relieved when Valissa came running towards us. She was scared and her face was lined with tears, but she seemed unharmed. As she flew into Rose's arms, I searched for the source of her fear. The sun had set and I was certain Strigoi were lurking nearby.

I crouched ready to protect the princess and Rose—definitely Rose—and listened to the exchange between the girls. Rose was shaking Valissa, demanding the answer to my questions, "What's wrong?" She pled, "What happened?"

Every time Lissa tried to respond, her tears swallowed her words. I knew Rose was trying to read the feelings through the bond, but she seemed just as frustrated as I was with Valissa's inarticulate fear. Several minutes past without any attack, and I realized there were no Strigoi. But I still didn't relax my defensive posture. Something bad had happened; there was no denying it.

"Ma… May… my…" Valissa tried again before surrendering to her tears.

"Your what, Lissa?" Rose was frantic. Helplessness colored her begging plea.

Another fit of stuttering flew from Valissa's lips as she tried to string together a sentence. "Ba… bl… blood." She paused. "Everywhere!" she forced out her final word before her tears once again choked out her words. Again my eyes swept over Valissa searching for an injury, but what caught my attention was Rose's blank gaze. She was reading Valissa's thoughts.

All the color drained from Rose's cheeks and she gasped, "No!" A gain, Rose was running, pulling the princess behind her. I followed, wanting to be close to Rose—to know what she knew, to protect her—but instead kept the princess safe between us.

My mind quickly tried to make sense of what was happening, but I was still clueless. I realized Rose was leading us into the Moroi dorm. What was happening?

Was another student injured?

Was the bathroom flooded?

Had the tint windows broken?

Heartbreak?

As we ran to Valissa's dorm, I prepared myself for what I might find. By the time we made it to her door, I was prepared to face anything.

Except what we found.

Blood. A lot of blood.

The air in the room was dense with the small of iron and something else. Something different. Something woodsy. It took me a moment to determine what the mangled bloody mess really was. A fox.

And it lay dead on the princess's bed.

I wanted to protect the girls from seeing what I saw, but I knew I was the last to know. So instead of shielding their eyes as my instincts dictated, I sprinted from the room to get help. In the hall, I ran into Stephan.

I grasped his shoulders and tried to convey the urgency through my eyes. "The Princess has been threatened. Send for the Headmistress and being help to her dorm now."

He understood and reacted immediately. Within a quarter of an hour, Stephan returned with Headmistress Kirova, two other guardians, Yuri and Garret, and the hall matron. Valissa still cried into Rose's shoulder. The commotion was gathering a lot of attention as the adults tried to determine the meaning of the dead fox.

Natalie, Victor Dashkov's daughters and friend to Princess, pushed through the crowd and sat quietly in the corner of the room. She was appropriately disgusted, but as with her father, I felt something was off about her. My prejudice against the Dashkov family was really starting to interfere with my judgment.

Valissa moved from Rose's shoulder, attracting my attention. Her eyes were wide as she reached out for the dead animal. Compassion contorted her features with a longing to help. Rose hastily took her hand and gave Valissa a meaningful look. I wish I knew the meaning behind it.

"It was still alive when I got back…" Valissa whispered to Rose but I was unable to hear the rest of what she said. I glanced back at Natalie who wore an eager expression as she leaned towards the whispered conversation. I hoped she and Valissa weren't close friends because I really didn't trust her, and I didn't want to encounter her much once Valissa had graduated.

Forcing my attention to the adults in the room, I realized they were still trying to determine the meaning of the slaughter. The way the girls were whispering, I was certain they knew something but I wasn't going to put them on the spot just now. I tried to hear the girls' conversation against but was only catching odd words until Valissa's excitement overruled her volume control. Her voice was barely audible, "Rose… do you remember… that one time..."

Panic—fear—flashed over Rose's face as she scolded the Princess. "Stop it. Forget about it. This isn't the same thing."

They did know something.

Natalie? She looked very interested in the conversation, but frustrated. She couldn't hear. I hoped she couldn't. Something about Rose's demeanor made me trust the secrecy she kept. Whatever they were talking about needed to stay quiet—not just from Natalie—I was sure.

The girls' whispers were no longer audible, but I knew Rose was firmly consoling Valissa. No longer trying to conceal her interest, Natalie started openly at Valissa. I was watching Rose.

"Get this cleaned up and find out if anyone saw anything." The Headmistress directed as she swept from the room.

Those around me sprang into action. Stephan clapped me on the back and whispered to me, "Rose knows something. Get her out of here and see if you can figure it out. I will stay with the princess." My eyes met his. I nodded. "Keep this quiet. Go."

As I led a protesting Rose away, I realized that Stephan recognized the importance and severity of this threat as well. It was more than a threat of the last Dragomir's life. IT was something personal. Something huge.

Each step away from the princess made the situation seem more urgent. More dangerous. I didn't want to leave the princess, but I also didn't want to leave Rose alone either. I couldn't.

Rose had given up on returning to Valissa. She was whimpering to herself as we approached the novice dorm. Scheming. "I have to keep her safe. I have to protect her," Rose kept whispering to herself.

With those words came the memory of our return to the Academy. I did keep her safe! I kept her safe when none of you could do it. I took her away to protect her.

"You know something." I accused her before I could stop the words from forming on my lips. I was glad that no one was around. We wouldn't be overheard. "Something about what happened," I continued. "Is this what you meant when you told Headmistress Kirova that Lissa was in danger?"

"I don't know anything," Rose proclaimed defiantly. "It's just some sick joke."

I wanted to ask if she was in danger, but instead, I asked, "Do you have any idea who'd do it? Or why?"

Rose hesitated before answering. "No. No clue." She said as she turned her back on me, ashamed.

"Rose, if you know something, tell me. We're on the same side. We both want to protect her. This is serious." Somehow, I kept my voice strong—void of the emotions. Void of fear. I did want to protect the Princess, but I also wanted to keep Rose safe.

In a graceful, fluid movement, Rose spun around and glared at me. She radiated anger and worry as she spat, "Yeah, it is serious. It's all serious. And you have me doing laps everyday when I should be learning to flight and defend her! If you want to help her, then teach me something. Teach me how to fight. I already know how to run away."

As she spoke, Rose's words ripped at me, but the tears that were trapped in her eyes tore me apart. Somehow, through her passionate outburst to protect her friend, I held my guardian express—my control. Not knowing how to respond, but knowing I couldn't comfort her the way I wanted, I beckoned Rose towards class, ignoring what she had said. "Come on. You're late for practice."

I followed Rose into the practice gym. She was angry and did little to try to hide it. Channeling her aggression into her moves, Rose finally left a fight victorious. Her opponent had no chance.

Watching her determination and control as she practiced, I realized the best way for me to protect Rose was to teach her how to fight. She had talent. Huge potential. Qualities that were detrimental for the out-of-control. But when it came to her bond-mate, Rose showed she was ready.

Was I?

I still feared it was too soon. I knew she would be an excellent guardian, but the thought of training her to fight made me uneasy. For the slightest moment, my mind's eye saw Rose approaching a Strigoi battle—a thought that made me nauseous—but I knew, in that situation, I'd rather her be properly trained than facing a battle unprepared.

I watched Rose as Mason congratulated and comforted her. She seemed proud, but clearly, her mind was on Valissa. Mason led her in the direction of her next class, and only with a slight hesitation and a glance back to Valissa's dorm, she followed.

As she entered her class, I turned on my heels and sprinted back to Valissa's dorm myself. The room had been cleaned and Valissa's bed was replaced. Stephan was giving his final instructions to the clean-up crew when I entered. They dismissed themselves, leaving Stephan and me alone.

"Did she tell you anything?" He asked, ignoring any pretense.

"No. She's angry. She doesn't know who to trust. Including me. But she knows something." I was looking around the dorm as we spoke. Interestingly, there was no obvious point of forced entry. Whoever did this had access.

"So what happened?" I was hoping Stephan has some information.

"Valissa claims the door was locked when she came to find the fox. It doesn't make sense."

"No." I agreed. "Did anyone see anything?"

"Just the princess running away."

"Her roommate?" I began to look around the room trying to make sense of what happened. I searched every detail. Hoping to find something out of place, something to indicate what happened.

"Natalie?" Stephan's words cut through my concentration.

"Huh? What?" I wasn't sure what he was talking about.

"Valissa's roommate. Her name's Natalie. Prince Victor's daughter."

"Oh. Right." I said nonchalantly. Natalie?

Stephan was watching as I searched the room. He was quiet, not questioning me, waiting for instructions, I realized after a moment.

Finally I admitted, "I'm not sure what happened here. We watch the girls. We watch the room. Listen. Maybe we'll hear something. Discover something. And we wait for information. I'm certain this wasn't an isolated event. Whoever did this wasn't something and we make sure they don't get it."

"Okay. Kirova assigned additional guardians to the Princess. I am to help you. What do you want me to do?"

"Follow Rose. She knows something. She won't talk about it around me because she knows I'd be listening. If I'm not there, she may confide in a friend. If she does, I want you to overhear her."

"Okay."

Stephan began to leave. "Oh, and Stephan?" He grunted in response. "She'll figure it out if you're too close. She can't know you're watching her. Listening to her."

He nodded, and I sent him away. I began to search the Princess's room. My eyes scanned the room again quickly, memorizing every detail. Something near Valissa's bed caught my eye, and I did a double take searching for whatever it was.

My eyes settled on a picture. A picture of the princess and Rose. They were dressed in costumes with wings and glitter on their faces. Happy. They were completely happy. Neither of them seemed happy here, I realized. Was I right to bring them back here? I could have protected them in Portland. I could have trained Rose there. I sighed and returned to search the room.

The cleanup crew had done well, and there was nothing left for me to find. As I was leaving the room, I noticed a picture of Natalie and her father. It didn't sit right with me. Why? I knew I needed to look past my prejudice to see what was truly happening. But I couldn't. Natalie had access. That was suspicious. But her threatening the princess? Why? And how? How did she manage to kill the fox? How did she even get it into the room? And how would she have cleaned herself up in time? No, she couldn't have done it.

With no more information than I had before I searched the room, I left in frustration. Rose knew something—I was certain—I wish she would trust me enough to tell me her secret. Her silence was to protect Valissa, and that worried me. I understood that she wanted to protect the princess. I did too. And Rose. I wanted to protect them both.

I spent the rest of the vampiric day in search of any clues about the dead fox. Valissa's room left me no clues, so I turned to girls' peers. I talked to several students, all of whom confirmed they saw nothing. Most of them had more questions for me than I was willing to answer. Many of them verbalizing my own questions.

As I was speaking to one Moroi, I spotted Natalie. She was watching me, concern painted across her features. I wanted to talk to her, but I wasn't sure what questions I wanted to ask. I was still suspicious. I shouldn't be, but I was.

The students had nothing to offer me—nothing I didn't already know—and I was frustrated with their nosey curiosity. I slipped away back to the office I use to occupy, again focused on whatever secret Rose was keeping. Not knowing where else to turn, I studied the girls files. I had memorized them before, but hoped for some insight.

Valissa's file was thick with details from her family's accident and the Academy's plan to protect her. Teacher's notes filled the pages with anecdotal stories and concern. As I flipped through the pages, a note caught my eye. It was dated just before the girls ran away, "Watch Valissa. Protect her. You have to stop her. S.K." It was followed by more notations from other teachers about an increase in Valissa's strange behaviors.

S.K.? It was familiar, but I couldn't place it. I wasn't sure what the note meant, but instincts told me to look into more. Later.

I reached for Rose's file, reading through the pages more carefully. Now that I knew Rose, her file seemed biased. Unfair. Misunderstood. Her file was decorated with stories of challenging authority and pushing boundaries. Following the Dragomir accident—which only received a small notation in Rose's file—there was a change in Rose's behaviors. Why hadn't I noticed that before? She seemed to be more physical, always claiming to be protecting Valissa. It didn't surprise me, I could see that in her.

And again, another change several weeks before they ran away. I don't know what was different. Her rational seemed more desperate. Pleading. I wish I had been around then. Would I have cared?

I found myself reading over her last offense before she ran.

Rasemarie Hathaway confessed to destruction of property. Offense witnessed by Wade Voda, Valissa Dragomir. Account: Ms. Hathaway verbally assaulted Mr. Voda. After he left, she followed him back to his dorm to continue arguing. After locating a baseball bat, Rose broke numerous windows and furniture and attacked Mr. Voda. Ms. Dragomir was able to stop the assault before Mr. Voda was harmed. When questioned, Ms. Hathaway's only response was to shrug and question "So what?" For this offense, Rose has been suspended until further notice. Headmistress Kirova has recommended a panel be convened to determine if Ms. Hathaway's is a suitable candidate for continued novice training.

Following student accounts of the event was another small notation, Headmistress Kirova's request has been denied. Ms. Hathaway will remain at St. Vladimir's Academy.

I read the account several times. Never before had Rose refused reasoning for her actions. Never before had her responses been so calm. Something about this was wrong. I checked the date. It was the day after S.K. left the note in Valissa's file. Were they connected? Who was S.K.? Why the warning?

Not knowing where else to turn, I gave into a curious impulse. I searched student files until I came upon Natalie's. Her file was small, containing very little. As I expected, I found nothing, with the exception of a punishment for wandering campus after hours several times. With a sigh, I returned her file to its place.

S.K.? Why just the initials? Who was it? I searched student files and found nothing. There were no staff members with matching initials either.

I wasn't sure what any of this information meant, but I knew I was wasting my time. It was interesting, but nothing to do with the fox.