"I think I'm starting to understand you Rose." Says Duke walking into the room with each guardian on each side of him. Protecting him like pets.

"Duke," I say barely addible to myself, but deep inside I knew he heard. I looked up to feel his disappointed death glare.

"You want to hear a story Rose, once upon a time, I went about my life, everyone thought I was crazy so I left and isolated myself from the big people. Then one day a desperate Strigoi opened her mouth, and couldn't close it, that was bad for her, but lucky for me. I saved her and claimed her. I knew her better than anyone and gave so much to her. Then, there was an unfortunate accident and I saved her again, but i was no longer just connected to her, but her me." His gaze was heavy weight.

He made me feel so small in Dimitri's arms. They were holding me protectively. I was in a bind here, I was Dukes property, but I wanted to be Dimitri's. God, someone help fix this screwed up mess. I was in deep, deep, trouble. This was the good side of the story, now where was the bad side.

"Then one day we go to court so I could teach these kitties and waste my precious time. But anything to get close to the queen, so she would see how much I've improved, plus I also wanted to show her the tamed fire I caught. How with proper care, you can deflate the monster. I wanted to show off, all she had to do was keep her mouth shut and we'd be called amazing and get offered a position here, so then she could hang, with these brats on her break. But she ruined all that, now, I don't think I can do that. So, no position, no court, we go home, and you say goodbye to them. The end." He adds bitterly.

"She wont go with you. She'll quit, she doesn't need you, I don't even understand why she didn't leave in the first place, she doesn't have to be with her bond mate, Lissa proved that." Dimitri all but snarled. The group nodded though.

But they didn't understand, I pulled out of his grasp and walked over to him, like a puppy with her tail in between her butt and her ears as low as go was how I felt, probably how I looked to, when I walked over to his side. Suddenly the floor was more interesting then the hurt gazes.

"Oh, she didn't tell you? She can't leave, our bond is stronger than her bond with Lissa, she has to protect me, it's for not just my sake, but hers. Then there's her sanity, too. Guess that's another reason she's still with the sicko." He glares down at me.

"What does he mean, Rose? What aren't you telling us? What aren't you telling me?" There was desperation in his voice, he was trying to understand the impossible, and I didn't like it. I tried to open my mouth.

"Shut it! Rose! Every time you open your mouth something slips that shouldn't. Poor children, you won't understand, Guardian Hathaway, and of course Zmey, sorry. I know how hard this is for you, your daughter was a killer for a whole year," he grabs my jaw and my eyes lock with his. "She was the murderer instead of the Guardian, all those poor humans, dead. Now she lives with Sicko. We're leaving now, Rose. Go pack. I'll chat with your lovely friends."

I nod and look back at them, they would be fine, witout me Ben and Nate wouldn't stand a chance, especially against Dimitri, I could take him, but they couldn't.

"Master," I said as both a nod and a threat, he swiped his hand in dismissal. I glared at the other boys who shrank back out of their skin under my glare.

Janine

I couldn't hold back all the anger I had boiling under my skin, I was beyond irritated, I was just as confused as Dimitri, athough now I saw something more, he loved her? But for how long? When did this little thing start? How did it start? My mouth was still gaped from when they kissed, but now I was totally lost, the way she backed out when her 'Master' told her to.

The sicko walks over and brushes a kiss against my hand then steps back behind the boundaries of his Guardians.

"I am so sorry about her. She will have further processing, I told her quit a few times to back down, you can tell where the old Rose peaks out, we grown ups have o be careful." He winks. Winks!

"I don't know what the hell you did to Rose, I don't care how you control her! I don't know anything, but I do know that you are treating her terribly! Tell me what you have against my daughter! Have you blackmailed her?" I cried out at him, of course I wouldn't cry, but I was coming close to it. Rose was many things, but not a murderer, never a murderer, she didn't have control, and she was like Dimitri.

"I have done no such thing, but if you must know… she told you I brought her back, that now she was shadow kissed to me and Lissa?" We all nodded, he gave me a smug look. "Now, imagine all that darkness, all that blistering, clouds, every ounce of hate you can think of, imagine that times two. Uncontrollable." He laughs smugly. Lissa gasps and we all turn to her.

"The craziness, the problems, why Adrian doesn't see any darkness, why she's so clouded, it's the darkness from you and me and your stupid craziness, how… what… how do you get rid of it? How is she so… sane? Or pained?" She asks.

Lissa

My head was spinning, how murderous I was when she took it away during the Jesse incident, that dark feeling I had, the dark feeling she had, then with his darkness and craziness, holly crap!

"That is a great question, maybe your not a waste of time after all, but you are a waist of mine, you can heal physically, I've learned how to heal mentally, I've been healing her darkness, making it go away, of course it only makes more, but I eal that later… Anyhow, I heal that darkness every couple of hours, she's learned to control it until then, or… drink. It is a nice alternative to screaming and crying in pain. That, is why she needs me, you don't know how to get inside, it took me years, so, you'll get her in years, because without me… she's dead."

He laughs walking away, I step forward with hate, Eddie graves me and pins me in a tight embrace, I was ready for a fight, then just like that, it was gone. I hated it, because I knew where it went, I knew exactly who it was in now, I knew who was screaming and clawing now… Rose.

"Your going to kill her." The words stung, but they were strained and real. This time I would not fail helping her when she needed me most. "You can heal her mentally, but it doesn't heal the right mental parts, it takes the darkness, not her sadness, not her real feelings. She'll commit suicide, she'll do it. She's used to attention; she's used to friends, and me. She's not used to being chained and dragged, she'll live now, because it's right, but tomorrow, when its not right, or even worth it." The words were finally what sounded true.

"I've looked into her soul, I know her better than you, I know her better than her boyfriend." I heard it, I finally understood, I knew Rose so much better than this sicko, I knew her from the start, he sees it once and he thinks e knows her, like I thought I knew Dimitri because I saw inside, but I saw his soul, not his heart, that's what hurt Rose, that's what her me now.

This world really did play sick games with us. I guess what goes around comes around, Karma.