13
We had ten minutes to get ready to meet my Dad, Mom and Tasha in the executive lounge. Thank goodness it was only a few doors down from our room. We jumped up and pulled on the same clothes that we had on earlier in the day.
"We have plenty of time to get ready for the show tonight after our meeting right?" I hopefully asked Dimitri as I was pulling on my shirt. He chuckled as he watched me run around our room finding my articles of clothing and my shoes.
"If I understood Abe correctly the show starts at 7:00 and the theatre is only a block away, so that gives us plenty of time to get ready." Dimitri didn't realize it, but his relaxed manner soothed my anxiety.
I hurried into the bathroom to run a brush through my hair and check my make-up. He was waiting for me when I came out of the bathroom. "Rose. Calm down. We are only meeting your parents in the lounge. If we are a few minutes late, they will understand."
"That's what I am afraid of, my father's 'understanding'. I don't think I want to listen to his innuendos for the next 30 minutes."
"Oh, now I understand. In that case let's go now so we can be a few minutes early. You look great, no worries."
"I am pretty sure your opinion doesn't count Comrade. You are a little biased, wouldn't you agree?"
He wrapped his arm around my waist and ushered us to the door to our room. "I am very biased, but it doesn't change the fact that you look beautiful."
We walked into the executive lounge and I was surprised that we beat my mother and father there. Tasha was sitting to the left of the room where a couch and chairs were arranged around a coffee table. A muted flat screen TV hung on the wall showing CNN with the constantly running ticker on the bottom of the screen displaying stock statistics. Dimitri went over to the bar across the room to buy us some drinks, while I stopped at the appetizer buffet set up in the center of the room. I picked a few that I thought Dimitri would like and the old standby, cheese and crackers. I made my way to the couch just as Dimitri joined us.
We made small talk with Tasha awaiting the arrival of my parents. We shared the news of the Victor Dashkov sighting just as Betty and Phillip Gladstone, aka my parents, made their smiling entrance to the room. They looked so happy together walking in the room hand in hand. I couldn't believe this was my mother, Janine Hathaway… seriously, she was beaming. She had this glow to her skin that I had never seen before. I guessed she was pampering herself during this semi-vacation were on, either that or… ew gross! I don't want to think about my parents like that.
I turned away quickly and tried to jump back into the conversation that Tasha and Dimitri had continued in my absence. They were discussing what destination Victor could be headed for. There are very few Moroi/ dhampir academies in the United States and very few established communities that consist of large group of Moroi, dhampir's, and guardians. Baia is one such community, but that is located in Siberia. Most communities seem to exist relatively close to academies. One was in New England, another in California, St. Vlads in Montana and the last in North Carolina. There used to be a community in New Orlean's, but a lot of people never returned after Hurricane Katrina devastated the area and destroyed the academy there.
Some Moroi families chose to live among humans and live on the human schedule as much as possible. Emily Mastrano was one such human. She lived here in Detroit where there wasn't a strong community of Moroi or dhampirs.
As Dimitri and Tasha chatted on I racked my brain for any clues in Victor's past that would clue me in to where he was heading. I thought of Kenneth, the air user, who had tortured Lissa during her kidnapping. I wonder if he was ever punished for that crime?
"Pardon us, but can we join you?" Janine asked as she approached the empty chair with her hands full with a plate of appetizers and a soda. Abe followed behind her playing the part of the obedient husband.
"Yes, please join us. I am Julianna and this is my husband Stephen." I smiled warmly and moved my arm in an invitation to take the empty seats next to us.
"Hi, my name is Irene, my husband is back at our room napping, pleased to meet you."
After we all felt that we had accomplished pleasantries like professional strangers we lowered our voices and started to make plans for this evening.
"I just wanted to let you know I have alerted the Alchemists and they are already following Dashkov's movements. It appears he is continuing his journey south. Anyone have any idea where he is headed?" Abe asked the rest of us.
"I was going to text Lissa later and ask if she knew any relative or friends of Victor's and where they lived. She is still sleeping right now. The only friend that I ever met or remember Victor or Natalie mentioning was Kenneth."
"Don't fret honey. We have plenty on our plates already. Let's let Victor continue on his journey and maybe he will lead us to something bigger than just him." My mother said as soothing as she could. This motherly crooning was definitely something new for her. It reminded me of Olena Bolikov.
"She is right, Rose. If we are patient maybe Victor will lead us to this group of supporters that he alluded to while he was in prison." Dimitri acquiesced.
"Okay, I get the message. Have patience for once in my life. Fine…whatever. Okay so let's move on to discuss the plan for tonight." I urged. Hey they could only expect patience on one front, not both.
"Okay. Our seats are in a private balcony box." Abe explained. "This will give us the best view, the privacy to speak freely with each other during the performance, and the opportunity to meet some of the dancers after the show."
"When are we leaving for the theatre and which of us is attending the show?" Tasha asked.
"The theatre is only a short walk from here and if Dimitri, Rose and Janine go I think you and I should be pretty safe without forcing Peter and Arthur to join us. That is unless you want Arthur to come along, hmm Tasha?" Abe teased her cautiously.
"No, that sounds good. I can always help where I can with my fire defense spells. I really am hoping that we can have an evening out without needing to defend ourselves." She sighed slightly and then stopped herself. She glanced up and caught my eye with an apologetic expression.
"So are we going to meet in the lobby, outside or at the theatre?" I asked right before I popped a shrimp into my mouth. Chewing thoughtfully I waited for Abe to answer.
"We need to stick together if we are walking in a strange city after sunset. We can meet up in the lobby and start out separately going in the same direction and then join together. Meet downstairs at 6:30 and dress nicely, this isn't the opera, but we shouldn't wear jeans either." Abe glared at me when he said that last part.
"Hey old man, I couldn't wear jeans if I wanted to. YOU didn't supply me with any for this trip." I said sarcastically, but with a big smile so that he knew it didn't bother me- -that much.
"It was nice to meet you all, maybe we will bump into each other at the performance tonight. Goodbye." Tasha waved as she made her way into the hall to return to her room.
Dimitri and I exchanged looks. He took control and asked, "So darling, should we be getting ready for the show tonight?"
"Oh, yes. It was nice to meet you. See you soon." We smiled at my parents and walked out arm in arm toward our own room.
I flopped on the bed when we got back to our room. "I just want to rest for a minute before I start getting ready." I closed my eyes and began to relax, being with my parents still made me a little tense. Suddenly I felt the bed moving underneath me and I looked up to find Dimitri had grabbed hold of my ankles and he was pulling me off the bed. "Hey! What's the big idea?" Like I actually thought that would stop him.
"Come on Rose. We only have 45 minutes to get ready. You can relax after the show with me." He leaned down and scooped under my arms and lifted me to my feet. Then to show me how much relaxing we were going to do later he leaned down and gave me a sample kiss. "There will be more of where that came from later, but only for good little wives who get ready for the show on time." He laughed deeply and sensually.
My body suddenly felt like jelly. I lost my balance for a second, but Dimitri easily caught me and righted me back on my feet. "Come on. Let's go take a shower." He led me into the marble bathroom and turned on the hot water. It was already warm and we undressed and climbed in. I resisted the urge to wash Dimitri and made it clear to him that this time I really needed to wash myself.
"If we plan on making in downstairs for 6:30 I think we need to keep this shower strictly a shower." I gave him a look to make sure he knew that I wanted anything but that.
"Anything you desire my lady." He bowed at the waist and when he stood back up he had a big smile on his face.
"Prey tell kind sir. Are you here to protect my honor?" I asked in a horrible British accent.
He wrapped his arms around me and held me under the stream of the shower. A shock went through my body as the deliciously warm water was suddenly running ice cold down my body. I screamed, "Dimitri, let me go. Why are you doing this?"
He let me go and then smiled down at me sweetly. "Hark now. Methinks I was preserving your virtue, fair maiden." Of course it sounded perfect rolling off his tongue.
I reached over and shut off the freezing water. "Congratulations. You sure did." I said grumpily.
"Ah, the lady doth protest too much, methinks." He was out of the shower and holding out a towel to wrap around me. I started to step into his embrace and a feeling of déjà vu swept across my awareness. I stopped in my tracks and instead of getting lost in his embrace I took the towel from him and wrapped it around myself.
"I think I can protect my own virtue just fine, kind sir." I gave Dimitri my back as I walked into the room to inspect my clothing choices.
He wisely gave me a few minutes to realize that he had done the best thing for both of us by dousing me with cold water. As I started holding up outfits for his inspection I forgot that I was trying to be in a bad mood. Dimitri instructed me to wear a knee length dark blue A line skirt and I picked an ivory scoop neck short sleeve silk blouse. I found I had a pair of navy high heels to go with the ensemble. Abe had included some costume jewelry in my suitcase and I took out a strand of faux pearls to complete the look. I dried my hair, but left it down and just ran a brush through it several times until it shone.
Dimitri had on a navy pair of slacks with a white short sleeve crew neck shirt that was mostly hidden by his sports coat. He had tied his hair back in a tight pony tail, which gave the illusion of a short hair cut. He looked good enough to eat.
"I am almost ready. How much time do we have?" I jetted into the bathroom to apply some make up.
"You're doing great. We still have about 15 minutes until we need to head out. Do you need me to do anything for you?"
"Yeah, could you get my stake, my cell phone, and our identification and maybe a clutch from my suitcase to put it all in?"
When I came out of the bathroom Dimitri eyed me appreciatively and gave a low whistle. He didn't say anything as he handed me my clutch and we walked toward the door.
The elevator doors closed behind us and we descended to the lobby to meet the others. Dimitri whispered in my ear, "You look beautiful and I cannot wait for later mi'lady, when I no longer must protect your honor."
Abe and my mom – er I mean- my mom and dad were sitting off to one side of the lobby and Tasha was stalling near the door looking over a directory. Dimitri and I caught my parents' eyes and strode confidently by Tasha and out the door. Tasha followed seconds after and then my parents joined the parade into the cooling Detroit evening. We slowed about one building away and gave everyone the chance to catch up, then proceeded around the block to the theatre.
The usher led us to our private box seat in the balcony area and we all made ourselves comfortable. The show was about to start and I could barely hold in my excitement. I had never seen a professional dance company production. The lights flickered once, twice and then they dimmed. The orchestra started playing the music for the opening number and looking in my program I saw that Emily Mastrano was the lead character.
The curtain went up and I stared open mouthed as dancers gracefully leapt across the stage. One lone character moved slowly from the back of the stage through all the leaping dancers toward the front. This had to be Emily because the biggest spotlight was on her. I looked down to see this woman had blond hair. That definitely wasn't Emily, because she had jet black hair. I consulted the program again, but there was only the character Emily played and the supporting dancers. I started to get an uneasy feeling in my stomach. Dimitri looked toward me and asked, "Rose, what's wrong?" as he was reaching into his coat for his stake.
I stopped him from going into defense mode. "No, not Strigoi. Dimitri, something's wrong. That isn't Emily. You guys stay here I am going to see if I can find out where she is."
"Oh no, young lady! You are not going alone. Take Dimitri with you." Abe instructed, but Dimitri was already standing and ready to go before he even finished speaking. There was no way I was going to argue with any of the men in my life right now. I was worried for Jill and Emily.
"Fine let's go." I sighed as we made our way out of the box and to the behind the stage area.
We were stopped by a guard before we made it too far. "Can I help you?"
"Yes we came a long way to see an old friend in this company and she doesn't appear to be dancing tonight. Is there any way to find out if she is here tonight?" I asked as politely as possible.
He seemed to like me, because he stepped back a few feet from the barrier and spoke quietly into his radio. He soon was back to ask who were we looking for exactly. I explained and he excused himself again. When he came back the next time he had a somber look on his face.
"Emily was supposed to perform here tonight. She didn't show for work and no one has heard from her since yesterday."
Dimitri and I exchanged worried glances. We hurried off to get the others and explain what was going on. "Thanks for your help." I shouted to the guard as an afterthought while we were walking briskly back to our seats.
"Come on guys we need to go find Emily's apartment. She didn't show for work tonight." I explained as I gathered up coats and led the way out the door. Abe called for a car as we descended the stairs toward the main lobby. By the time we made it out to the front of the theatre our limo had pulled up. We climbed in and gave him the address we had for the Mastrano's.
The apartment building was on the riverfront. the limo stopped in front of the tall building made of brick and we could see the beautiful view of the river and the city beyond. We entered into a small lobby and immediately headed for the elevators. The apartment was on the 7th floor. When we arrived at the door everything looked fine, there was no sign of a break in.
We knocked and waited. As the seconds ticked by my worry for the Mastrano's intensified. When there was no answer after a respectable wait, Abe tried the knob. The door was unlocked to our dismay or relief I couldn't decide which. The inside of the apartment was neat and tidy. It was very modern and uncluttered. There were a number of pictures of Jill and Emily and of Jill alone decorating the expansive living room, and I found the room felt warm and inviting despite the modern furniture with its cool lines.
I wandered off down a short hallway. I passed a moderately sized bathroom and looked into the first bedroom. This was obviously Jill's room because there were posters on the wall, stuffed animals strewn over a bed made with bright colored blankets and pillows. The room was mostly neat, the bed was made, a stack of laundry on a chest was waiting to be put away and a few books were open on the bedside table. Then I noticed that there were scattered papers on the floor in front of her desk. I walked across the room and found that her desk chair was tipped over on the floor and a drinking glass lay broken beside it. From the doorway this mess was hidden on the other side of the bed. This didn't look good.
"Guys did you find anything out of the ordinary?" I yelled pretty loud, because I didn't know where in the apartment the others were. I continued looking around for clues on the desk and in the papers on the floor.
Dimitri came through the door silently and walked up behind me. "What did you find?"
I jumped out of my skin. "Ahh! Don't do that!" I turned and hit him open handed on his chest.
"Sorry." He chuckled.
"Does this look suspicious to you?" I waved my arm to accentuate the tipped chair, broken glass, and the spilled papers.
"No. The way the rest of her room looks tells me that she wouldn't leave this mess by choice."
My mother, father and Tasha all came into the room.
"Did you guys find anything suspicious out there?" I asked of the others.
"Not anything out of place, but Emily's purse and her car keys are on the kitchen counter. What woman leaves without her purse?" Tasha asked bewildered.
"If you were going running, or for a walk in the neighborhood you might, but the purse and this mess makes me think foul play." I gestured to the mess on the floor.
"The security guard at the theatre said that Emily hadn't been seen since yesterday, so whatever happened, it was within the last 24 hours." Dimitri explained to the others.
"I'll contact the Alchemists and let them know of this situation." Abe excused himself to make his phone call.
"I am going to text Lissa to see if they have heard anything new." I took out my phone and started to type my message. I hoped that Jill had been in contact with them recently and told them something…anything. I also hoped that if they had heard from her I could get them to share without too much prodding. I decided I was not going to tell them about Jill or my being in her town, because then I would have a lot of explaining to do.
My mother checked in with the neighbors in the apartments on either side of the Mastrano's. Neither one had seen or heard anything suspicious. Defeated and facing a lot of dead ends we headed back to our hotel.
Back in our room I checked my phone for the hundredth time. Why hadn't Lissa gotten back to me? Dimitri reached over and took away my cell phone and put it on the dresser. "Rose checking it is not going to make her text you back."
I took the phone back from him. "I know that. I am going to text her again, maybe that last one didn't go through correctly and I forgot to add the question about Victor and his connections in the south." I rambled on nervously.
"Why don't you text her one more time and then just pop into her head to make sure she is okay. I know you are not going to be able to think about anyone else… or anything else … until you know Lissa is safe."
I gave him an appreciative look. He really did understand me and my need to protect Lissa. I quickly typed out my message and pressed send. As soon as it was sent I found myself in Lissa's head. It was dark, but Lissa wasn't scared. She wasn't alone either, I could hear someone else breathing. She looked to the left and in the dim light I saw poles on the wall - and Christian standing next to her. Where the heck was she? Christian reached forward and cracked open the door to the room they were in. This let in a little more light and now I could see that they were in a custodian's closet filled with mops, brooms and cleaners.
Lissa moved toward the crack in the door and peered through. From what I could discern they were in a closet in a long hallway with marble floors and lots of doors. I couldn't see anything that gave me a clue what building this was. Although I was very curious what these two were doing I had found that Lissa was alright, so I popped back in my own head.
"Lissa is hiding in a closet with Christian spying. I couldn't figure out any more than that. At least I know why she hasn't texted me back."
"Maybe you should try Mia. You never know, maybe they're stuck in the closet and she could provide the diversion they need to slip out and get away." Dimitri offered wisely.
"You're right. I think that is a great idea." I promptly texted Mia to see if she could tell me what they were up to. I put the phone down, but it immediately alerted me that I had a text. I picked it up to find a response from Mia. "Mia says they are in the middle of something and they'll fill me in later."
I put the phone down again and decided to get ready for bed. I went to wash my face and brush my teeth. Dimitri joined me at the sink. He had taken his shirt off and just had on his dress pants. He reached back and released his hair from his pony tail and brushed through his hair and then brushed his teeth. He took my brush from my toiletry kit and brushed out my hair.
***Rated M moment here scroll to next bolded line to skip***
I don't know why, but watching him in the mirror brushing out my hair without his shirt, turned me on. His movements slowed and he let the brush drop down to the counter as he brushed my hair off the side of my neck and his lips caressed my skin. His hands found the waist of my skirt and began un-tucking my shirt. When it was free he lifted it over my head. He was watching me watch him in the mirror which made even the most innocent movements more erotic.
My skin tingled and my knees went weak. His fingers dipped under the edge of my white lace bra and tingles raced over my breast, while his other hand was sliding under the waistband of my skirt. I slowly turned in his arms and pressed my lips against his. My hands found the button to his pants and slid down the zipper. I pushed them down over his tight ass until they slipped to the floor. He kissed me deeper and pressed me against the counter. I could feel him hard and ready beneath his boxers. My bra was freed from my body next and Dimitri nibbled and sucked first one breast then the other. Shocks of pleasure traveled down my body and I moaned softly.
I found the front opening in Dimitri's boxers and stroked and teased. Now it was his turn to moan in pleasure. He gathered up my skirt and hooking his fingers on either side of my lace undies, he eased them down to the floor. His fingers slid between my legs, where I was ready for him. He stroked and caressed my opening before sliding two fingers inside. I gasped with pleasure and kissed him deeply. I sucked his tongue suggestively in and out, nearly driving him wild. He moved his hands to cup under my behind and lifted me to him. My legs wrapped around his waist and he slid in all of his length. He pressed my back to the wall and moved teasingly slow. I used my legs to pull him into me faster, changing his rhythm, making him groan with pleasure and match my new pace.
I could feel a warm tingle building low inside me. I knew I was going to spill over in a few more strokes. "Don't stop, don't stop." I pleaded breathily. That was enough to send him over the edge too and we both released together in wave after wave of ecstasy.
We didn't move right away, simply holding each other and trying to catch our breath. As one he carried me to the bed in the other room. He leaned over and laid me down on the bed and then carefully pulled out of me.
*** Rated M moment over, start reading again ***
"You should probably take your skirt off now."
I looked down and laughed. I hadn't realized I still had it on. "Oops."
"That was so sexy, making love with your skirt pushed up around your waist." Dimitri's voice was low and steamy.
"And that was sexy watching you touch me."
"You're sexy laying here with your skirt still around your waist."
I reached my arms around his neck and pulled him down toward me on the bed. "You know what would be even sexier?"