Alexander's POV

Think Alexi, Think!

Whatever I'd been expecting to find here, it wasn't this.

There were two unidentified bodies on the floor, but I couldn't tell if they were still breathing.

Sydney was cowering on the floor screaming; not just in pain but in panic.

And Rose was lying on the floor motionless while a raven haired Strigoi hunched over here. Even from this angle I could see Rose's pale color, and if I didn't stop that monster soon, she'd be dead.

Just like Katya.

Just thinking about her stirred the familiar pain in my heart.

My beautiful Katya. I hadn't been able to save her then, but I could save Rose now. I just needed to find a way.

It was times like these that made me wish I was a fire user. What could being an air user do for me now?

And then it hit me.

What I really needed was a distraction; something to draw the monsters attention towards me. I wasn't sure that it would save Rose, but hopefully it could buy her some time.

If I knew my son, he was probably looking for her right now. Surely help was on the way.

Focusing all my attention on the large stained glass window, I released a gust of wind that shattered the glass.

That monster had been so busy devouring Rose that she hadn't even noticed me until now. Her head shot up at me in shock and I wanted to cringe when I saw Rose's blood dripping down her chin.

"Who the hell are you?" She spat, using the back of her hand to wipe off her lips.

The image was eerily familiar and my mind flashed back to the night I'd lost Katya. It was difficult to stay in the present, but when she rose to her feet, I knew I had to.

Mustering all the courage I had in me, I squared my shoulders.

"Get away from my daughter in law." I hissed.

Even I was surprised by how malicious I sounded. I don't know where I'd gotten the sudden confidence from; I was hardly a viable opponent. In fact, there was a good chance she was about to slaughter me.

I wasn't exactly what one would call a skilled fighter.

Hell, my own son had beaten me up when he was thirteen!

The only fights I'd ever engaged in were with women, and this was no ordinary woman.

Perhaps dying by a woman's hand would be a fitting punishment for someone like me. I could think of a few women who would probably agree, most notably Olena.

The monster before me cocked her head to the side curiously.

"If that were true, you'd have to be Dimka's father." She said eyeing me skeptically. "And based on what Dimka's told me, you're not exactly the hero type." She finished smugly.

I could only imagine the things she'd heard about me. All of them horrible and every one of them true.

I had been my own version of a monster before Katya, but I wasn't that same man now.

"People can change." I replied dryly, giving her a meaningful glance.

Her metamorphosis was proof of that.

She must not have appreciated the implication because her eyes narrowed and she scoffed.

"If that's what you want to tell yourself." She shrugged. "But stay out of my way. Rose and I have a score to settle and I've had enough interference as it is." She spat, looking down at Rose in irritation.

When she crouched down to finish her off, I responded by blowing out another window.

Her head swiveled back in my direction and I felt like shrinking under her intense glare.

You know that old saying "If looks could kill." Well let's just say I'd be dead right now.

"Is this really how you want to play this?" She asked. "Because I have no problem going through you."

I struggled not to gulp so that she wouldn't detect my fear. I knew if I answered her my voice would crack, so instead I just blew out another window.

It made a point as good as any answer would.

She looked at the window and then back shrewdly before rolling her eyes. There was only one large window left in the library and glass littered the carpet underneath it.

"What is it with you men and protecting her?" She shrieked. "I swear it's like the bitch has nine lives!"

"Then it's unfortunate you only have one." I told her boldly.

I still didn't understand my sudden rush of confidence, but right now I wasn't going to question it.

"Why are you risking your life for a woman who probably hates you?" she asked.

It was a valid question, one I had already asked myself. But I knew why I was doing this and I wanted this monster to know too.

"I'm doing this for my wife." I told her sharply. "Now leave before I put an end to this."

She stared back at me in disbelief before snorting.

"You seem awfully sure of yourself." She commented as she took a deliberate step in my direction.

But I wasn't having that.

Calling on all of the magic in me, I formed a large funnel cloud. As the wind picked up the funnel tightened and it sent books and papers flying everywhere.

Sydney had used the distraction to crawl over to Rose's body and was busy trying to shield them both.

The monster's raven black hair whipped wildly around her face and her eyes squinted closed from the harsh winds. With a concentrated effort, I was able to strategically use the funnel to push her towards the broken window. She fought hard against it, but the wind was just too strong and it created an impenetrable barrier between us.

I had no desire to see that woman escape, but I wasn't equipped to kill her. The best I could right now was protect Rose.

Even through the clouds and debris, I could see her anger. It radiated off of her in waves, and had a life force all its own.

What could Rose have ever done to warrant such hatred?

Whatever it was, it must have been bad.

"You can't protect her forever." The monster shouted.

It was difficult to hear her over the sound of the wind, but there was no mistaking the warning. Her vendetta with Rose was far from over.

And with one last look of longing, she jumped agilely out of the window.

Dimitri's POV

The suspense was killing me.

We'd tried everything we could think of to get out of this place, and we were no closer to escaping our cell.

It had been nearly an hour since we'd heard the sirens and all we could do was wait. But the longer we waited, the more my imagination ran away from me.

We'd had no contact with the outside world and it left us assuming the worst. All I could think about was Rose and whether she was somewhere out there right now and needing me.

If anything happened to her while I was locked in here, I'd never forgive myself.

One look at my two friends told me they felt the same way.

"I can't take this anymore!" Adrian announced as he slammed his fist against the wall. "What if Sydney went into labor!"

His hands were shaking and his breathing was erratic. He even had a crazed look in his eyes. He was panic stricken and I really felt for the guy.

This would be a hell of a time to go into labor.

Between the three of us, I was the least hysterical and I knew I should say something supportive.

I was just as worried as the next guy, but we couldn't all fall apart. Someone needed to be the voice of reason here.

"I'm sure wherever the girls are, they're okay." I tried reassuring him. "Rose would never let anything bad happen to them."

But neither of them looked convinced, and to be honest I wasn't either.

Of course for me, there was more reason to worry.

Rose was a trained guardian who would always lay her life on the line. Lissa was her charge and she would die before she ever let any harm come to her.

Rose was a fighter and she would fight to the end.

However telling them our wives were okay was for their benefit as much as mine. I needed to believe they were okay, if only for my sanity.

I was still busy trying to convince myself she was okay when I heard it.

It was the sound of the prison doors slamming, followed by the echo of footsteps. Each movement sent an echo down the hall, and we all exchanged a look of confusion.

Was it a friend or a foe?

There was only one way to find out.

Bracing myself, I squared my shoulders and stood tall.

"What's the meaning of this?" Han's barked when he rounded the corner to find us.

He was just as surprised by the scene in front of him as we were, only we were even more surprised to the prisoner he was escorting.

Nina.

As much as I loathed the very sight of her, I couldn't help but feel relief. If she was here, that meant her plan had failed. And if her plan had failed, then there was a chance our wives were okay.

"It's a long story" said Christian dismissively. "Now is Lissa okay?"

I knew we were all wondering the same thing, but Nina's presence had Adrian distracted.

He was staring at her with blatant hatred in his eyes and it was a look I had never seen before.

Not on Adrian anyway.

"The Queen is fine." Han's reassured Christian, but I knew there was more to the story. I hadn't missed the fact that he avoided eye contact with me.

"What about Sydney and Rose?" I continued to question him.

The mention of Sydney's name drew Adrian's attention and Han's eyed us both carefully.

"It's complicated." He told us. "But they're both going to be okay."

Going to be? What the hell did that mean?

"Let me get her settled in" Han's continued gesturing towards Nina. "After that I will give you all the details."

But that wasn't going to be good enough.

"Where is my wife?" I asked harshly. I didn't have any patience left in me.

Han's must have sensed I wouldn't let this go easily and breathed a sigh of defeat.

"She's the same place as Lady Ivashkov." He said cryptically.

I was really getting tired of this…

"Great, now where the hell is that?" Adrian shot back.

Apparently he was in no mood for half-truths either. We'd spent the last few hours stewing in this cell while our family's lives were on the line. We needed answers and we needed them now.

"They're in the hospital." He told us, and my heart stopped beating in my chest.

I know a lot of people wanted Dimitri to save her but that just seemed to predictable.

Beside's this gave Alexander a good chance to prove himself a changed man, and we'll learn more about Katya later.

Hope you enjoyed it, and Rose and Dimitri will have their reunion next chapter.

Dimitri also has some explaining to do...

Don't forget to review : )