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Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.
CHAPTER 52
RPOV
The call came two hours after Dimitri had left – the call that would wreck my entire life. At first, I couldn't make out what Olena was saying. She was crying hysterically and in the background I heard a lot of noise. Something else I heard was sirens. And that's what scared me.
"What happened?" I demanded. No matter how hard I tried to stay calm, I couldn't keep my voice from wavering. "Olena?"
"They arrested Dimitri," she sobbed through the phone.
Bile rose in my throat. "Why?"
It took me some time to make out her next words. "Kazimir is dead."
I gasped and almost dropped the phone. She was still talking to me, but my mind was elsewhere. Does she mean that Dimitri killed his father? My head was spinning and I felt faint. That's when my dad rushed to my side, calling my name, but I didn't hear him. I swayed on my feet and he caught me, looking at me with wide eyes.
"Rose, what's wrong?" he exclaimed. I shook my head – I felt like throwing up. Dimitri… Dimitri killed his father? They arrested him. I need to see him. "Janine, get in here! There's something wrong with Rose!"
"Take me to Dimitri's house," I said. Dad wanted to argue, but my voice left no room for discussion. "Now!"
Even though it was a short drive, it felt like infinity before we got there. There were cops everywhere outside Dimitri's house. They'd set up a perimeter around the house. I spotted an ambulance parked next to the patrol cars.
"What the hell is going on here?" Dad muttered.
Curious neighbors had come out of their houses to see what was going on. Some officers were trying to keep them away from what I assumed was the crime scene.
I swallowed past the lump in my throat. "Stop the car."
"Rose," Mom started.
"This is as far as we can go anyway," I cut her off before opening the car door.
"Rose!" she called after me, but I ignored her and made a run for the ambulance, hoping I'd find someone who could explain what had happened. When I approached, I noticed both Viktoria and Olena were in there.
"What happened?" I asked, willing myself not to cry.
Viktoria was draped in a thermal blanket, staring straight ahead of her. My eyes darted briefly to her hands; they were covered in blood. Tears filled my eyes when I realized she was in shock and was not going to answer me. I turned to Olena, who was sobbing. I scanned her quickly. To my relief, she seemed to be unharmed.
"Where's Dimitri?" I cried out, panic seizing me. "Tell me what happened!"
Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder and I whipped my head around. It was Dad. He looked down at me and gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze. Mom stood off to the side, her hand covering her mouth, as she looked at Olena and Vika.
"Olena, can you tell us what happened?" Dad asked calmly.
"They arrested Dimka," she managed to choke out, finally meeting my gaze. "They say he killed Kazimir." Viktoria whimpered. "I – I wasn't here when it happened," Olena continued, and she started crying again. "I should've been here."
"Where did they take him?" I demanded.
"The police station," she answered, shaking her head. "They left fifteen minutes ago."
"Do you want me to make any calls, Olena?" Dad asked. He didn't seem fazed by the news.
Olena looked confused for a moment, then nodded. "Yes…Karolina and Sonya… They should know… Oh God… What are they going to say?"
Mom finally stepped forward and put her arm around Olena. "Come on, we're going to call your children," she said softly, leading her away.
"I'll find you a lawyer," Dad said firmly, phone already clasped in his hand before turning away as well. "We're going to get Dimitri out of this mess."
I wanted to go over to the police and demand answers, but Viktoria was still sitting silently beside me. She did not move and she did not speak. I looked around in frustration. Where were the paramedics? My eyes widened in horror when I saw two policemen carrying a body bag out of the house. I doubled over, thinking I might vomit, but it never came.
Taking a few deep breaths, I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to get rid of the picture of that body bag in my head. At last, I rose to my feet again and looked at Viktoria. She was still staring straight ahead of her, unblinking. Had she been there when Dimitri – when it happened?
"Vika?" I asked cautiously. No response. "Viktoria. Viktoria."
Finally, she turned her head to look at me. Her face was pale and she was trembling. I searched her eyes, but it was like she didn't even see me. But, all of a sudden, she reached out with her bloodied hand and clutched my hand. "I didn't mean to," she whispered, her bottom lip quivering. "And now he's dead. Dead." She shut her eyes. "I didn't mean to. I didn't mean to…"
"What are you talking about?" I asked frantically. "What didn't you mean to do?"
For the first time since I arrived, she really looked at me. Her hand was grasping mine so tightly it hurt, but I didn't pull away.
"I'm sorry," she choked out.
I forced back my tears. "Why are you sorry?"
"Hey, what are you doing?" someone exclaimed. "Leave her alone."
Startled, I stepped back when a paramedic appeared out of nowhere. Viktoria was still holding onto my hand, her fingernails digging into my skin, her face ashen as she looked at me with wide eyes. I wrenched free from her as gently as possible.
"She's my friend!" I said in outrage. "Where have you been? You should be helping her!"
The man looked speechless for a moment. I had a feeling I wasn't going to get any answers from Viktoria in this state so I stomped away and went in search for my parents. Glancing around, I found my dad talking to an officer. Quickly, I strode over.
"Are you in charge?"
The officer looked me up and down. "Who are you?"
Dad cleared his throat. "She's my daughter."
"I'm Dimitri's girlfriend," I told the officer. "I want to know what happened here."
The officer took his time to answer, eyeing me carefully. "Miss, I can't just-"
"The hell you can't!" I screamed, losing my temper. "I want to know where you took my boyfriend! I want to see him right now!"
"Excuse us," Dad said, pulling me away from the man. I struggled against him, but he was too strong. "Rose, calm down!" he hissed, fixing me with a glare. "You're not going to get any answers if you keep behaving like this!"
I burst out into tears. "I want to see Dimitri. I need to know he's alright."
Dad sighed and pulled me into his arms. I buried my face in his chest, sobbing. "It's going to be okay, Rose."
"I don't believe them," I cried, my voice muffled. "He didn't kill Kazimir. He couldn't have."
"I'm so sorry, Rose," Dad said softly, kissing the top of my head.
I pulled away from him. "Did you find him a lawyer?"
He grimaced. "I might have, but…it looks bad, Rose."
I felt my heart hammer in my chest. "What do you mean? He didn't do anything."
"I overheard a few officers talk," he said cautiously. I held my breath and braced myself for what came next. "They said Dimitri smashed his father's head with a baseball bat."
Oh no. The baseball bat Andre gave to Viktoria. I started feeling dizzy and sucked in a breath, trying my best not to faint. Tears filled my eyes again as I looked up at my dad. Even he was having trouble processing this information.
"Viktoria was there when it happened. She called 911. They said…" He paused and closed his eyes briefly. "Dimitri was still sitting next to the body when the police arrived. He surrendered immediately."
"No!" I exclaimed, shaking my head vehemently. "No, he couldn't have done it!"
"Rose, he was holding the bat when they came in…"
"No!" I sank to my knees as another sob erupted from my throat. "No, no, no…"
"Rose, I don't want to believe what they're saying about him," Dad said hesitantly as he crouched down in front of me. "But the things he said at the hospital… At the time I thought it was just because he was upset, but now…"
I looked up at him, my cheeks wet with fresh tears. "What are you talking about?"
Dad heaved a sigh. "He said he was going to kill Kazimir. He was so upset about what happened to you. I didn't think he meant what he was saying, but everyone heard what he said. If these people testify against him… He won't stand a chance."
"No, no, no," I sobbed. My head ached; but it was nothing compared to the way my heart ached right now. "You have to help him," I begged. "Please help him. He wouldn't have killed his dad if he wasn't provoked. Something must've happened! Kazimir was at the house. Maybe he was hurting Viktoria," I rambled. "Please, you have to find him a good lawyer."
"I will," Dad promised, his voice firm but soothing. "Like I said earlier, I might know a lawyer who wants to take on this case." He helped me up and started leading me back to Mom and Olena, who was still on the phone with either Sonya or Karolina. "I know you want to see Dimitri," Dad said softly, "but there's nothing you can do for him right now."
I realized he was right, but I just couldn't bear the thought of not seeing him tonight. I needed to hear from him what had happened. But I also knew the police wouldn't allow it. After Olena got off the phone, she was in a hurry to leave for the police station.
"I need a favor," she said. I could see it pained her to ask us for help. "I know you've already done so much for us, but I have no one else to turn to."
"You know you can ask us anything, Olena," Mom said gently.
It almost made Olena burst into tears again. "Can you please take care of Vika for a while? I need to go to the police station. Dimitri's still a minor so I need to be there for when they question him."
"Of course," Dad replied solemnly. He looked at Mom and handed her the car keys. "Janine, can you take the girls home? I'm going with Olena. I'm going to contact our lawyer again and see if he can make it here in short time."
"I want to go as well," I protested.
Dad shook his head at me. "Now's not the time, Rose."
I glared at him, but didn't argue. I turned away from him without another word and walked back to the ambulance, followed by my mom. When Viktoria was cleared, we left the 'crime scene' and went back home, though I was anxious to go to the police station as well in hopes of catching a glimpse of Dimitri. I just wanted to know how he was holding up.
When we got home, I led Viktoria to the bathroom. She still hadn't said a word during the ride home and she hadn't stopped shaking. The paramedic had said it was from shock, but that she'd be alright. The least he could've done was help her clean up. But I guess I would have to help her with that; I couldn't let her go to sleep when she was still covered in her father's blood. The thought made me nauseous, but I pushed it away and helped her as best as I could into the shower. It took some time because I only had one useful arm, but I managed. Last night Dimitri was helping me in the shower and now I was the one the one helping his sister. The irony. If I'd known what would happen, I would've stayed with him in that shower forever.
Viktoria's shirt was soaked in blood. It had a terrible smell and almost made me gag. I wondered if she'd tried to reanimate her father. She must've at least checked his wounds because the blood on her hands hadn't been hers.
Quickly, I ran down the stairs to throw the shirt out – I had a feeling she wouldn't want it as a reminder anyway – and then I ran back up, scared to leave Viktoria alone for more than a few minutes. Rummaging in my closet, I found something for her to wear tonight. When she emerged from the bathroom, she still looked pale and fragile, but at least she wasn't covered in her father's blood anymore.
I realized it was a stupid question, but I asked it anyway. "Are you going to be okay?"
She gave a small nod. I beckoned her over and patted the spot next to me on the bed. Gingerly, she sat down. When she looked up at me, her eyes were filled with tears.
"Where's Mama?"
"She's with your brother right now," I answered carefully, hoping this wouldn't send her into hysterics. But she said nothing. She opened her mouth a few times, but nothing came out. "Do you want to get some sleep?" I asked at last.
She nodded.
"I'll make the bed in the spare room ready."
As I was about to leave, she reached out all of a sudden and grabbed my arm. I stopped and turned to look at her.
"Please don't leave me alone," she whispered, her eyes pleading.
I gave her a reassuring smile. "I guess you can sleep in here."
Viktoria looked relieved. "Thank you."
"I'm going to get changed first," I told her. "I'll be right back, okay?"
She hadn't moved an inch during the five minutes I was gone from the room. She'd wrapped her arms around herself, staring down at her feet. I wasn't sure if she'd gone into shock again, but when I entered, she looked up at me.
When we'd settled into my bed, I switched off the lights and stared at the ceiling. I knew I was not going to get any sleep tonight, but I hoped me being here would be enough for Vika to get some rest. She must be so scared after what had happened.
"It wasn't his fault, you know."
I almost jumped ten feet in the air. I closed my eyes and exhaled, trying to calm myself down, before glancing over at Viktoria. She wasn't looking at me, though.
"It wasn't his fault," she repeated.
I found her hand under the covers and squeezed it. My voice cracked a little as I said, "I know."
I wanted to tell her that everything was going to be fine, that Dimitri would be released soon and that we were all going to live happy lives from now on because the bad guy was dead. But I could make no such promises. This was something that was out of my control and there was nothing for us to do than wait.
Wait and pray everything was going to be alright.
There you go! There was a lot of angst in this chapter, but I hope you still liked it. The final chapter will be up in a few days! Please leave a review and let me know your thoughts on this chapter! Have a nice day/evening! :)
