It was a long, silent horse ride along the river and over the Turkish border. Despite aerial patrols and narrow ledges, the quartet makes it into Turkey. They rip off the soviet insignias on their uniforms, much to Alexei's satisfaction. Oliver leads them to Çıldır, the original staging point for the expedition, where the horses were acquired. Thankfully, the two intelligence contacts serving as innkeepers were still receptive to Oliver despite nothing going to plan. Once the quartet settled in, the no vacancy sign was put in the window. Oliver talked to one innkeeper and went into the secret telegraph room to message a safehouse in Ankara. While he used the telegraph, the three Russians settled around the fireplace. To say they were tired and miserable would be an understatement. The other innkeeper brought them food and drink, which did improve the mood. The warm fire helped as well. Bread and cheese and even canned sardines were devoured. Alexei at first was put off by Anya and Dimitri's consumption, but eventually he gave into hunger. He scarfed down some bread and went for the cheese and stopped halfway through a bite.

"Shouldn't we leave some for Mr. Cross?" asked Alexei. Anya side eyes him while munching on bread.

"After-" she swallows, "after what he said about our family, no." she firmly replies. Alexei mumbles and continues eating. He does look over his shoulder towards the office where Oliver was frantically tapping out in morse code. He clearly wasn't liking what he was hearing. Alexei turns back to the food. Dimitri pours out hot tea in three cups. Anya doesn't usually take her tea like this, but these are desperate times. Smells start wafting in from the kitchen. Oliver gets off the telegraph, briefly talks to the head innkeeper, and then settles down in a chair off to the side. A grimace forms when he realizes most of the food has been eaten, but he grabs what he can.

"Ok here's the situation." He starts to lecture between bites. "I got through to the American embassy. They said your grace already left for Paris days ago, so how could you possibly come back to the capital. Plus, Ankara is on lock down, and the Turkish government wants nothing to do with us. The Soviet Union is making threats towards Turkey, and the British and French are lodging protest over their threats. Congratulations, your want of soldiering has possibly caused an international incident, maybe another war," Oliver sardonically explains. Anya and Dimitri say nothing, their steely eyes showing no regret. Alexei was confused, but overcame that feeling quickly, with his frown joining the others' in the room. Oliver continues. "So, courtesy of my brother and Anton, the new plan is to head south to the Mediterranean. There, we'll charter a fishing boat to takes us to Cyprus. We'll rendezvous with the British, then it's a straight shot to Paris. Sound good?" Again, Oliver is met with silence.

"Yes, it does," Alexei says after a few beats. Anya and Dimitri look at each other, and then nod.

"Yes, sounds better than what you've done so far," Dimitri answers. Oliver was too tired to respond. At that point the source of the smell of the kitchen came into the room and onto a table. It was some leftover lamb and vegetables. Some raki was produced as well. Oliver went over to fix himself a plate.

"I can read the room," he says as he takes a lamb chop, "I'll take my dinner in my bedroom. I'll be upstairs if you need me. Enjoy your meal." He makes towards the stairs. Halfway up he stops. "I'm sorry for what I said. I can't take it back. But Alex, you've got to understand the world we're in now. Dreams are great to have, but you have to accept reality as it happens. Plus, you've brought it on yourself with your questions. It was only a matter of time. I just wish we could've waited until Paris. Goodnight." He heads upstairs to his room. He goes in and closes the door, and places his food down before running to the washroom. He proceeds to get sick in the toilet from the stress. After retching, he hoarsely states, "God I'm an ass, I'm not sure if I'm cut out for this."

Back down stairs, the three Russians ate in silence. Alexei was starting to look better, but Anya and Dimitri still looked like they were planning a murder. Alexei, who seems to be recovering better than them, tries to ease the tension.

"So, we're going to Cyprus. I hope that journey goes better than the last one." Anya and Dimitri just hum noncommittedly. "If we stay angry towards him, it won't help. He apologized. I came at him, it's only makes sense he-"

Anya put down her cup of raki with some force. "He spoke ill of our family, Alyosha," she spoke through gritted teeth, "He said it was better that they were dead. That is low."

"Not exactly-"

"I don't care, that's how it came across, and that's how it'll be received." Anya took Oliver's remark from earlier harsher because she struggles at times to remember anything of her family. Oliver declaring to 'get over it' cut her to the core. "Can I ask something of you two?" Dimitri and Alexei nod. "Next time he says anything like that to either of you, tell me so that I have an excuse to break his nose." Dimitri chuckles.

"That's my Anya." He places an arm around her and she leans on his shoulder.

"So…" asks Alexei to interrupt his sister's romance as brothers do, "How did you two meet?" Dimitri and Anya look at each other.

"Should we?" asks Dimitri.

"Well, he'll find out eventually," replies Anya. They turn to Alexei. "Alyosha, it's a long story. You already know the orphanage bit and…"

"No tell me that, start from the beginning, start from… that night." So thus, began Anya and Dimitri telling Alexei of their lives since that fateful night of the attack on the palace, and the journey to Paris and the fight with Rasputin. And their round-the-world adventures after eloping.

"And since then, we've been inseparable," Anya concludes.

"And we wouldn't want it any other way," Dimitri adds, with an additional kiss. Alexei sat silently, contemplating.

"So Rasputin was a true mystic, and his curse destroyed our family? Even after he helped me?" Alexei looks crestfallen. "Then they are truly dead. Oh Nastya, I'm so sorry." Alexei seemed as if he was about to cry, but then he turns inquisitive. "Ever since I was separated, I had nightmares. I imagine you did too. Ones of us being consumed by fire, with demons around. Sometimes it would be just me being tortured. And I remember green fire. And then they went away. The strangest thing after awhile, I started to get feelings of hatred towards our family. I fought it though. But it always perplexed me why, but now I know. And what scares me," he leans in, "ever since I heard you survived, some of the nightmares and hatred came back. Tell me sister, when you learned I survived, did anything like that happen to you?"

Anya does her best to maintain a poker face. 'That explains why I've been seeing Rasputin again,' Anya thinks recalling her recent nightmares.

"Not- not like the ones you described Alyosha." Which wasn't a lie technically; her nightmares involved ice and water more rather than fire. "Don't worry, I'll keep you safe." Anya was now wondering if the curse had come back in some form with her rediscovering her brother. But now was not the time to dwell on it. "We'll soon be in Paris and we can put all of this behind us."

"Do you think Cross should know?" asks Dimitri.

"He might not believe it"

"I think we should tell him," says Alexei, "he can make his defenses stronger."

"Like that kid can defend against an undead wizard," Dimitri mutters under his breath. Alexei heads to Oliver's room upstairs. Oliver was in the washroom when he hears the knock at the door.

"Hello?" Oliver asks as he opens the door. "What is it Alexei?"

"We best discuss it with Nastya." The two of them go downstairs. "Now, Mr. Cross, what were about to discuss may be viewed as heresy."

"Well, with what you called me earlier, I should be fine."

Alexei shifts uncomfortably. "I see that you wear a cross, do you believe in spirits?"

Oliver is taken aback. "Well, I don't know what the Russian Orthodox Church believes, but I'm an open-minded Catholic. Yes, I do believe in spirits."

"Well, Nastya and I, we were cursed. By a sorcerer named Rasputin."

"I've heard of him," Oliver says, "he was your doctor so to speak yes. It was quite scandalous in high society, we learned about it in America." Oliver heads off that question.

"Oh, but we think the curse is still active. I've had nightmares I haven't had in a long time, and I get feelings of hatred towards my sister occasionally. I'm afraid she might too."

Oliver thinks, "What do you want me to do, stand guard?"

"No." Alexei said sharply, "I just want you to watch for any hostile behavior coming from me. Heaven forbid I try to hurt Nastya, I want you to take any actions necessary to protect her." Dimitri was a tad confused, considering that he was absent for most of their conversation. But once he heard the word "curse" getting thrown around, he knew exactly what was going on.

"Don't worry, Alexei. If Agent Cross fails to do so, I'll protect your sister. She's in good hands." Anya had an issue with the fact that they were assigning people to protect her. She wasn't a damsel in distress. She could take care of herself.

"Dimitri, are you forgetting that I punched you so hard that you thought I broke your nose? I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself." Dimitri rolls his eyes.

"I know, you know that, Alexei and Cross know that now, but could you defend yourself against your brother. Can you actually hurt him if necessary?"

"I can take care of it, Alexei can sleep in my room tonight," says Oliver, "I'll keep an eye on him. And Anya and Dimitri, do you still have those snub nose revolvers I gave you?" Both nod affirmatively.

"What did you call my sister?" ask Alexei, "and you gave them guns?"

"I called her Anya, it's a nickname. And yeah, I gave them guns, even though they weren't supposed to come. In Soviet Russia, the Checka tries to kill you. They needed to defend themselves just in case."

"Wait, they weren't supposed to come?"

"No."

"Maybe it would've been better if they didn't." Alexei looks to the side. The redhead snorted in disbelief at her brother's remark. All of her efforts were going to be met with this? For the first time in ten years, he is finally reunited with his only sibling and now he's saying it would have been best if she hadn't come?

"You're kidding me, right? It would have been better if we hadn't come? You truly are a piece of work, Alexei. DO YOU HAVE THE SLIGHTEST IDEA OF WHAT WE HAD TO GO THROUGH JUST TO COME GET YOU?" Completely heartbroken and furious, she stormed out of the room and out of the hotel. If she had stayed in that room a moment longer, she might have hurt someone. 'Is he out of his mind? I'm his only living sibling and he didn't want me to come. Could they ever be as close as they once were, or have they become too different?' she thinks as she storms down the stairs and out the building. All three men stand up to go after Anya, and all three get stuck in the doorway.

"Spread out," orders Cross.

"She's my wife, I'll go," Dimitri replies.

"No, you two just eloped, and she's my sister," states Alexei. Eventually all three fall out the door, with Dimitri getting up and out first. Alexei starts to go, but Oliver stops him.

"We'll wait up here in the room, let's leave them alone. We can watch from the window." Alexei and Oliver go over and look out the window. Hot tears started to stream down Anya's face. She couldn't push down her emotions any longer and she was just about at the end of her rope. All of the travelling and arguments had her stressed out, and her brother's comment was the final straw.

"Can I do anything right," she weeps as she sits on a bench outside behind the inn. Dimitri catches up to Anya.

"I don't think he mean what he said Anya, I mean, we're technically not even supposed to be here." A pause. "I'm not helping, am I?" He would hug her, but he knows she needs her space.

"No, you're not. You were never good at comforting me." A weak laugh escapes Anya's lips. "But at least you're trying." Dimitri cautiously approaches her, taking a seat on the steps beside her. It bothered him to see his wife so upset. Though he wanted nothing more than to beat those jerks faces in, he knew it wouldn't help Anya in the slightest.

"Anya, you know I've never really been a part of a family. That is, until I found you and your grandmother, and now Alexei. And I want nothing more than to see you all happy. Yes, you guys are going to have arguments, but don't let that affect your relationship. I mean, how many times have you thrown various objects at my head during an argument?"

"Too many to count."

"Exactly, but yet, here we are on the other side, and our relationship is stronger from it. Just think of that when it comes to Alexei. I know it's different because he's your brother, but these things take time and I know you guys will be close again."

"You think so?"

"You know I do."

"Can you see anything?" Alexei asks.

"No, and I can't hear anything either," says Oliver as he leans out the window. Even though he was a spy and trained detective, he hadn't exactly nailed down the eavesdropping bit. Meanwhile, Dimitri puts his arm around Anya.

"Alexei will come around too. When you ran out, he started to run after you too. He does care for you, he loves you too. I think things aren't going how he planned them. He kept saying an army. He never expected secret agents and his sister to show up. He taking in a lot really fast. He needs time to adjust. Have faith. Everything is going to be ok. If we made it, we'll all make it." He takes her head and turns it towards him. He still can't get enough of her blue eyes. He gives her a reassuring kiss on the forehead. Trying to lighten things up, Dimitri changes the subject. "So, the Mediterranean? It was nice in Greece, but a fishing boat may be below your standard your grace." With an eye roll, Anya smiled back at her husband.

Your Grace

"At this point, I don't care if we get there on a rowboat, just as long as we get there safe." Resting her head on his shoulder, she sighed and leaned into him. "Thank you for coming out here. I know I tend to be a little fast tempered."

"You don't think I know that? It seems to be a common trait between the Romanovs, well, for the exception of your grandmother, I don't think I've ever seen her outwardly angry. Distant and cold, yes, but angry I've yet to witness." Anya delivers a lighthearted shove.

"Can you blame her for being distant? But I have noticed that she does enjoy your quick wit, so you have that going for you. Now, we have to work on improving your relationship with Alexei. Though, we should probably avoid including the fact that you were a conman." Dimitri nods hesitantly. That process was going to be painstakingly slow and very bumpy. Even though Dimitri was very charming, it would take a little more than some schmoozing to get on Alexei's good side.

"Let's head inside. It's getting colder by the minute and the last thing we need is a sick Grand Duchess." The couple walks back inside, arm in arm. Alexei and Oliver were still trying to look at the window, unaware that Anya and Dimitri had come back in. When the couple came back, they found Alexei and Oliver practically halfway out the window. "What are you two doing?" Dimitri asks, almost making the two boys fall out.

"Um…" Oliver tries to think of an excuse.

"Stargazing," Alexei blurts out. Oliver looks at him with a look that combines 'are you kidding me' and 'that's the best you can do?'.

"Sure… you two weren't trying to listen to us right?"

Oliver: "No."

Alexei: "Yes." Oliver rolls his eyes.

"Well Alexei, you have a lot to learn," Dimitri puts his hand on Alexei's soldier in a brotherly manner. Alexei raises an eyebrow.

"Good luck with the bonding, I'm going to bed, it's been a rough day. Goodnight." Oliver leaves.

"I just remembered, I wonder what he meant when he said he knows death in the family first hand?" ponders Alexei out loud.

"It's not our business," says Dmitri, "let's get some sleep, we got a long horse ride tomorrow."

"Guess that means I'll go to Oliver's room, so I don't hurt Nastya. Good night Dmitri, Nastya. And sister, no funny business till marriage." He says as he walks out the door. Such an old-fashioned kid. His comment before exiting the room made Anya smirked.

"Alyosha," she called down the hall, getting her brother's attention. She flashes her wedding band with a smug look on her face. "I'm married, I can do whatever I want. Sleep tight, little brother." Alexei's face, with a priceless reaction, turned red and began to protest, but it was clear this was a battle he was going to lose. And with that, Anya closed the door and prepared for bed. Alexei did bring up a good question; what did Oliver mean when he said he know their pain first hand? "Dimitri, who do you think he lost?"

"Who?"

"Oliver." Dimitri responds with a shrug.

"Beats me, but I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. And neither should you."

"He has to have a good reason for behaving the way he has; I'm going to find out."

"Save that for another day and go to bed." Anya swats at Dimitri's arm in a playful manner.

"Don't tell me what to do." Yet, she climbs into bed and rests in Dimitri's arms. Meanwhile, Oliver and Alexei in the next room start getting ready for bed.

"You can have the bed, I'll have the couch," offers Oliver. Alexei nods in agreement. And soon everyone is asleep. But Alexei was having trouble. He kept tossing and turning, muttering and sweating.

"How… could… she… mock me…? I… am.. the Czar! My word… is… LAW! I'll… burn… any… Bolshevik… to ash! Death… to… Communists!"

Good, feed your hatred…

"She… shouldn't… have… come… it's… not… her… place… too… dangerous… destroyed… mission… I'll… make… her… pay!"

YES

"I'll… PUNISHER HER!" At this point Alexei starts screaming and sits up. Oliver sits up too gun at the ready. He runs over to comfort Alexei.

"Al, Alex, wake up, wake up!" He shakes him, and then a slap. "WAKE UP!"

Alexei breathes heavily. "Wha-, what happened?"

"You were having a nightmare."

Alexei looks grave. "What was I saying?"

"Do you really want to know?"

Alexei grabs Oliver, "Tell me everything."

Oliver sighs, "You were sounding like Ivan the Terrible. You calling for blood. And you threatened your sister."

"It's worse than I thought."

Both boys turn when Dimitri comes bursting through the door.

"Hey! What's going on in here?" Oliver comes over to the door before Dmitri knocks it down.

"Dmitri, Alexei was having a nightmare. He wasn't kidding earlier, he's getting aggressive, and he threatened Anya."

"And there was a raspy voice edging me on," Alexei looks pale. Dmitri loses some color too at the mention of the voice.

"This all seems awfully familiar," he says, "something similar happened too…" and with a soul mate like sense, Dmitri's head snaps back to his room, "… Anya!" He had a feeling she was getting the same reception. The three men run back to Anya's room.

The Grand Duchess, however, did not stir, and continued dreaming pleasantly. She's a small church walking down the aisle towards Dimitri at the altar. 'Everything I ever wanted' she thinks to herself. But soon it all shatters like glass until she's standing on an isolated pillar above abyss. A ghastly but familiar face appeared. The man that had haunted her dreams for years.

Rasputin.

"You had thought you'd seen the last of me, didn't you, Your Grace?"

"What do you want?!"

"The same thing I have wanted for the last twelve years. To see the end of the Romanov line. And now, I have figured out how to destroy you all, from the inside out."

"Say your prayers, Highness."

A fit of evil laughter and then a shove from behind, sending Anya into the emptiness. Anya woke in tears, her heart beating wildly. How is it that a dead man can still wreak havoc after he's gone?

Once she collected herself, she picked the dream apart, trying to decode its message.

"Ash and smoke. That must mean a fire."

From the inside out.

"It's Alexei. He's trying to get Alexei to kill us." She buried her face in her hands. "What am I going to do?" At this point Dimitri, Alexei, and Oliver return, with Dimitri seeing Anya first.

"Anya, are you… oh no." Dmitri sees his wife's tears. He takes her up in her arms. "It's ok, I'm here. I'm here. No one is going to hurt you."

Alexei wanted to comfort her but for some reason… he just couldn't. The deeply shaken Anya buries her head into her husband's shoulder. In an instant, the crying ceases and she looked at her brother angrily.

"He needs to get out. NOW!" Grabbing the nearest object, she threw it in Alexei's direction and missed. "It's because of YOU that these dreams came back!" She turns back to her husband, raving like a madwoman. "There was a fire, and I heard screaming. It was all Alexei's fault!" Dimitri put his hands up

"Anya, you need to calm down. It was just a dream." At this point, the redhead was just about ready to attack her brother.

"It is not just a dream! The last time this happened, we almost died. Did you happen to forget that, Dimitri? Did that night on the bridge happen to slip your mind, hm?" At a loss for words, Dimitri sits down at the foot of the bed and tries to make sense of his wife's erratic behavior.

"I'm not sure what we're gonna do, but we have to keep these two separate until this blows over," Oliver interjects, trying to keep a calm, professional neutrality.

Snapping back in the direction of her brother, Anya screams at him to leave.

"Nastya, I have done nothing wrong," Alexei says in a monotone voice. And that is when the woman charges at him, teeth bared. Dimitri quickly restrains her to prevent either of them from getting hurt.

"Nothing? This entire trip, you have been acting like an entitled brat that isn't satisfied by anything. Dimitri and I risked our lives to come see you, and you respond by saying that it would have been best if we hadn't come at all. You attacked the man that led this mission to come save you because you couldn't get a grip on your emotions, and now you're putting the idea of these dreams in my head, and you say you've done nothing? This is not the behavior of a leader, this is the behavior of a rotten child. Get out!"

"A child? A CHILD?! I AM THE NEXT CZAR, WOMAN! I AM THE NEXT RULER OF THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE CHOSEN BY GOD! YOU, YOU ARE JUST A GRAND DUCHESS! You will never have the throne, you were always jealous of me and that fact. It is not your place to be here, nor did I ask you to come rescue me. I asked for capable nations, not for a loose woman who eloped with an untrustworthy man! MAMA AND PAPER WOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOU!" Now it was Alexei's turn to come running at Anastasia. And Oliver restrained him. "You're not royalty, but a tramp! You're NOT. MY. SISTER!" And with that Oliver punches Alexei, sending him into the wall, knocking the wind out of him. Dmitri was still restraining Anya. Oliver starts dragging Alexei out back to his room.

"It's really going to be a long trip back to Paris," Oliver says to no one in particular in the hallway. Dmitri kept hanging on to Anya with all his might.

All she saw was red. Once she wrestled herself free from her husband's grip, she went for the gun in the nightstand and charged down the hallway. Her blood was boiling. No one got away with talking to her like that. Not even the next Tsar of Russia. The look on her brother's face was priceless as he stared down the wrong side of her revolver.

"Not so mighty now, are you brother?"

With a fiendish smile, she pulled the trigger, savoring the terrified expression of the family favorite.

Anya shook the horrifying thought out of her head. What had gotten into her? This was her baby brother, not some horrible criminal. Truly disgusted by her hallucination, she choked up. This was not who she was, and she was terrified of the person she was becoming. What kind of monster would daydream about murdering their only sibling?

For a moment, she couldn't manage to catch her breath. All she could do was focus on what seemed like the possessed state she was in.

"D-Dimitri. You need to get rid of the guns, or something really bad is going to happen."

Heeding his wife's warning, Dimitri quickly took the guns over to Oliver.

"Look, we can't have these in our room. I think Anya was seriously considering killing Alexei. I'm not sure where exactly where we're headed tomorrow, but I think they need some kind of religious intervention. This isn't my wife. This is something far more sinister. And it is only when she's around him."

"Understood, I'll keep them away from him and you. Try to get some sleep." Oliver turns back into the room and locks the door. He props it with a chair and puts a glass on it, to alert him when someone is trying to get in or out. So now Oliver has to carry two snub nose revolvers, a Webley, a Luger, and a Remington Model 8. A lot to carry. Alexei meanwhile was in the corner and crying.

"What's happening to me Oliver. I don't want to be this. I have versions of strangling my sister. I don't want to do that. Oh Lord help me." He starts praying.

"Alex, you won't hurt her, I won't let you. It's not who you are. This… 'curse', you can't let it control you. My family's belief when it comes to curses is that the way to defeat them is not to believe in them. Works every time."

"But you saw what I did, what else could have caused it?"

"Stress? Suppressed emotions? Something you ate or lack there of? Don't believe in the curse, and it won't affect you. Whistle even. Come now, let's get some shut eye."

Alexei ponders for a moment. "Family… what happened to you that you know this pain"

"Got to sleep," says Oliver ignoring the question. 'Now's not the time,' he thinks, 'all of them should hear it. Should help the situation.' "Goodnight Alexei, "Oliver tries to make himself comfortable on the couch.

"Goodnight Oliver," Alexei says another prayer. "Saints preserve us and deliver us."

Anya in her bed, with Dimitri beside her, looked out the window, trying to fall asleep. She understandably had a lot on her mind. The words she and her brother shouted at each other kept going through her head, making her sick. 'That's not who I am,' she thinks to herself. 'That's not who he is. Mama and Papa wouldn't be ashamed of me, or us. Well maybe how we're behaving right now.' A smile creeps apart her face, 'this isn't any of our faults. We'll beat this, we're going to be a family again. Rasputin needs to be defeated once and for all. I won't let him destroy what family I have left.' Feeling better, she settles into bed, but before falling asleep, she says a little prayer, something she hasn't done in a long time.

((Again let me apologize for the long wait. 2021 was no better than 2020. But my muse came back and wrote this up. It's a long one, so hopefully I can make up for it. One of the reasons it took so long is because I couldn't figure out how to get the quartet across the USSR-Turkey border. I was planning to write a scene involving blowing up a truck and stealing another to crash through the fence and outrun the USSR border patrol, but I couldn't figure out a way to make it work. I might revisit it late as a 'deleted scene'. But please enjoy this. And hopefully I'll have the next chapter written out real soon. Until then, please be patient, I will finish this story. -ET)