Chapter 38: Eddie
It touched my heart that Yuri and Celeste had gotten up in the middle of the night to come with Dimitri and I to meet Eddie's plane. It just demonstrated how much they cared because let's face it, guardians did not do this for the money. Celeste, Yuri, Dimitri and I all walked over to the where we could see other guardians waiting to help with the plane once it landed. I was leaning back into Dimitri soaking up his warmth and he had his arms around me as we all watched the small plane touch down effortlessly. We waited patiently as it made it's way over to the hangar, once the plane came to a stop, one of the guardians on board opened the door to the plane which released the stairs. A few guardians with their standard duffels came out and then I saw Eddie at the top of the stairs.
Eddie paused at that top of the stairs and was looking around as if he had just arrived in the land of Oz. "Eddie" I screamed and he immediately located me giving me one of his best smiles as he descended the stairs. Even from this distance, I could see some bruises and cuts on his face. My heart sank thinking what he had been through in the last few days. I left Dimitri's embrace and ran over to Eddie and leapt into his arms as he reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Rose, it's so good to see you." Eddie said as he gave me a big bear hug. I started to pull away slightly but could feel that Eddie was not letting me go. I also thought I could feel a little wetness on my neck where his head was buried. I continued to hug him giving him time to compose himself. I knew Eddie well and knew he would not want the guardians to see him cry even though it was understandable after everything he had experienced.
I could sense Dimitri behind me when I felt Eddie's hand come up to his face to wipe his tears before releasing me from where I was shielding his face.
"Castile" Dimitri said as he shook his hand and brought him in for man hug.
"Belikov, how are you?" Eddie asked.
"Good, thanks for asking." Dimitri replied.
"Hey Castile!" Yuri said clapping Eddie on the back as Eddie turned and noticed Celeste and Yuri for the first time. "This is where you guys are, nobody knew where the two of disappeared to. And speaking of disappearing, where are we?"
"In Turkey at my father's house." I informed Eddie.
"Come on, we will explain everything" Dimitri said as he put his arm around me, giving me some of his warmth and started to walk back to our building. I caught Eddie's surprised expression as he watched Dimitri being affectionate towards me.
By the time we got back to our building it was almost 5am, so we decided to go to the 4th floor and we grabbed some breakfast and took it upstairs so we could talk in private.
Once we were situated, Eddie fired off questions "Rose, where are we? What's going on? Why are you all here? And why am I here" and so on.
Dimitri started "Castile, Alberta called Rose's mother after the attack at school to let her parents know what was happening on the off chance that the attack was related to Rose in some way. It was Alberta's suggestion for you to come here for Rose's safety and your safety until they figure out why the academy was attacked."
"Okay, but where are we?" Eddie asked.
"We are at my father's house in Turkey. He is kind of a mobster and very rich. He has houses all over the world and we were in Russia until just recently when we had to move here." I informed Eddie.
"As you know, Rose's parents came to get Rose because there were threats against her because of her father's business dealing and because of Spokane. Celeste, Yuri and I all agreed to protect Rose along with 15 other guardians." Dimitri said.
"Shit Rose, you have 18 guardians?" Eddie exclaimed as I nodded. "Yes, apparently there are humans, morois and strigois who are after me including Adrian and Christian's Aunt Tasha."
"Oh, yeah I forgot about Tasha, but why Adrian?"
"Adrian has been getting angrier and angrier with Rose, demanding to know where she is and threatening her if she doesn't go stay with him at Court. We think Adrian is after Rose because of the spirit darkness and like Lissa has Rose to help, Adrian is by himself. We think that Adrian wants to kill Rose to break the connection with Lissa but then heal her so she can be connected to him." Dimitri said.
"And unfortunately Queen Tatianna is supporting this idea, we think the Queen wants to use Adrian's ability to see auras to give her a political advantage. So Rose's father had Lissa and Christian flown for their protection." Dimitri said.
"We were in Baia up until a few days ago when we ran in to Tasha there and she informed Adrian where we were and confronted us with the Royal Guardians with the purpose of kidnapping and brining me back to Court." I continued.
"However, yesterday morning Lissa had some sort of episode, so she is currently sedated while we are awaiting the arrival of another spirit bonded couple we met in Baia to see if the can help us."
"Wow, is it due the darkness?" Eddie asked.
"Maybe, I was going to take her darkness yesterday, but when I went into her head she had all these thoughts about how she blamed me for her familiy's accident and not being able to become Queen. And when I looked over at her she just started laughing in her head at me, so I kind of ran out of the building." I said as I looked down.
Dimitri put his arm around me and pulled me closer to him and said "So the short part of the story is that Lissa and Christian are being tutored here, Rose, my younger sister Vika and now you, will be tutored in an abridged version of classes so we can spend the majority of time on combat skills."
"I am leading the team as well as continuing as Rose's mentor. Guardian Matt Logan is mentoring my sister and Celeste and Yuri have agreed to mentor you. The building that we are in is all Rose's, this floor is Rose's personal residence, the 4th floor is the kitchen and the third floor is a lounge area. The second floor are all guardian dorms, which is where you will stay and the first floor and basement are laundry, miscellaneous stuff and a movie theater." Dimitri finished.
"Wow, seriously? I am never leaving!" Eddie joked and I laughed with him.
"Eddie, there is something I need to tell you as well. Dimitri and I are together. He's my primary guardian but he also my boyfriend and both my parents approve, otherwise I am sure my father would have made him disappear off the face of the earth if he didn't."
Eddie and I laughed at that but I could tell Dimitri was worried that it could still happen at anytime. "Lighten, Comrade, I'll protect you from my mobster father and kick ass guardian mother."
"It all makes sense now Rose, why you are the way you are." Eddie laughed. Yuri, Celeste and Dimitri joined in on the laughter as I tried to give Eddie a stink eye and I elbowed Dimitri in the stomach but I soon joined in the laughter.
"As much as I would love to sit around and talk, we do need to train today." Dimitri said, turning to Eddie he continued "Eddie, how are you feeling after your traveling? Do you need to sleep or are you up for a workout?"
"I am good for a workout. I slept on the plane."
"Okay, Celeste and Yuri can show you to your room on the second floor and then we can show you the gym." Dimitri said. "And Eddie, please feel free to come to any of us if you want to talk. It's difficult being kidnapped twice by strigoi."
"Thanks" Eddie quietly responded.
"And Eddie, feel free to come up here anytime you want, Vika and Matt hang out here all the time." I said.
"Thanks Rose. Alright, let's see my new room and the gym." Eddie said as Celeste and Yuri started leading him down the stairs.
Dimitri and I headed to our room to change in to training gear when Dimitri started "Rose, you know Eddie the best out of all of us, plus you were in Spokane with him. Let us know if you see any behavior from him that concerns you, so that we can intervene and help Eddie cope."
Again my heart swelled with love for Dimitri "Thank you, you have no idea how much that means to me. With Mason dying, Eddie is one of my oldest friends."
Dimitri and I entered the gym and I saw Guardian Brown fighting with another guardian using sticks. Dimitri and I were watching intently when Pavel walked up to us. "Hi Rose, Belikov."
"Hey Pavel" I said as Dimitri nodded his head at him.
"How is Castile?" Pavel asked.
"He's doing okay, I think he might still be in a little bit of shock but we told him we are all here for him and Celeste and Yuri are going to mentor him." Dimitri explained.
"Good, Rose your father and I spoke and we wanted to start teaching you how to use different weapons. We brought guardians who are proficient in their skills. The whole team will be trained on weapons where they are lacking experience. Guardian Brown is one of the guardians we brought over to show you how to use sticks in martial arts." Pavel said.
"Oksana and Mark should be here by 1pm, we'll bring them up to your suite and discuss any spirit related issues before we go over and see the Princess." Pavel said. Dimitri and I nodded and then Pavel left to attend to other business.
Just then Eddie walked in with Celeste and Yuri. "Holy Shit! This place is awesome" Eddie said as he looked around.
"I know right, it's like better than any dhampir gym ever." I said.
Vika and Matt had been stretching but when they saw us enter, they started walking towards us. Eddie saw Vika walking towards us and obviously picked out that this was Dimitri's younger sister.
"Wow Belikov, you would look good as a girl" Eddie said jokingly. I thought I heard growls from Dimitri and Matt, as he was close enough to hear the conversation. Matt took it one step further and put his hand around Vika's waist and pulled her closer to him.
I let out the biggest laughed and Eddie soon followed me. I have known Eddie since I was 4 years old, so I understood his humor. I was bent over because I was laughing hard that I had tears coming down my face and I gasping for air.
I was aware that Dimitri was saying something to me, but Eddie and I were laughing so hard that I couldn't make out what he was saying. Suddenly Dimitri took me down onto the mat and started tickling me.
"Did you think that was funny?" Dimitri asked.
"Yes" I managed to squeak out between gasps. Dimitri continued with this torture for about a minute when I finally said "Stop, stop, you win, I don't think its funny."
Dimitri laughed and helped me to get up from the mat. I wiped away my tears and took a few deep breaths to calm myself.
"Okay, let's start with a 5 mile warm up run on the tracks. Eddie, I have a feeling I know where your skills are from watching you train with Rose, but we will do some informal testing of your skills."
All of us started stretching and then went up to the track and ran our 5 miles. Dimitri was happy because it was the fastest time for me so far. We next went to the weight room and the guys mostly spotted each other and us girls spotted each other or one of the guys spotted.
Dimitri introduced Eddie to the guardians from our team as we ran into them. Dimitri and I sparred as Vika and Matt spared. Dimitri wanted to watch Eddie spar with Celeste, Yuri and himself, while Matt worked with me and Vika. As usual, Dimitri called out missed hits or praised Eddie for good hits like he does with me. And as Eddie and Dimitri sparred, he would stop and work through a move with him and correct his technique.
We finished our training for the morning, so we went back to shower and get some food. Dimitri and I walked out of our bedroom and smelled delicious aromas coming from our kitchen. Baba, Pavel, Oksana and Mark were in the living area waiting for us. I noticed that the dining room table was beautifully set up for all of us.
"Oksana, Mark, how are you doing and thank you so much for coming to Turkey to help us." I said.
"It was really no problem Rose, we are happy to help." Oksana said as she gave me a hug and I felt a little bit better as she most likely healed the darkness in me. I gave her a smile and then hugged Mark. Dimitri shook hands with Mark and then gave Oksana a quick hug and kiss on each cheek, I went over to Baba, gave him a hug and said "Thank you."
The rest of the group arrived and introductions were done just as one of the chefs came out and told us lunch was ready. We all sat down at the table and the chefs brought out a huge amount of food because they were feeding seven dhampirs.
Oksana faced me and said "So what's been going on with Lissa and your bond?"
"Yesterday, I was going to take the darkness in her and then I was going to spar with Dimitri and some of the other guardians. I went into her head, like I always do and I found the darkness, but I found something else. She was blaming me for the crash that killed her family and for her not becoming Queen. She was laughing at me through the bond even as I ran out of the gym."
Dimitri pulled me closer to him, putting an arm around me and kissing the top of my head.
Pavel continued "Shortly after Rose ran out of the gym, Christian took Lissa back to their house and her behavior got worse. So he called Abe and I to come over and see her and with the doctor we decided to have her sedated and sent to the infirmary."
"What was she saying when you got there?" Mark asked.
Abe cleared his throat and said "I don't think it's necessary to discuss what she said, we should just concentrate on her erratic behavior."
I sighed at that information and I felt Dimitri pull me even closer. "It's okay Baba, just tell us what she said, it's better if we know what we are fighting."
Baba took a big breath and exhaled loudly "She was talking to Christian about killing you."
Dimitri's grip on me tightened as he pulled me even closer. Everyone seemed to have lost their appetite after that.
Pavel said "Why don't we go over to the infirmary, they are decreasing her sedation ." Vika and Matt had decided to stay behind but Eddie, Celeste and Yuri wanted to go and offer Lissa and Christian support.
Dimitri pulled me aside and said "Rose, if anything happens, I am getting you out of there, I need you to tell me that you understand 100%."
"I do understand." I said as my arms went around his waist and I pulled him closer to me. In response, his arms wrapped around me tight and he kissed the top of my head, then rested his cheek on top of my head.
Dimitri and I caught up to the group quickly. Pavel led us over to where the infirmary was located and he pointed out what certain buildings were since we had not had a chance to really explore. The infirmary was located on the first floor of one of the buildings which housed the guardians.
As we walked into Lissa's room, I saw Lissa laying in the bed peacefully, Christian was in a chair by her side holding her hand and one of the doctors was doing something with an IV bag, which I assumed was her sedation. Christian looked up at us and it looked like he hadn't slept since this all happened.
Pavel introduce Oksana and Mark to Christian and the doctor, explained Oksana's abilities and what we hoped we could accomplish.
"I can't hear any thoughts in her mind on the sedation, but before we turn off the sedation, Rose can you go in through the bond and see if you can see anything." Oksana said.
I nodded my head and Dimitri gripped my waist tighter. I couldn't see into her head, it was as if it was blocked by a black mass. I relayed this information to everyone as I closed the bond and opened my eyes.
"Let's take her off the sedation and I will monitor her and let everyone know what she is thinking as she comes off sedations" Oksana said.
I noticed Mark standing similar to Dimitri and I, he had an arm around her waist lending his support to her. We waited for awhile for Lissa to wake and when she finally started to wake, Oksana was able to see that someone had used compulsion on her.
"Adrian?" I asked.
"No, I don't think so this is someone more powerful than Adrian, as soon as she is awake, I can use compulsion on her see if she knows who did this." Oksana said.
"Where are the feeders?" Mark asked.
Baba answered "The room right next door and I have more on their way in."
No one said a word as we all stared at Lissa, waiting for her to wake up. After a few minutes, she started to stir, she opened her eyes and started to look around at everyone. Once Lissa saw me, she narrowed her eyes and spit out "Rose"
Dimitri whispered in my ear "Put your walls up."
Before Lissa could say anything more, Oksana sat on the bed and spoke in that sweet compulsion voice. "Lissa someone used compulsion on you, do you remember who it was?"
Lissa looked like she was trying to remember something "I don't know, I pulled into a spirit dream, but whoever it was they stayed in the shadows."
"Do you remember what they said?" Oksana asked.
"They told me that Rose has been behind all the bad things that have happened to me and I should kill her before she kills me."
"Did the voice sound familiar?"
Lissa took some time to recall and said "Actually, it kind of sounded like Victor Dashkov."
Baba spoke up "If Victor Dashkov is involved than it is most likely that Robert Doru is the one who dream walked her."
Oksana then began using her abilities with compulsion to remove it and prevent Robert from doing it again. "I don't know if I can use spirit to prevent any type of compulsion from anyone, but it might be worth a try." Oksana said "And I healed a little bit of the darkness, let me see if I can do a little bit more."
Oksana touched Lissa's head and closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes, it was obvious she was drained from healing Lissa. Oksana attempted to stand up but she wasn't very steady on her feet, so Mark swooped her up into his arms and left the room to go to the feeders.
By this time, Lissa was in tears and Christian was on the bed consoling her. "I'm so sorry Rose, I didn't mean any of it." Lissa cried into Christians shoulder.
"Liss, it's okay, I know it wasn't you." I said hoping she would face me but she wouldn't. Baba and Pavel had excused themselves and after awhile Dimitri said "Let's go back to our room and give Christian and Lissa some privacy."
I nodded and Dimitri led me out of the infirmary and back to our room, as Celeste and Yuri followed. Once we got back to our suite, Dimitri pulled me to him circling his arms around me and asked "What do you want to do Roza? Do you want to spar, hang out downstairs or relax up here."
"I want to cuddle with you but I kind of want to hangout with everyone as well."
"How about we try out the movie theater" Dimitri suggested.
"That is such a good idea" I said getting excited at that thought.
I went to our closet and put on some comfy sweatpants and a t-shirt, Dimitri followed me and changed into a similar outfit. Dimitri told me to let everyone on the second floor know that we are watching a movie. I found Eddie, Celeste and Yuri in what I believed was Eddie's room.
"Hey guys we are going to watch a movie downstairs, are you interested?" I asked.
"Hell yeah" Eddie responded and Yuri and Celeste nodded their heads as well. I went to find Vika and Matt but I couldn't find them but while I was looking for them I let all the guardians I saw know what the plan was. When I walked back to the stairs, Dimitri was coming down and told me he told everyone upstairs and he had found Vika and Matt talking on the fourth floor.
Dimitri and I got there first and we scoped the place out. Dimitri got the popcorn started, then he went to the front of the screen to find a movie for us. I found cups for drinks as well as bags for the popcorn. I put that all out for everyone and then I got soda for me and a beer for Dimitri, then I started looking at all the different candy options.
I picked up a few candy options and then went to claim some seats for Dimitri and I. Dimitri came to sit down next to me in the huge chair with the remote in hand. By this time everyone started arriving and getting drinks and candy, we were just waiting for the popcorn to be done. We were looking at the list of movies to watch and we all settled on the Avengers series.
In-between movies, we got up to refill drinks and popcorn, plus Dimitri asked the chefs to make up some appetizers for us. It would have been one of the best nights of my life if Lissa had been here.