ROSE

I knelt beside Dimitri on the ground and wrapped my arms around him. This was exactly what I had been afraid from the moment he said her wanted to come rescue her. It would've been much easier for him to get over his guilt, if she had lived through it, but now, I didn't know if he would ever be the same again.

"I'm sorry, Dimitri." I whispered as he wrapped his arms around me. "So sorry."

Tears were spilling down my own cheeks as I held him in my arms. I could feel the sobs wracking his body as his tears soaked my shirt. I found myself wishing that I could do or say something that would make him feel better, but I had no words. I mean, what could I say?

"Rose, you need to call Hans now." Eddie's frantic voice pulled us out of our sorrow. "Tell where we are and to get some men to help us up. We need to get her to Sonya and Oksana now."

I pulled away from Dimitri to look Eddie. He was scooping the girl into his arms. I watched in shock as her body hung limply in his arms. There was still blood dripping from her head as it lulled backward over his arm.

I really had to admire his determination to save an innocent life, but I doubted the poor girl lying in his arms would appreciation being shadow kissed. It would be better for her mental health if she was just allowed to die in peace. No more vampires.

"She's probably been dead too long, Eddie." I said, shaking my head. "Besides, I'm pretty sure, at this point, she'd rather be dead than tied to a vampire the rest of her life."

"But she's not dead, Rose." Eddie argued heading toward the entrance of the tunnel. "She doesn't have much time, but if we get her to a spirit user she can be saved."

"She's alive?" Dimitri's shocked voice joined the conversation as he rose from his spot on the floor.

"Not for much longer if we don't get her to Oksana and Sonya. Call Hans, Rose." Eddie said as he made his way out of the tunnels.

I pulled out my phone and hit the number six speed dial as Dimitri and I ran after. I could see relief had flooded Dimtri's entire body, even if he didn't completely believe the girl was still alive. I could clearly see that he wanted desperately for it to be true.

"Guardian Hathaway, did you find anything?" Hans answered on the first ring.

"Yes, there is a hole in the ground toward the back of the club." I said as clearly as possible while we were running. "It leads to a basement. I need you to get some men over there to pull us out. And find Oksana and Sonya. We found a girl still alive down here, and she needs immediate healing."

"We'll meet there." Hans said and hung up without so much as a goodbye.

We only had to wait a minute when we arrived back at the entrance to the basement. Hans had delegated about six people to come over and help pull us out of the hole. We handed Katya up first with Dimitri bringing up the rear.

"Oh dear God." Sonya said as Katya was laid now in the dirt next to the remains of the club.

Now that we were up in the daylight, I got a better view of the poor girl, and it wasn't pretty. Bruises, scars, and bite marks littered her pale, malnourished body. The simple t-shirt and boxer shorts she had been wearing were the only things on her body that looked clean. She was covered in dried blood, and God only knew what else.

Despite all of that, I could completely understand why strigoi Dimitri considered her an apt replacement for me. Honestly, if the situation hadn't been so dire, I would've jokingly asked Abe if he and my mom had another child they gave up at birth. She seriously looked like she could be my sister.

I couldn't think about that, though. We had to focus on saving her. Once that was done, we could focus on the other stuff.

"There's a lot of damage here." Oksana said, dropping to her knees beside Katya. "Even with two of us, we are going to need more than one healing session with her."

"That's fine." I said, kneeling by Katya's feet. "Just do what you need to do to save her, right now. We can do the rest once she's regained consciousness."

Oksana nodded as she and Sonya placed their hands on either side of Katya's head. Both of them closed their eyes, concentrating on the magic.

"Is she really going to be okay?" Dimitri asked, crouching beside me.

I sighed. There were so many definitions of the word okay, and I really didn't know how to answer him. Would she live? Yes. But I didn't know if she would ever really be okay, again. I didn't want to tell him that for fear that it would send him back to where he was when he was first restored. I didn't want him to lock himself up again, or think that he wasn't worthy of forgiveness this time.

"Physically, yes." I answer honestly. "Mentally and emotionally, only time will tell."

"I can't believe I did this." He said. I could hear his mask of near perfect control shattering into a million pieces as he spoke. "She's just a child, and I destroyed her. Who could do something like this to a child?"

"Hey." I told him taking his face in my hand. "Look at me. It wasn't you. The real you had no control over what happened to this little girl. The real you, did everything in his power to save her. The real you risked losing me to save her. And now that you have, you will do everything in your power to help and protect her. That's the real you, Dimitri. Not the monster who destroyed her life. That monster is dead, remember?"

He shook his head as more tears leaked from his eyes. I pulled him to me and ran my fingers through his hair. I gently rocked him back and forth praying that he would get through this so we could all move forward.

"That's all we can do for now." Sonya said. "Her life is no longer in immediate danger. She needs rest, though, so someone should probably take her back to the Belikovs' for a while. Oksana and I will accompany you to finish the job after she wakes."

I nodded still holding Dimitri.

"Eddie and I will go back with you." I said then I pulled away from Dimitri and stood to address the rest of the group. "I want the rest of you continue looking for human remains. We will bury them somewhere nice later. Also, see if you can find clues as to where they went. Hans, you are in charge when I leave."

"Yes, Guardian Hathaway." Hans nodded, before following my orders.

"Dimitri," I said, kneeling back down in front of him. "I know you are having a difficult time right now, but I need you to do something. You are the only one who knows, Marcus and Rebekah well, so you are the best hope we have to finding them. I need you to take a team back into the basement. Investigate every nook and cranny. Follow the tunnel, find out where it leads. Find them, so we can kill them, and make sure no other girl has to suffer the way Katya did."

"And you don't think it is a good idea that I be there when she wakes up." Dimitri added, catching on to what I didn't say, as always. "You think that she'll be afraid."

"No, I think that she will be overwhelmed." I correct. "She won't understand what happened. And she doesn't know you aren't the monster anymore. It'd be better for her to see a friendly face first, that's all."

"Okay, I will stay here and see what I can find." Dimitri agreed. "But will you call me when she is awake?"

"Of course. You will be the first to know."

"Thank you."

"I love you." I pull him into my arms. "Just remember that, okay. No matter what, I love you. Nothing will change that."

"I love you too, Roza." He whispered, giving me a quick kiss on the lips. "Now, get her out of here. She doesn't need to wake up to this."

I nodded as Eddie scooped Katya into his arms. I followed him, Sonya, and Oksana to the SUV praying that we would all make it through whatever was going to happen next.

KATYA

The glorious blackness that I had fallen into lasted for so long I truly thought I was going to die this time. I was more relieved than anything else. At least, I would finally be at peace. I would be back with my father, and everything would be alright again. True, I'd lose any chance of ever getting my Adam back, but I honestly didn't believe it was worth it anymore.

The darkness was eventually replaced with a thick fog that I chose not to fight. If this was dying, I was prepared to accept it. I didn't want to fight. I just wanted it to happen faster, and giving in would help the process along. Besides, the fog was beginning to clear on its own as I just laid there enjoy the floating feeling.

When it cleared, though, I wasn't where I expected to be. I was standing in my bedroom at my house watching a slightly younger me type a paper on her computer. She was wearing the same white camisole and gray sweatpants as I had been wearing the night I had been taken. It was then that I realized what was happening.

"No. No. NO!" I screamed, shaking my head and backing up toward my door. This couldn't be happening. Death was supposed to be peaceful. You weren't supposed to have to relive the worst moments of your life.

Past me looked toward our bedroom door as we heard the front door open.

"Katya, will you come here for a minute? There's someone I want you to meet." We could tell by the shaking of his voice that something was wrong.

"Give me just a minute." Past me called back heading to our closet. "I'm just finishing up some homework." She rifled through the closet for a moment in search of a weapon, already convinced that whoever this person was was dangerous.

She came up empty, though and just prayed that she and her father could run away if they had to.

"I don't want to see anymore." I said as she walked out the door. I really didn't want to relive watching that monster kill my father and take me away. "Please, just take me anywhere else." I close my eyes and don't follow me out the door. I can feel tears leaking out of my eyes as I continue to pray for a scene change.

Suddenly, it felt like the world was speeding up on me, and I opened my eyes to see the world was a blur of colors and light. When it finally stopped, I was standing in a corner of that God forsaken closet watching Dimitri pounding into me while I cried underneath him.

He kept moaning the name Roza, and I found myself wondering, as past me so often did, who this Roza was. I remember always oscillating between sympathy for the woman that had been stuck with him for any amount of time. And anger at her over what she could've possible done to put me into that position.

I close my eyes again unable to watch this part anymore either. I was beginning to wonder if God hated me. Couldn't he have at least let me die in peace, or with better memories. The world lurched itself forward again, and I was at the club.

I was standing in front of the bar watching Dimitri drag me through the crowded club. I was looking around at everything with wide horror filled eyes. All of the men were staring at me with lust filled eyes, and I actually shrank myself closer to Dimitri who had his arm around my waist.

"Get used to it, sweetheart." Dimitri chuckled into my ear. I saw myself cringe.

"What's this, Belikov?" Marcus, dressed in his usual suit, asked coming out from behind the bar.

"I have some merchandise I think you and Rebekah might be interested in." Dimitri answered, shoving me at Marcus. Past me stumbled forward, and Marcus caught me.

He held me at arm's length looking me up and down for a long moment before forcing me to turn around. He did another little inspection that involved lifting up my dress and finger me. I tried to get away from him, but Dimitri held me in place.

"She's been used?" Marcus questioned.

"Yes, by me." Dimitri answered. "I wouldn't be getting rid of her, but I have some things that I must take care of. She would slow that down. You can use her for whatever you want. I don't care as long as she is alive when I come back."

"She would make a nice gift for Rebekah." Marcus stated. "How much?"

"I'll take whatever you wish to give."

"1,000."

"Deal." Dimitri said. The two shook.

"Do you wanna say goodbye while I go and get your money?"

Dimitri nodded as Marcus walked away.

"Please, don't do this." Past me begged. "Take me with you. I swear I'll be good."

Dimitri slapped her so hard she tumbled to the floor. "Shut up." He then yanked her off the floor and slammed her into the bar.

I closed my eyes again, not wanting to relive the humiliation of being raped in public. Again, I had the feeling of the world speeding forward and when it stilled, I was in Marcus and Rebekah's bed for the first time. I immediately turned from them scene. It was a million times worse than anything Dimtri had ever done, and I didn't even want to think about it, until the scene sped forward to just a few hours after that first encounter.

Once they finished with me, Marcus had dragged me from his bed and thrown me into the little dungeon on the other side of the basement. They hadn't decided what they were going to do with me yet, so they kept me locked in there until the decided.

Past me was lying face down on the dungeon floor when she heard the door open. She didn't even have the will to lift her head to see who was coming in until she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder.

She looked up to see the most beautiful boy in the world.

"So you're the new girl." He said with a genuine smile. "I'm Adam, and I'm here to tend to your wounds, and make sure you get some food."

She didn't say anything at first. How could she even trust this boy? For all she knew he was just here to hurt her like everyone else. Only, as he cleaned her skin and bandaged her wounds, he was as gentle as her parents had been when they bathed her as a baby. He even sat her up and fed her because she was too weak to do it herself. Maybe not everyone was out to hurt her.

"I'm Katya." She whispered before he walked out the door.

Tears filled my eyes as I saw the smile spread across Adam's face before he walked out the door. Did he really know he loved me from that very first moment? I sank to the floor beside past me, pulled my knees up to my chest, and cried.

I cried for me, Adam, and the shit hole that my life had become. I cried because I didn't know what else to do. I wanted out of it all. I wanted to die. Why couldn't I just die?

DIMITRI

"Final body count is 50." I informed Rose.

My group and I had completed the search of the remains of the club about an hour ago. Rose, Eddie, Abe, and I were discussing what we found while Oksana and Sonya monitored the still unconscious Katya. Neither of them had been able to do anymore healing, but both, like Rose, refused to leave her were all crammed into Viktoria's bedroom trying to make the best of the crapped quarters.

Going through the club had been the hardest thing that I have ever done. All I could think about the whole time was how all this carnage was my fault. I had been responsible for fifty innocent children's lost lives. All because I couldn't let go of the woman I loved, even when I was supposed to be incapable of love. I didn't understand how things could've gotten this out of hand.

"And what about the tunnel?" Rose sighed. I could see the pain of hearing the body count written all over her face, but she, like me, had to stick to the facts of it all, or she would completely break and be useless to everyone. Guardians had to stay professional, no matter how much it hurt. It was part of our job.

"Well, it comes out just outside of Novosibirsk." I told her. "But Marcus was long gone by the time we made it through. We have no idea where he went."

"What about Rebekah?" Rose asked. She was sitting on the bed beside Katya. Someone had changed her into a more modest set of P.J.'s and covered her up with a blanket. Rose was fussing over her.

I sat next to Rose allowing a small grin to spread across my face. Rebekah was the one good find of the entire search.

"We found her dead a mile or so away from where we found Katya." I explained. "Someone ripped her throat out and drained her dry. Judging by the brutality of the scene, I'd say whoever did it was really angry, or new to killing."

"Marcus?" Rose suggested.

"I doubt it." I answered. "Marcus loved Rebekah more than anything. There's no way she would ever make him angry enough to kill her."

"So who?"

"I think that is a question we are going to have to ask Katya when she wakes up." Abe suggests from the armchair in the corner.

"What do you mean old man?" Rose asked.

"Well, we still don't know what happened to her little dhampir friend." Abe shrugged. "Perhaps he…"

"It's a little farfetched, don't you think?" Rose responded. "I mean it is one thing for a strigoi to have lingering human feelings, but to have them kill for someone they love. I don't see it happening."

"I did it for you." I told Rose. "Don't you remember?"

"You took on Galina and the others in order to gain power. I had nothing to do with it."

"Not true. I fought them to save you. Yes, I wanted the power, but I wanted to share it with you." I explained. "Because, even as a strigoi, part of me knew it would mean nothing without you by my side."

"So are you saying that you think this dhampir's feelings for her are strong enough to make him kill for her?"

"I don't know, but we can find out when Katya wakes up." I stated. "And if it is true, maybe we could…"

"Find him and restore him?" Rose finished for me. I could hear the skepticism in her tone. She either didn't believe we could do it, or thought it wasn't worth the risk. Either way, I would do whatever I could to convince her that we could do it. "It's a nice notion, Dimitri, but wer have responsibilities, we can't shirk them."

"But this kid is an innocent, Rose." Eddie argued. "He deserves to be saved. I'm sure Lissa and Christian will understand."

"Lissa is the queen, now, Eddie." Rose said. "It doesn't matter if she understands or not. I am her guardian, and she has to come first. I'm sorry."

"But…"

Small moans for the girl lying on the bed cut off whatever argument Eddie had been about to make. I slide off the bed and dropped down beside her head. I knew it was a stupid move. She would be terrified to see me when she woke up. She would probably think she was rescued from Marcus and Rebekah to be thrown back to me. I hated the idea of doing that to her, but I needed to see her open her eyes. Only after I saw that could I truly believe that she was really alive.

She let out a couple more moans as I brushed some hair out of her sweat soaked face. "Come on, Katya. Wake up. You can do it."

KATYA

I don't know how long I cried on the dungeon floor before it faded away and the feeling of floating returned. I opened my eyes to find that I was surrounded in blackness and complete silence. I felt weightless like nothing, and it was a feeling that I treasured. It had been so long since I felt like this, and I really didn't want the feeling to go away I liked it.

All too soon though, the world was suddenly moving in fast forward again. I felt like I was being yanked somewhere, but I had no idea where. The thought terrified me.

And I fought it this time. I didn't want to go back. I wanted to stay in this wonderful darkness with no thoughts or fears for the rest of my life. It was safe there, and I was happy. Why did this keep happening to me? Why did God hate me so much? I just wanted to be left in peace.

"Come on, Katya. Wake up. You can do it." The familiar voice made me feel like a bucket of water had been thrown on top of me. True, there was something a little gentler about it, but there was no denying that it was the voice of the monster that had started my nightmare. It made me want to go back even less, and I fought it even harder.

This voice continued to coax me awake, and I found it harder to fight. It was always impossible to win against him anyway. Most times, it was better to just give in.

I didn't want to give in this time, but even as I fought, I felt a hand stroking my hair. All too soon, I was aware of the fact that I was lying on a comfortable bed, wearing different clothes that I had been when I passed out, and I was covered in a thick layer of blankets.

There was pain too. Every inch of my body throbbed, and I wanted nothing more than to return to that peaceful place of darkness and silence. I knew that wasn't going to happen.

Knowing it was inevitable I opened my eyes and came face to face with the last person I wanted to see.

A/N: What did you guys think of this one? I hope you enjoyed the dream sequence from Katya. I thought maybe you guys would want to see a little more about what she went through. It isn't as in depth as I wish it could be, but I could only do so much without it getting draggy.

Also, thank you for all the support you've been giving me on my return to this story. I have finally figured out exactly how I want it to end, and I am so excited for it! I can't wait to see what you guys think.

Let me know what you think about this chapter.