A/N: I hope you are all enjoying the end of the journey so far. Only a few chapters left. It has taken me so long to get to the end of this one, but I can't wait to finally share my ending with all of you. I really hope you enjoy it.
DIMITRI
As I hugged Katya and assured her that we would be right behind her, I prayed to anyone who was listening that I wasn't about to send this little girl to her death. I had alread taken too much from him. She deserved to survive this and have her happily every after. I had to get her and Adam out alive. There were no other options.
After pulling away, she planted a light kiss on my cheek. "Whatever happens from this moment forward, I want you to know that I am grateful for everything you've done to help me. I realize how much you could have lost by telling Rose the truth. So thank you for that. And if things go badly, I want you to..."
Knowing where she was going with this, I placed my finger over her lips. "Things are not going to go badly." I was glad my voice sound more confident than I felt at the moment. "We will be there as soon as we can. And you and Adam will be living your happily ever after before you know it."
I knew I shouldn't have been making these promises when I wasn't sure if I could keep them, but she needed reassurance now. I wasn't going to let her walk into this situation with a head full of doubt.
She simply nodded and placed another kiss on my cheek. "Good luck." She said before heading toward the place where everything started. I prayed again that this wasn't going to be the end for her.
"Alright, guys, let's prep for phase two." Eddie stated clapping a hand on my shoulder. As everyone moved to follow the order, Eddie, Sonya, and I huddled together. "Don't worry, Dimitri. We are going to get there in time to save them both."
"God, I hope so."
KATYA
"By all means, Irina, let her in." The last voice I ever wanted to hear again came from the shadows. "We have been expecting her."
I took a deep breath and did my best to slow my heart rate as I stepped into the old mansion. I had my hands raised in surrender knowing Marcus would want to be sure that I was unarmed. I tried to keep my breathing even as I stepped into a dimly lit but spacious foyer. I didn't want Marcus to see how absolutely terrified that I was. I knew he could hear my heart pumping in my chest, but I wanted him to know that I wasn't going to cower in front of him this time.
I flinched as Irina closed the door behind me and slid the deadbolt home with a deafening finality. I swallowed hard and awaited my fate. I kept my arms raised and didn't dare turn around. Marcus had not given me permission to do anything but step into the house. I didn't want to start this off on a bad note. He would come to me when he was ready.
He was whispering quickly to someone who was standing in the foyer with us. I couldn't hear a word he was saying, though, and that caused my heart to pick up speed. The sound of shuffling feet toward me that someone had left the room. I took a couple more deep breaths and reminded myself that Dimitri and the others would be here soon.
Marcus was suddenly in front of me grabbing my chin between his thumb and forefinger. He forced my face this way and that before making me look him directly in the eye. I swallowed hard but refused to even try to look away from those terrifying eyes.
"Welcome home, Pet." He said with a smirk. "I have missed you greatly." Still holding my chin, he took his free hand and stroked the side of my neck. I fought hard not to give him any kind of a reaction.
"I honestly can't say that I've missed you." I told him successfully keeping the shake out of my voice. I knew I didn't need to keep him talking in order to distraction him. Still, the less time he spent hurting me, the happier I would be.
"You don't mean that." He said in a mock hurt tone. He finally released my chin and began running his hands over my body. I left my hands in the air. I knew he was checking to see if I had brought any weapons. I would not fight him on that, no matter how many times he touched me in ways that made me cringe. "If you did then you wouldn't have come back."
I swallowed hard again as his fingers brushed my nether region. "I didn't have a choice."
"I doubt that." He taunted satisfied with his inspection of my body. "I really don't think that Belikov and his little whore would have went through all that trouble to rescue you and not make sure that you were safe."
"And they didn't." I stated. I knew the lie I was supposed to tell, but it didn't feel right to me. They had been so kind, I couldn't just act like they had done nothing to help me. "They wanted to help me get back on my feet and everything. The vampire queen even offered a hefty amount of money to help me start a new. I told them that I didn't want their blood money. I told them I didn't want anything more to do with vampires. I just wanted to be left alone. Once they were positive that I wasn't going to die, they respected my wishes and left me."
Marcus raised his eyebrow at me like he was trying to gauge how much he believed that story. I felt like it was a million times more believable than what they wanted me to say. It was way more likely that I would refuse help from the creatures that got into this mess in the first place, than that they'd just abandoned me after rescuing me.
"It still doesn't explain how you ended up back here." Marcus stated. I still hadn't moved my arms from their raised position and they were starting to go numb. "Put your arms behind your back as you answer me."
Grateful to be able to drop them, I did as he said and continued with my elaborate lie. "Once they left me, I realized that I didn't have anywhere to go, and no one to go to. I just knew that I didn't want to have to rely on vampires to help me. I ended up back at what was left of the club. I knew the basement was still intact because of what my rescuers had told me. I thought I could take shelter in the bedroom you and Rebekah shared until I figured out what to do. Rebekah had left most of her things behind and we are about the same size, so I used her wardrobe for a few weeks."
As I spoke, he nodded to someone behind me. I then felt someone grab my wrists and clamp some kiond of cuffs around them. I was becoming more helpless by the minute and I hated it. Still, I did my best to keep my composure as I continued with my story.
"I soon began to realize that I wasn't going to be able to make it anywhere without some kind of help. My rescuers had left me know way to contact them if I changed my mind, so I had a descision to make. Being with you, was a lot better than starving to death, or being attacked by wild animals, or being found by other vampires. At least, I knew what to expect. That's why I decided to try to find you again."
He continued to stare at me as if he was trying to decide if he believed my story or not. THe man who had cuffed me, stepped around me to stand beside him. I recognized him as one of the strigoi guards from the previous club. His name eluded me at the moment.
"Go and make sure things are ready." Marcus told him. "My pet and I will join you once we've finished our conversation.
"Yes, sir." The man answered with a small bow and headed off down the hallway. I tried too hard not to think about what he was preparing for us. I had to focus on my continued distraction as Marcus. They will be here for you soon. I reminded myself.
"And how did you end up finding me?" Marcus questioned.
"My plan was to follow your escape tunnel and see where it came out at, then go from there. I happened to find the note from Adam during my trek through it."
"I see." He put his finger to his chin as if contemplating some. "There's someone waiting for you, so let's continue our chat as we walk, shall we?"
"Yes, Master." I fell back into the role of good little pet almost immediately. He grabbed me by the braid and started towing me down the hall. I gulped and prayed that the others would come soon. I didn't know how much longer I could do this.
DIMITRI
We were all in position to begin phase two of the plan. Eddie, Sonya, and I were in the shed, prepping to enter the mansion through Galina's emrgency, daylight exit. She had put many security measures on the place while she was in charge, including an escape route for her and her associates. I doubted Marcus had been here long enough to find them all.
All we had to do was wait for the signal, then we could enter and hopefully not have to worry about a fight along the way. The signal should've come by now.
"What's going on?" Eddie asked. "They should be in by now."
"I know." I found myself wondering if we should just go in on our own. Maybe something happened to the person standing lookout. We really didn't have time to wait or wonder. Every minute Katya was in there by herself was another minute closer she got to death. I was just about to tell Eddie and Sonya we would have to do this blindly, when my phone vibrated in my pocket.
Abe's number flashed on the screen, and I knew something had gone very wrong.
"What's going on?" I asked without preamble.
"The second the door closed behind Katya the house went into lockdown. Steel shutters came down over all the windows and doors. We can't get in."
"Damn it!" I yelled. We had been banking on him not knowing how to access the security system. If he put the whole place on lockdown, I didn't doubt he had an ambush wanting for us somewhere in that tunnel. We were screwed. I took a deep breath. "We need to get prepped for Plan B." I told Abe loud enough for Sonya and Eddie to hear. "Get everyone over here now. We are all gonna go in through this way and just hope for the best."
I snapped the phone shut and said another little pray before opening the phone back up. I knew now was a bad time, but things had drastically changed and I just wanted to hear her voice again.
ROSE
Lissa, my mom, Christian, Adrian, and I had been locked in Lissa study for the last hour. Everyone was under strict orders not to disturb us until further notice. Knowing what our friends were going through right now, we didn't want or need any distractions until we knew that they were safe.
I had been pacing back and forth the entire time we had been in there. It wasn't very often that one of us was in the thick of the action while the other was stuck at home. We had almost always been in the danger together. We were the best team, and I hated being separated not only from him, but Eddie as well. I wanted desperately to be there with them, but I knew my responsibilities were here with Lissa.
"Rose, relax." Lissa told me for like the millionth. "They are the best of the best. They will be alright."
"I know." I told her. "I just hate being on the sidelines."
"I know how you feel, Rose." Mom said placing a hand on my shoulder. "It is hard not being able to be there, but driving yourself crazy from here isn't going to help them. Sit down and have a drink."
The fact that she was suggesting that I drink while on duty was proof of how wound up I was about this. I sank into the armchair and took the drink that Adrian had offered. It appeared as though his cold mood toward me had shifted for the time being. He hadn't offered up any words of comfort, but he wasn't being openly hostile either. It was a start I guessed.
We sat in silence for another five minutes before my phone buzzed in my pocket. I whipped it out and answered it without even bothering to check the caller id.
"Dimitri, please give me good news?" I could hear the desperation in my own voice.
"I'm sorry, I can't do that Roza." His tone told me something had gone horribly wrong.
"What's going on?" I asked. "Hang on." I pushed the speaker phone button and held it out so everyone else could hear. "You're on speaker."
"Plan A was a bust." He explained. "He knew the things I wasn't expecting him to know."
"Oh God." I took a deep breath. He had spoke to Lissa and I regarding the plan before anything was finalized. We all knew this was a possibility, but we prayed it would not happen. "So she is in there by herself with no one to protect."
"I'm sorry, Roza." He continued. "We are prepping for Plan B. There is a major possibility that it could be an ambush though. We weren't able to figure out exactly how many men he had, but it could be bad."
I swallowed hard as my heart dropped in my stomach. "How bad?"
"I don't know, Roza." I just shook my head and tried to keep it together. If he felt the need to call me, then he was expecting it to be really bad. I took it off speaker and stepped into the furtherest corner from everyone.
"Am I in danger of losing you again?" I knew it was a selfish thing to ask, but we had already been through so much. I couldn't deal if it was gonna end like this.
"I don't wanna lie to you, Roza, but you could lose us all."
"I should've stayed." I said. "I should've helped you come up with a better plan. I should've..."
"Stop, Roza. Please don't. I didn't call to listen to you berate yourself. I just wanted to hear your voice again. I will pray it is not the last time."
"As will I, Comrade."
"I love you so much, Roza. Whatever happens always remember that."
"I love you too, Comrade. If this is the end, I want you to take as many of those bastards with you as possible."
"I plan on it, love."
I clicked the end call button, took a deep breath, and turned to face my friends.
"We need to prepare for the worst."
KATYA
"I am curious as to how you found the place, though." Marcus continued to question me as we walked down the hallway.
"When Dimitri brought me to you he didn't bother to try to conceal our location from me as we left. I have always had a good memory, so I managed to find the forest that led to the house, then I just stumbled around until I found my way to it."
"Uh-huh." I couldn't tell by his tone if he was just commenting on my answer or if he didn't believe it. Either way, I couldn't take it back. "What about Adam's note? You said you found it, but when you got here you specifically asked for me. If the note was all you had to go on, how did you know I was still alive? Adam did tell you he killed Rebekah and I."
"My rescuers had told me that Rebekah had been killed by a vampire. I assumed Adam had done it after he helped me escape from his grasp. Judging by how protective you were of her around him, I assumed she would be no match for him. You, on the other hand, were always much stronger than him. I knew there was no way he had been able to kill you. I thought maybe he had given in to his evil side and was trying to lure me back."
He nodded and again I could not tell if he believed me or not. All I could was pray that he did.
"Fair enough." He stated as we stopped in front of a door. "Are you ready to see your lover again?" He taunted before turning the handle and stepping into the room.
It was large and nearly empty. It was a bit bright than the hallway so I was able to make out more. There were roughly 10 vampires standing in a loose circle around the edges of the room. I recognized some as clients from the club, but some were new. In the center of the room stood Adam. He was suspended from the ceiling by chains on his wrists. He feet were touching the floor, but he looked so weak that he was barely supporting himself.
"Adam!" I screamed and tried to run to him. Marcus's grip tightened on my braid and he yanked me back. I couldn't help me scream of pain as I stumbled back.
"I wouldn't get to close if I were you." Marcus taunted. "He hasn't eaten in like three days." Horror washed over me as I started to realize what Marcus was planning.
"He's right." Adam's weak voice barely carried across the room. "I don't want to hurt you."
"Why are you doing this?" I asked Marcus. "Haven't we suffered enough?"
"Hardly." Marcus growled. "Lover boy killed the woman I loved for you, and now you're both going to suffer for that."
"Go to hell." I yelled and spit in his face. He backhanded me so hard that I fell to the ground with a cry of pain. He kicked me in the stomach.
"God, I didn't think you would ever shutup with that ridiculous story." He snarled as he kicked me again. "I mean it was pretty obvious that it was all a lie. Or a distraction." My heart stopped at his words.
"How did you know?" I gasped from the floor. If he knew I was just a distraction, then the others were screwed. We were all going to die.
"Abe Mazur should be more careful who he puts on his payroll." Marcus smirked and gestured for one of the vampires to come forward. I recognized him from the group that Abe had called in when Rose and the others left. "At the very least he should make sure that they can't be bought for a higher price."
"He gave me all the information I needed about their little plan." He laughed giving me another kick in the stomach. "As we speak, your little friends are walking into an ambush." He stomped down hard on my wrist. I let out a blood curdling scream as it snapped in half. How had this gone so horribly wrong. "If they make it through that alive," He kicked me in the back this time. "They make it in enough time to find your lifeless bodies, and nothing more."
"Please." I begged. "Let Adam live. Kill me but not him. Please."
Marcus laughed again. He grabbed me by my braid again and yanked back hard until I was staring him in the eyes again.
"I don't think so." He snarled. "But I will gladly tell you what's gonna happen next. You see, I am going to beat you until you are a bloody mess on the ground, then I'm going to let dear Adam drain you dry. And seeing how starced he is, he won't be able to resist. Then I am going to chop his head of and burn this place to the ground."
He shoved my head back to the floor and began kicking and stomping me again. All I could do was try not to cry out and pray it would all finally be over soon.
A/N: It looks like there are gonna be a few more chapters to go than I thought. This fight is turning out a bit longer than I thought. Oh well, more to love right? Let me know what you guys think.