So, yes. The Secretary of the Department of Defense was a very busy man. It'd been three weeks since we'd arranged for Tatiana to get us a meeting. We'd moved all the Projects we'd recently removed from the compound in Russia back into the compound in Russia. There were a few grumblings but most were thrilled to return home with the prospect of no Guardians.
Abe had taken charge and organized jobs for each Project. When it was possible, he would incorporate the Project's ability into the job. Mom had stayed to help him, which was beneficial considering she knew all of the Projects so she could relate to them on more of a personal level.
Dimitri had begged me to take him back to Baia so he could visit his family. I knew I could never resist those pleading eyes. Plus, Rosie was bugging me about it, too. Apparently, she wanted to chat more with Yeva. The crazy old woman had made an impression, and Rosie was dying to get to know her more. I was all too happy to comply as long as she would stop bugging me.
Speaking of Rosie, I never really got to hear about her and Rosemarie's adventures in the compound, and they both were keeping it hidden from me. I was curious but not curious enough to ask them about it. Perhaps I could ask Dimitri. I'm sure that Big D would have been talking nonstop, and Dimka could be persuaded easily.
We'd spent almost two weeks in Dimitri's home. I got to spend a lot more time with Olena and Yeva, and Dimitri got to spend more time with his niece and nephew. Viktoria came home with us, Olena giving her a stern talking to for running off from her school to join our crusade. Yeva scoffed at Olena's parenting, citing that "it needed to be done."
When Dimitri wasn't playing with the kids and I wasn't chatting with his mother and grandmother, we sat outside, enjoying the sun. As a Guardian, Dimitri had more liberties than I did at the Academy, like going outside. I, however, had been missing the sun for two years. Because of my heritage, I had maintained my tanned complexion, but it lacked the fresh sun-kissed aspect.
We'd spent at least an hour in the sun every day. I'd bought a bikini and would lie in the yard soaking up the rays. Dimitri would usually lay beside me shirtless, otherwise, he'd sit in the shade of the porch and we'd just talk. Now that we were out of the Academy, he'd started thinking about what he was going to do for a job. He wanted to stay with me, but I didn't know what I wanted to do, yet.
I was thinking about taking some online classes, earning a degree. That would give me more options, but I, again, didn't know what I wanted to do. Dimitri and I were both such intelligent people, but we hadn't had a chance to go to college. Hell, I didn't have the chance to finish high school. I could see Dimitri being a doctor, probably a neurosurgeon. The thought of him in a lab coat and scrubs was enticing. Maybe I could be a doctor. I liked the thought of helping people, but I didn't like all the rules that I'd inevitably have to follow.
"What are you thinking about, Roza?" Dimitri asked, breaking me out of my thoughts.
"Just what we're going to be doing with the rest of our lives," I said, turning my gaze away from the passing clouds to the man seated beside me. Abe had arranged for us to travel by plane back to the States, and then a car would pick us up from the airport outside of D.C. and transport us to the DOD.
"I've been thinking about that, too. How would you feel about me becoming a surgeon?" He asked, and a grin broke out across my face.
"I think that'd be a fantastic idea, Comrade. I can just see it now. Dr. Belikov walking down the hallway, causing the female nurses to go into cardiac arrest…" I laughed as he rolled his eyes. "But seriously, I think that would be a great option for you."
"Perhaps you could become a nurse? We could be like the 'Dream Team.' There wouldn't be anything we couldn't do, especially with our abilities." I nodded along, contemplating if I could actually be a nurse and not get into too much trouble. I've heard lawsuits aren't fun.
"I think I might be able to do that, but you'd have to keep me out of trouble," I responded. "However, I think we should talk to Croft before making any definite plans. If he says that we should stay out of the public altogether, then we won't be able to go to school."
"I suppose you're right, but I'm sure we could be persuasive."
"Well, I can be persuasive, you can be a little scary at times, which is kind of like the same thing," I said with a thoughtful look on my face. Dimitri narrowed his eyes at me, and I started laughing. He let out an exasperated sigh.
"What am I going to do with you…?" He mumbled under his breath, but I still heard him.
"What to do with me remains to be seen," I answered enigmatically. Maybe Yeva really was growing on me. Just as Dimitri had rolled his eyes a second time, the pilot informed us of our approaching descent.
I felt my stomach twist into knots and it had nothing to do with the descending plane. I was suddenly very nervous about our meeting. What if Secretary Croft didn't think any of our ideas were good and kept the Guardian Program in place? What if he captured us all again and put us back in a compound? I don't think I could do another day of living in a compound surrounded by Guardians.
"It's going to be alright, Roza. I'm not going to let anything happen to you." Dimitri promised, taking my hand in his and giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze.
"I know, Comrade. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, either. Remember, you're stuck with me." I said, giving his hand a squeeze back.
"I wouldn't want it any other way." He said just as the wheels touched down, and we started slowing down. The plane taxied to a private terminal, and before too long the door was opened, and we were allowed to leave the plane.
Walking down the stairs onto the tarmac, I could see a few cars waiting for us a couple dozen yards away. Men stood in a relaxed stance, glancing at their surroundings in a calculating manner. These men seemed to be trained as Guardians, but they lacked the appropriate attire. The Guardians at the Academy wore all black, these men were dressed in suits, but the material appeared to be tailored toward movement and fighting.
I half expected them all to be wearing black aviators, with white spiraling earpieces, and speaking into the microphone in their jacket cuff. However, all the men wore pleasant smiles as we approached them. One stepped forward to begin introductions.
"Welcome back to the States." He began sticking out his hand for me to shake. I'd been leading the group, so he'd taken me as the one in charge, which I suppose I was. "I'm Lee Masters. I'll be in charge of seeing you safely into the DOD."
When I grasped his hand, I felt something that shocked me. Well, not shocked, but I felt the Buzz. I couldn't help the gasp that escaped me, and I felt Dimitri tense behind me, ready to attack Lee at any moment.
"Calm down, Comrade. He's a Spirited." I said quietly, never taking my gaze off Lee. To say he looked shocked was an understatement. First, he looked shocked as all get out, but then his shock morphed into fear.
"How did you know?" He asked in a low voice, looking around to make sure none of his colleagues heard me.
"It's one of my gifts to be able to know when someone else is gifted," I responded before searching deeper into Lee's Spirit. "I'm assuming that you're a human lie detector. That would come in very handy in your line of work, would it not?"
"It has been useful on many occasions, yes." He answered, looking a little less fearful.
"Don't worry, Lee. I'm not going to tell anyone your secret. If this meeting goes as planned, maybe you won't have to hide in fear anymore."
"Well, let's hope it goes as planned, then." He said with his smile back on his face. He motioned for us to follow him back to the cars. Only Dimitri, Abe and I would be going into this meeting with Secretary Croft. The rest of the gang would be taken back to a hotel to await any decisions that are going to be made.
Lee opened the back door of the middle car and waited for Abe and Dimitri to crawl in.
"I'm sorry, Miss, but I didn't actually get your name, and I'm just assuming his name isn't 'Comrade.'" Lee said, gesturing toward Dimitri, and I laughed.
"I'm sorry, Lee. I'm Rose. That's Dimitri, and the scary old guy is Abe." I stuck my hand out again for my formal introduction.
"It's a pleasure, Rose," Lee said with a smile. I heard Dimitri growl from inside the car, and it was quickly followed by Abe's chuckle.
I climbed into the car, and Lee closed the door behind me and made his way to the driver's seat. I'd placed myself in the spot next to Dimitri, and he'd thrown an arm possessively across my shoulder. I caught Lee's surprised look in the rearview mirror, but he quickly replaced it with an easy grin.
"It might take us a while to get to the building, so sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride," Lee instructed before pulling away from the tarmac and out the gates that enclosed the airstrip.
I held Dimitri's hand in mine and watched as the landscape transitioned from lush suburbs to urban concrete. The road system was a tangled mess, and how Lee navigated it told me that he'd lived here for quite some time. Traffic wasn't that bad until we hit the city. Despite the heavy traffic, the noise level wasn't that bad. I was expecting to hear more horns blaring and more people shouting obscenities, but I was surprised to find that a rarity.
Dimitri had stayed silent throughout the ride. The arm the was thrown over my shoulders had bent and started playing with my hair about halfway through the trip, while the one I held in mine was rubbing circles on the back of my hand with its thumb.
I felt at peace, as I usually did with Dimitri, but I knew that no matter what happened in this meeting, we would remain together. Nothing was going to tear us apart.
We'd taken an exit and I was surprised to see the urban mess fading back into suburban neighborhoods. We approached a gated community and without much fuss, we passed through. I had no idea that such an important building was located in the middle of neighborhoods, but I guess not many people would think that either.
There was nothing unique about the building. It was a shiny sort of grey with the name of the building carved into the side. There was a monument of sorts on the wall near the entrance, but I couldn't make out what it was.
"Welcome to the DOD," Lee said from the driver's seat. He'd parked the car and made his way over to the door to let us out. I could see people bustling in and out of the building but it wasn't as busy as I would have thought a government building would be.
We entered the building and were quickly moved through the passageway into a smaller conference room.
"We're a bit early, so you'll have to wait a little while before Secretary Croft gets here. There are refreshments over there, but if you need to leave for any reason, please inform the person outside the door. He'll contact me and I'll come back to collect you."
We all nodded, and I thanked him before he left the room. Abe sat at one end of the table, and I sat across from him, but Dimitri began pacing. I didn't know how long we were going to have to wait, but if he kept this up, it was going to feel like forever.