Surprise Surprise

I know you have all been waiting to see who the mysterious person is. Just to say you will have had to have read Blood Promise. It's a bit complicated.

~ElvinDragon~

I absolutely could not believe that Christian knew him! What the heck has Christian been up to, to get involved with him? What is he even doing here anyway? Geez my life is being completely turned upside down and mixed up like someone is making a Bloody Mary out of it.

"Does mom know you are in town?" He stared down at me with eyes almost identical to my dark brown ones. His thick black hair and sun kissed slightly tanned skin came from his home land in the east. His hired guardians ever watchful stood close to him watching us and our surroundings with piercing gazes.

"It's a bit hard to contact anyone these days Rosemarie." His voice was soft smooth yet sharp and echoed in the cement walled room. His voice was strong but tired as if he had given this answer thousands of times. In fact, he sounded like a parent talking to their child with little patience, but as much kindness as they can muster. I looked at my father closely and noticed how he did not look as sharply clean cut and business like as per usual. His hair looked ruffled and his black suit had dusty spots and was wrinkled all over. The expensive scarves he always wore looked oddly crooked and out of place with his current state of appearance. His face looked worn as if he hadn't slept in days and more pale then his normal Moroi tan. Still somehow he had the same intimidating aura around him. It had always kind of bugged me, but now it was a sort of comfort. To me it meant something was the same that my father was at least still the same. He hadn't lost his … special touch with uhhh working with … people.

"Christian how do you know Ibrahim?" I slowly turned around to see Christian fidgeting shuffling his feet on the floor. He didn't make eye contact for a few awkward seconds of silence.

"Well I looked up on who your father was… because I had heard rumors about him at the Royal Court." I looked at him urging him to go on with his explanation.

"I found out what he did for a …. living and well was surprised I guess. You know how on some of our Stragoi hunts I had specific information that helped us quite a bit? I got all that from Ibrahim…" I narrowed my eyes at him. I knew he was leaving something out of his explanation.

"Christian my father doesn't usually deal business with people without some kind of payment." Christian's eyes hardened slightly and he stood a bit taller.

"I just gave him some information on what was happening with this side of the world… and how you were doing."

"YOU DID WHAT?" I could not believe Christian! He had no right to even look up on my father and his past. He had no right to even associate himself with a man who involved himself in that kind of business. For all Christian knew Ibrahim could have just broken his knee cap himself and just walked away. What did this kid think he was getting into when he contacted my father? Did he think since he was my friend that my dad would break out into song and give him a warm hug? That they would run into a field of daisies and share there life stories together?

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? YOU COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED! HE IS NOT SOME POMPUS ROYAL MOROI WHO THINKS THEY KNOW EVERYTHING! HE IS A MOROI WHO KNOWS HOW TO GET HIS WAY WITH VICIOUS INTENT! HE ACTUALLY DOES KNOW EVERYTHING BECAUSE HE TORTURES IT OUT OF PEOPLE!" My breathing was ragged and my fists were clenched so that my knuckles turned white.

"Really Rosemarie is that all you think of me?" I turned to glare at my father with a silent message to just shut up. Of course, he being my father and the business he runs it was wasted on him.

"Is it so wrong to want to know how a man's daughter is doing just every once in a while? Its not like you were going to tell me." I glared at him.

"Its not like you showed much interest in me when I was growing up." He stared at me with his frustratingly stoic expression.

"You know that your mother and I found it was best that I stayed away. Since you know about me now though there is no harm in checking up on you. Trouble seems to follow you everywhere you go." I pursed my lips in anger. I knew what he said was true but I was just so angry.

"No my Roza seeks the trouble for herself" I whipped my head around to look at Dimitri. I did not appreciate his attempt at lighting the mood. I sighed and rubbed my right hand over my face in deep frustration at everyone including myself. We had more pressing issues then my messed up family and past.

"I thank you for giving my friends an I at least a temporary shelter to stay in." I used my clipped formal voice I had learned to take up in my times at the Royal Court with Lissa. Ibrahim showed no signs of hurt or anger but I could tell that he was feeling something.

"Come with me." He turned around through a side door in the room that opened up to a dimly lit hallway. We walked in silence with only the gentle padding of our feet on the royal blue carpet. They walked passed a few mahogany doors, some with the glow of lights underneath them and some with whispered chatter emitting from the closed doors.

"Ibrahim how many people are staying here? And who is staying here?" he glanced behind him at me and then quickly faced forward again as he began to speak.

"Many Damphir and Moroi are here. It's hard to know an exact number. As of the question who? Well people who I may owe a little or are important in my field of business, and a few who… paid a ridiculous amount for a short period of time, for a little protection." I figured as much. My father did it mostly to benefit himself in some way. Though why we were allowed here was still a mystery to me.

"So what did Christian bribe you with? I can't really see you owing him anything." I was really quite curious because I don't think Christian would pay him a ridiculous amount and he wasn't that important to Ibrahim's business… I don't think.

"Rose. The Stragoi problems are world wide. They are everywhere and their power is growing. People are scrambling for safety and many will not succeed. People need to keep those close to them together and with them at all costs. Who knows what the Stragoi is up to and now that they have officially reduced our world into utter panic we are even worse off. Rose even though you probably disagree with me on this subject, but you are important to me." I snorted at that but had to agree that these were dangerous times.

"So he didn't bribe you with anything?" I still didn't quite believe him but I wasn't going to complain.

"No he did not." At this point we had stopped at an intricately carved mahogany door. Wooden ivy crawled up the frame of the door with an angel carved into the door with its wings outspread. It's eyes looked right down at me with a hand outstretched to me like I could take it's hand and it lead me away from this chaos. My father pushed open the door and heard Lissa gasp at what was inside. It was a very very large library. It was much like the one at home but so much larger. There were books in every language imaginable and even some so ancient they had been forgotten. I focused on two figures looking at a few books towards the back of the library. They seemed to be whispering over one particular book in grim hushed tones.

"Mom, Adrian. What are you guys doing here?" They both looked up at me in surprise but then Adrian broke out into a grin.

"Ah there you are my little Damphir." I heard Dimitri give a low growl at Adrian's nick name for me. I gave Adrian a big hug as he squeezed the life out of me.

"We have found a book of great importance." My happy reunion was cut short by my mothers business like voice.

"It's old records of some of the largest Stragoi attacks throughout history. Throughout every single one of them it's implied that some of the Stragoi were saved. As in they were turned back into their original beings. No one knows how but it's said to have happened. There is an old legend mentioned quite a few times of a Shadow kissed and a bond. A bond binds them together both warriors but warriors of different types. Like ying and yang in both personality and appearance. If turned into Stragoi the world would fall into shambles. The Stragoi would win and no one would be able to stop them. It is called the Tenebrous."