"What's he doing here," Dimitri said, face sour as he watched Janine Hathaway and I walk up to where he was, Dimitri was standing arms crossed leaning against a door that was obviously Vasilisa and Rosemarie's.
"Never mind that," Janine said, her eyes a little glazed as she looked over me - a product of the lingering compulsion I had used on her- before joining Dimitri at the door. "Have you spoken to Princess Vasilisa yet?" She asked, all business now.
Dimitri glared at me a moment longer before turning to her. "I wanted to wait until you got here. I don't think she knows Rose is missing, so I thought it better for you to be here when I have to tell her." Janine nodded in agreement.
"Well, Then let's get this over with and find my daughter, times a wasting." Guardian Hathaway took a deep breath, rolled her shoulders then knocked loudly on the door, more like pounded on it.
A moment later a surprised-looking Lisa filled the doorway, her green eyes huge in her face. She took in the two imposing characters in front of her and grasped the front of her dress over her heart.
"Guardian Belikov, Guardian Hathaway... is everything ok?" Vasilisa was wearing a pretty lilac-colored dress, her pale hair piled on top of her head, a soft masterpiece of makeup carefully applied to her pretty face, she looked like she had just come from another royal event.
"Can we come in Vasilisa?" Dimitri said in a voice that was not a question. Lisa blinked a few times before nodding. Stepping back, she opened the door wider and gestured for us to come in. She seemed to only just notice me as I walked in the door and her eyes opened ever wider. I saw the words shape on her lips. 'What are you doing here' but they didn't come out.
"When was the last time you saw Rosemarie?" Janine asked, cutting off Lisa. Her eyes were frozen on me but reluctantly pulled away to look at Janine, her brow creasing.
"Rose? Not since last night, at the dinner party." Lisa looked confused then she looked between us, saw our obvious disappointment, and then fear started to set in. "What's going on? Where is Rose?" Her voice rose in panic, and I rushed to her, taking her hands. She gripped them tighter than I thought she was capable.
"Rose is missing Princess," Dimitri said, his voice was much softer than I'd ever heard it. I gulped, the pain in Dimitri's aura forcing itself on me like a fog. "Nobody has seen her since last night."
"But we think you know where she is," Janine said, crossing her arms. It seemed like they were going for Good Cop and Bad Cop. I had expected Dimitri to be the bad Cop, Not Janine, but that's not to say Janine Hathaway didn't suit bad cop, she was one scary lady.
Lisa looked up over my shoulder at Janine and gasped, dropping my hands, I moved away from her, just in case Lisa decided to attack Janine, I didn't want to get stuck in the cross-hair.
"I don't know where she is," she said, her fists clenched by her sides. I believed her, I didn't even have to see her aura to see her panic. She didn't know where Rose was, she didn't even know she was missing until we had told her, she could act, but she wouldn't have been able to hide her aura from me.
"You didn't think to alert anyone that she didn't come home last night?" Janine said, she obviously didn't see what I saw, she still thought Lisa was hiding something.
Lisa shifted uncomfortably and looked around at us. "Uh, um. I-I thought she was, um. You know." I knew what she was thinking, she thought Rose had gone home with someone, it was confirmed when her eyes flicked up to me and she looked almost pained, her cheeks pinking.
Did Lisa really think Rose liked me enough to sleep with me...? I Didn't even think she would let me hug her! But I guess she had seen Rose come to my room already, maybe she thought there was more between us, or maybe she was thinking about that red-headed boy, Ashford or whatever, or maybe she knew about Rose and Dimitri, but I doubted that. I think I was one of the only people who knew that juicy little tidbit.
"You know, what?" Janine continued, and Dimitri shuffled awkwardly behind her, I'm sure he knew what Lisa was illuding to without saying it, everyone but Janine realized it. I think a blind person would have gotten the hint. I just wondered where Dimitri's mind went to. My place, Ashford's, or was Rose really with him last night... I doubted that. I didn't think Rose was quite that stupid, and neither was he, but I'm sure if she had shown up any of ours, we would all of have had a hard time turning her away.
Lisa was saved from responding by Janine's phone ringing. She answered it and walked away. Dimitri came to sit by Lisa as she perched on the end of her's or Rose's bed. My guess was that it was hers as the other was covered with clothing, and even what looked like a still-damp bath towel and Lisa didn't seem the kind of person who kept things untidy, and because the one Lissa was sitting on was pristine, bed made, and pillows fluffed like a fancy hotel room.
"Did she go alone?" Lisa said looking up at her guardian, her eyes so sad I don't know how his heart didn't break in two.
"No, Mason, Eddie, Mia, and..." He stopped, my breath caught in my throat, and I looked down at Dimitri, our eyes met. I moved closer to Lisa and placed my hand on her shoulder, gripping it tightly. She looked up at me, her brow creasing in concern.
"And...?"
"Christian is missing too," I said, it was the hardest words I'd ever had to say aloud. Lisa's blood drained from her face, and she looked like she was about to pass out or be sick. Her hand grabbed at mine and she wobbled on the spot. "Get her a glass of water," I said to Dimitri, but I turned to Lisa as he moved away.
"Why did they leave me behind?" She cried. Tears rolled down her cheek and she dashed them away with her free hand.
"If Rose left you behind it's probably because she wants to protect you." I meant it as soothing but if anything, it made her look more worried, and I guess I understood. The same thoughts I had had were surely going through her mind. If Rose didn't take or tell Lisa, it was because it was going to be dangerous, probably something she could get hurt or killed doing.
"That's what I'm worried about," Lisa said. "But why would she take Christian, she doesn't even like him... And Mia?" she stopped; her face absolutely frozen with horror and a little bit of jealousy. "Why Mia?"
I saw Dimitri and Janine conversing in the hallway and stood up and moved back from Lissa as they approached, I had already put my foot in it enough times, I'd let the professionals handle it for now. Dimitri handed Lisa the glass of water and she took a few small sips before placing it on the bedside table.
Janine walked back over to Lisa and stood next to Dimitri, all 5 feet of her looking like a ball of unfocused raw energy desperate for something to do. "I know you want to protect them, but we need to know where they are," Dimitri said again softly.
"I told you," Said Lissa, "I don't know. I don't know what happened." Her frustration was clear now, she didn't understand why they would keep asking her that when she clearly knew nothing.
"I can't believe they wouldn't have told you where they were going," said Janine. Her words sounded flat, but there were lines of worry on her face. "Especially with your...bond."
"It only works one way," said Lissa sadly. "You know that."
Dimitri knelt down so he could be at Lissa's height and look her in the eye. He pretty much had to do that to look anyone in the eyes, it was kind of nice to see, I could see his worry and concern for Rose, But I still really didn't like the guy. "Are you sure there's nothing? Nothing at all you can tell us? They're nowhere in town. The man at the bus station didn't see them ... though we're pretty sure that's where they must have gone. We need something, anything to go on."
Lissa gritted her teeth and glared at them both. "Don't you think if I knew, I'd tell you? You don't think I'm worried about them too? I have no idea where they are. None. And why'd they even leave... it doesn't make any sense either. Especially why they'd go with Mia, of all people."
Lisa rubbed at her wrist and looked away and that's when I realized she was lying, no not lying. Just not telling the whole truth, I believed she didn't know where they were. But she knew the why. She had figured it out when Dimitri had told her who else was missing, I had seen the spark in her aura.
Dimitri sighed and leaned back on his heels. From the look on his face, he obviously believed her. It was also obvious that he was worried- worried for Rose in more than a professional way. But if Lisa noticed she didn't say anything, and neither did Janine, probably because she was on her phone again, barking orders.
"How did they get out?" Lisa asked, looking between me and Dimitri.
Dimitri scratched at the back of his neck, for a minute I thought he wasn't going to answer her but one look in her big sad eyes and he was talking without meaning to. "They didn't leave together, the working theory is Mason, Eddie, and that Mia girl left first, earlier in the day while everyone was distracted by the banquet."
"How?" I asked. "Isn't this placed locked up like Fort Knox, especially for the students, isn't that why we are all here?"
Dimitri clearly didn't appreciate my words or tone because he didn't even look at me when I spoke just shook his head disapprovingly. Lisa nodded along.
"The Moroi girl used compulsion on the guards, she told them to let them all pass. And they did."
"But they were clearly sloppy. Didn't tell them to forget they were ever there or tell them not to tell anyone I'm guessing." I said sitting down beside Lisa. Dimitri shook his head again.
"They were more than happy to tell us when we asked, acted like it was a completely normal and ok thing to be letting 3 students out of a heavily guarded compound made for their protection."
"And that's why Rose asked Christian to come with her," Lisa said, "But Christian is terrible at compulsion. Rose knows that."
Dimitri frowned at Lisa's blasé talk of underage Moroi using and training with something that was forbidden and frowned upon in our world. Not that I, or clearly Lisa cared about that.
"Rose and Christian didn't use compulsion, or well they - he tried- and it didn't work." Dimitri looked very unhappy at this.
"Let me guess, a little blunt force helped along the exiting process." I grinned at his discomfort, how strange that her whole life Rose had had the fact violence was the answer constantly shoved down her throat but when she resorts to it and clearly in a spectacular fashion she is now in trouble. I'm not saying what Rose did was a good thing, but man would I have liked to have been there when a girl took down a fully trained Guardian.
Lisa gasped. "They didn't hurt anyone, did they?"
Dimitri nodded. "She sought out the Guardians who were on duty when the others left, found out what they had done, and then when Christian couldn't get them out she knocked out the guard with his own flashlight, seems you're right, your boyfriend is not very good at compulsion, so Rose had to resort to violence."
Lisa looked grim. "Why didn't she ask me for help? I could have gotten him to let her leave without giving him brain damage, God. I could have gotten him to drive her wherever she wanted and back probably taken her through a drive-threw to get a cheeseburger on the way back. So why didn't she ask me?" Her voice had turned into almost a sob at the end. Dimitri didn't look completely fazed at Lisa's blatant talk of her amazing compulsion powers so I guessed he knew about her abilities, but he did look at me funny. Like he was worried she had said too much in my presence.
"Like I said, Lisa, she didn't want to involve you," I patted her shoulder trying to comfort her.
"But when it comes to Rose, I am always involved, especially if she is bringing the only other person I love along with her."
Janine popped her head back in the room, said a rushed sort of goodbye to us, and then stormed away, she clearly didn't have the time or patience to sit around and play therapy with Lisa, but Dimitri stayed. He sat on Rose's bed and when Lisa excused herself to the bathroom to freshen up, I saw him run his fingers over her pillow, over the red silk dress she had been wearing last night, slowly he brought into his lap and just held it. Seeing it here was at least good news, it was clear she had returned back to the room, even for a little while to just get a change of clothes.
"Did you talk to her after she left? I saw you go after her." I asked him, his head shot up like he had forgotten I was there, he still gripped the dress, creasing the soft fabric in his large hands.
"I did." He answered after a long pause.
"Did she say anything about her plans?" I asked again, Anger flashed across Dimitri's normally blank face.
"If she did, don't you think I would have said something to the other guardians or Janine?"
"Not really," I replied. "I'm sure there are lots of things going on between you and Rose that you haven't told anyone, correct?" I couldn't help but smirk at him as he seethed at my words.
"I don't know what you want Ivashkov, but Rose is not and will not ever be interested in you." Dimitri stood and tried to use his impressive height to intimidate me, i stood too, but it didn't work, we were almost the same height, and I knew there was no way Dimitri would risk his job to punch me, even if he really really wanted to.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that Belikov." I grinned, he was probably right, with him in the picture Rose would likely always choose him, but then I remembered. He was leaving. "Who knows what will happen when you leave her to go playhouse with Tasha Ozera." I had the superb pleasure of seeing the shock of my words on his face and in his aura.
"That doesn't matter," he said after taking a deep clearing breath, his face now a little smug. "Soon she will be safe back in school and you will be wherever it is snakes like you like to hide."
"Oh, you haven't heard the good news, have you?" I smiled, a slow creeping smile, arching my brow at him, he looks confused at my clear joy at his words, but he is playing right into my hands. Right where I wanted him.
"What news?" he asked reluctantly. I could tell he knew he shouldn't ask, but he just had to know.
"By decree of the good and righteous Queen Tatiana, I will be spending the next few months at St Vladimir's"
Dimitri's face paled and his mouth opened, about to what... Argue, scream, curse, or punch me? I would never know, because that's when Lisa reentered.
"You're coming back with us to St Vlad's with us?" Lisa asked incredulously. I nodded.
"Sure, am cousin." I grinned again, she watched me for a while her face blank for a few moments before she let out the first smile of the day, it was a small smile, just a little curve of the lips. But it was there.
"Why?" Dimitri asked, his voice full of fake boredom, his guardian mask back in place.
"Oh, you know, to study. There is always more to learn." I made eye contact with Lisa, and she gave me a knowing look, I'm sure she had figured it out by now. We were the same.
Dimitri took one look at Vasilisa's face and shook his head. "This is not the time for this, we need to find Rose and the others." She nodded and looked at us with a solemn face.
"You're right Dimitri," she said sadly. "We need to find them."
"Then you need to tell me the truth Vasilisa. The real truth, I know you're lying." Lisa looked shocked.
"I'm not lying!" She looked affronted.
"Well, you're not telling the truth – ah, no. don't even bother" he puts his hand up stopping her from talking. "I know you don't know where they are, but you know the why. Don't you?"
Lisa blinked; her eyes shocked. "I-I-I don't know what you're talking about."
"Vasilisa. Enough!" His voice was louder now, firm. Not harsh, but no bullshit.
Vasilisa visibly warred between telling the truth to save her friends and keeping her best friends secret for her, well one of them anyway.
She gasped. "They've gone to kill the Strigoi"
Thank you so much for reading Chapter 10 of golden aura.
I hope you are enjoying this story from Adrian's point of view,
I feel like there is a lot of stuff we miss out on going on back at the lodge for these chapters, we miss out on being pretty much solely between Rose and Lisa, and honestly, I don't feel like Lisa is the most observant person, I mean how did she miss Rose and Dimitri being in love for so long! come on!
anyway, thanks again for reading...
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