No answer.

I knocked again, and there was no answer. "Adrian." I called out, knocking again.

I wondered if he was with Lissa. I quickly popped into her head. I saw that she was in Christian's room, talking about something. I got out o her head before I could figure out what they were talking about. As I said before, I try and give Lissa as much privacy as I could.

I turned around and headed down the hall. As I reached the elevator, the doors opened to reveal Adrian and Sydney. I smiled. I was glad to see her. I gave her a hug, which surprised her, and I could tell she was slightly uncomfortable with it, but nevertheless, she hugged me back.

"Long time, no see. Where are you two headed?" I looked at Adrian with a twinkle in my eye.

He smiled. "We were just coming up for some water, actually. Syndey doesn't trust the diners here, so I told her I have a bottle of purified water."

I smiled, hiding my sadness. So like her to distrust us, but it was strangely comforting.

"Thanks for staying and watching them. I feel better having someone that I trust here."

"Well, I am not about to jump in front of them if strigoi comes at them."

I gave her half a smile. "I don't expect you to be in any kind of danger here. Besides, Adrian will protect you." I said, stifling a chuckle.

He rolled his eyes, then looked at me. "I guess you are here to say good bye?"

I looked into his eyes. I didn't want to leave. I wanted to stay, but I had to find Lissa's sister. If I didn't then someone could be after her, and she could be in some kind of danger. That and if Lissa wanted to run for Queen one day, then she would need that extra family member. "Yeah. Adrian-"

He cut me off. "Let me let Sydney inside, and we can go for a walk?"

I nodded. He let Sydney in, and she looked relieved to be in some place where there was no more moroi or dhampires. He took my hand we started walking back to the elevator.

"What is really going on, Rose? Is everything okay?" We were in the elevator now.

I took a deep breath. I should I tell him what is going on? Yes, and no. "I don't know what's going on myself. Something bad is going to happen, I can feel it. And I need to stop it."

He smiled and his other hand found my cheek and he tipped my head up to look into my eyes. "You are the most caring person I know. Your aura says so."

"Let me guess," I said, as the elevator stopped and the doors opened, "its black still."

He dropped his hand from my cheek as we started out of the elevator. "Yes, but it has strikes of gold in it." He smiled. I remember him telling me that before, while I was still in the academy.

I sighed. He walked over to where a bunch of furniture was at, and we sat down, away from everyone else, who seem to want to be by the door and the front desk. We sat more by the windows, furthest away from the door.

"Where will you be going?"

"To tell you the truth, I haven't the slightest clue. For all I know, they will be directing me to the air port, and sending me off to Indonesia."

That bought me a small chuckle. "I doubt your dad would let you go that far."

"I went to Russia."

"He tried to send you home."

"But he didn't force me."

He went quiet, but grabbed my hand. "Be careful. Come back like you did Russia, alive."

I gave him a meaningful smile. "I stay alive. It's my thing."

He nodded in agreement, though worry still shone in his eyes. "Yes, you do. But you are very reckless, Rose. And that can get you killed."

"How do you know I am reckless when I fight? You never saw me fight before. Well, beside graduation."

"I don't need to see you fight to know that you are reckless. Just promise me that you will come back to me alive and well."

"I will promise the alive part, but not the well part. Anything can happen, Adrian."

"I know, and that is what is worrying me the most. Rose, you have been through so much, and you have done it alone."

"I haven't been through everything alone, just Russia."

He sighed in frustration. I got up and hugged him. He stood up as well, but kept hugging me. "I don't want to lose you Rose." I could hear the double meaning behind his words.

"You have me right now." I said, tilting my head up to look into his green eyes. He bent his head down and kissed me. Passionately. Wow. My arms wrapped around his neck to pull him closer, and to make the kiss that much sweeter. I could feel that my knees were about to give in, but with great reluctance, I ended the kiss, but still stayed close to him. I knew any longer, we would be naked if we continued. I moved my hands from behind his neck onto both sides of his face and looked him straight in the eyes. "Adrian, I will be fine. Don't worry about me. Feel bad for whoever comes face to face with Rose Hathaway in a death dance." I smiled at that last part. Fighting is so much like dancing.

His lips twitched, but said nothing. Instead he kissed me again, with the same amount of passion as last time.

"ehhmm." Someone cleared there throat. It was Christian.

"Oh, for God sakes!" I complained. I stepped away and saw Lissa, Christian and Eddie a few feet from where Adrian and I stood.

"We came to say good bye." Eddie said. He walked up to me and surprised me with a strong hug. "Be careful and try not to be so reckless."

I smiled meaningfully. "Ever known me not to be?" I joked

"No." He admitted.

Lissa walked up to me next, and gave me an even tighter hug than Eddie gave me. "Come back to me. I don't like you going off without me."

"I don't like going anywhere without you either, Liss."

With a sigh, she ended the hug and stepped away.

Christian came up to me and extended his hand. I raised an eyebrow at that, and ended up lightly punching his upper arm. He smiled, and quickly stepping in to give me a hug. But as quickly as he stepped in and hugged me, he stepped out and went back to Lissa.

Mmm, I guess fire boy is getting soft. I thought and I hid a smile.

I looked at everyone then, taking the group in. I was going to miss them. "Watch each other's backs. Okay?"

They nodded. "I love you guys." I smiled, took one last look at everyone, then turned and left the building. I decided to stop at a gas station to see when the next bus to town left, that and I wanted a Snickers candy bar really bad. I went to the candy rack and picked up two bars of snickers, then went to the counter to pay for them.

"Hi. Do you know when the next bus leave for town?" I asked the clerk. He was an older moroi, with bright blue eyes that seemed to hold amusement and knowledge. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a muscular dhampire come behind me.

The man smiled at me. "Yes. It will be leaving an about fifteen minutes."

"Do you need a ride?" A male voice asked. I turned my head to see who talked to me, and I smiled.

"Hey Ambrose. That would be helpful."

He gave me a smile of his own. "I figured you would need transportation there. Come on, I will give you a lift."

I turned back to the clerk and paid for my candy, and left with Ambrose. We walked out and right next to a gas pump, there was a beautiful red Dodge Challenger. I ignored, it thinking it wasn't his. But as we walked closer, Ambrose opened the passenger door, gesturing for me to go in and sit down. I smiled.

"Thanks. Very nice car."

If at all possible, his smile became bigger, and turned into a proud smile. "Wait until you are in a high speed chase with her, she runs."

I busted out laughing. Ambrose? In a high speed pursuit? Naw. I couldn't think of such a thing. He seemed, to goodie-two-shoes for that. "Let's get going."

"Yes ma'am. Excited about getting your hummer?"

My answer was nothing but an excited, and maybe even dangerously wicked, smile. Ambrose shook his head. "Why did I ask that? Rose Hathaway, excited about a hummer that is practically war material? Oh yes. I bet your counting the miles to get there." I didn't bother asking how he knew I was getting a hummer.

I laughed again. "No, but I am very excited about it. I have always thought hummers were sexy beasty cars."

Ambrose smiled. "I don't know about the beasty cars, but they have a good body. A strong, almost intimidating look to them if you think about it."

"Duh! Why do you think I like it? I am a very intimidating person."

He shrugged, agreeing to that.

The rest of the car ride was quiet. It was a half hour to town, and I was glad that I had free time to check in on Lissa. "I am going to check on Lissa." He nodded and I went. She was with Dimitri, and so helped me, they were talking about me and what the queen wanted.

"I'm surprised you didn't follow her." She said. Now that Lissa pointed that out, and the way Dimitri was so set on coming with me, I was too.

"I wanted to go, but she would have been upset if I went with her. Besides, I need to stay here. I can protect you for her while she is gone."

She nodded. "I think the reason why she wanted you to stay was because she trusts you and Eddie to watch over us."

She was right. I wouldn't have gone if there wasn't someone I trusted to watch over them. Dimitri, I trusted no matter what. I didn't strongly believe he is a dhampire again, I know he is a dhampire again. Eddie. I have known him since childhood, and since the incident in Spokane, we had each other's backs. Well, mostly he had my back, but still, he knows Lissa is a moroi, and he it is his dubty to watch over them when there is no one there.

"You can go after her, you know. Eddie is my guardian now."

WHAT! I just about jumped out of my seat. Is this why I am being sent away? Is Tatiana sending me on this mission to get me away from Lissa?

"Yes, but that is just temporary. You heard the Queen, when Rose comes back she is assigning her to be your legal guardian."

What? What did I miss? I scanned Lissa's thoughts and memories. Shortly after I left her and everyone else, a messenger of the queens confronted her. She was called into a private conference call with the queen. The queen explained that since I was gone, she felt like there was no guard for her, so she wanted to appoint someone for her. Lissa elected Eddie, with his permission of course. Eddie quickly agreed, seeming happy about it. The queen also explained to Lissa that, when I returned, she planned on making me her legal guardian, with all the success and hard work that I have done in the past year. This conference call made her day, and she wished that she could tell me about it.

"You don't trust Eddie?"

"No, of course I do. Eddie is a good guardian. He is well trained, but I want to stay." I could tell that what he said next, he didn't want to say at all, mainly because it is involving me. "Besides, Rose would want me to stay here for you."

Lissa didn't argue at that. She knew I trusted him, and would rather him protect her than anyone else.

In my current vicinity, the car came to a stop. I snapped out of Lissa's head and blinked my eyes, focusing in on my vicinity. I realized that we were in a car dealer's parking lot. I looked at Ambrose, and smiled. "Thanks for the ride."

He shook his head. "I'm not leaving until I know that you got everything you need."

I nodded.

We got out of the car and headed inside. We were still too early for them to be open. It was fife fifty in the morning and the dealer doesn't open until eight. But, something told me someone would be there.

I looked around, for signs of strigoi. Even though the sun will be up within the hour, doesn't mean they wouldn't stay for one last snack. I looked up at the tall building. It looked as if it was made of tinted glass. The doors were made out of glass, except the trim was red and was metal. It was a nice looking dealer. It had all Dodge cars in the parking lot. Down to two wheel drive, to four wheel drive. I scanned the parking lot again, this time, seeking my black hummer.

No go, and by the time I was done looking, I was on the dealers doorstep, knocking on the glass door, and waited a few moments.

No answer.

I knocked again. Waited a moment, and still no answer.

"Why is this happening again to me today?"

Ambrose smiled in humor. I heard the door unlock and I quickly glanced at the door. A female moroi stood before us, forcing a smile. She had blond curly hair, which bounced off her shoulders, and gray eyes. Her figure was skinny, with long, thin legs, with a light gray skirt that came down past her knees about an inch. She had on a matching blazer with a white blouse underneath. "You must be Rose Hathaway. Abe told me to expect you an hour early, but, this is earlier than I expected."

I smiled sheepishly. "Sorry Ma'am, I'm just excited about driving my Hummer."

She smiled back. "Who wouldn't?" She stepped aside, letting us in. We walked in and there were varieties of vehicles to look at: sports, minivans, trucks, and cars. My eye was on the sports car called Saleen S7 Twin Turbo. From what I read online, it has a V8 engine with a capacity of 7000 cc. The engine delivers an output power of 750 bhp at 6300 rpm and 700 lb-ft torque at 4800 rpm. The best part is that it reaches the speed of 60 mph in 3.2 seconds and 100 mph speed in about 6.2 seconds. It features 6-speed Manual transmission, and the part that I love is that the gear shifts can be performed easily and smoothly even at higher loads. I would trade my hummer in for that. It would get a lot better gas mileage too. But the price is $555,000. I don't think my dad would be too happy if I spent the queens money on that. Mainly because would be going over her budget she gave me by 55,000. I smiled, secretly imagining the scolding I would get from her. I stopped for about ten mintues, looking at the car and its detals. The moroi woman even opened the door and let me sit in the driver's seat. I didn't glance at the price, thinking it might be over the price that I saw online.

We later walked into the middle of the room, and I saw that there were three corridors ahead of us. We walked down the middle. "Mr. Mazur said you would appricate this hummer."

I smiled. "I will be the judge of that."

We walked past a few doors. We stopped when we approached a white classed door. That had a white strip in the middle with black lettering. It said Mrs. Erica Nelson. Apparently, this must be her office. We wentered, and it was a mini version of the room we were once in. Except, my black hummer was in the middle. My jaw dropped when I saw it. It was already waxed. It was the hummer I always wanted. The color was a burgundy red, all wheel drive, just like in my mind. I felt like I was about to play bounty hunter. I wanted to laugh at that thought, but at the same time, scream with joy. When he said black hummer, I figured it would have been a dodge, but apparently not. He meant a real Hummer, that was called Black Chrome. I think I have the best father ever. Do I not?

"Did my father just buy me a 2009 Black Chrome Hummer?"

Her smile widened. "I take it you like it."

"She better. I bought it just for her." An amused, familiarly accented voice came. The sound came from a few feet ahead of me. I didn't even need to turn to see them. I looked ahead and saw my father.

"Abe, you bought me a special edition car!" I was on the edge of screaming with joy. I felt like I was seconds away from jumping up and down and saying "give me the keys." But I managed to keep my cool. Somewhat. I practically sprinted to my father and hugged him fiercely. "Wow, old man. You have good taste after all." He wore his usual attire, black suit and flashing gold jewlery, but had on a blood red tie, and a matching handkerchief coming out of his right breast pocket.

He laughed, but I think he was stunned that I hugged him. "Thank you." I said kindly. He hugged me back, then he stepped away and looked at me.

"Well, it is the least I can do for you since I am not coming along. I have obligations I must attend to."

I nodded, understanding what he meant. I was also hoping he wouldn't notice the lack of partners I had. Ambrose isn't included. He has to go back to court.

"Well, don't just stand there! Check it out!" I smiled big, probably the biggest smile I ever gave to anyone. He should feel lucky. I turned around and opened my hand out for the key. Erica handed me the key and I practically flew into the driver's seat. I turned the engine on and it roared to life. I turned on the radio and put on my favorite rock station. I guess I need to buy CD's since the radio station won't be coming in soon. I turned on the lights, flashed the my brights, adjusted my seat, checked the four-ways, the turning signals, made sure the airbags were on, checked the fuel level. Then I got out, popped the hood and checked my oil. I checked the air pressure in my tiers, then stood up.

"Air pressure and oil are fine, but I need gas."

He nodded and handed me the credit card that the Queen gave me to use. "Remember, use it whenever you need it. It is under the human name of Kimberly Ann. You can do either credit or debit, but with debit you will be paying around a six to ten dollar fee to use it."

I nodded.

"Okay, well you better be off."

I nodded again. There was an electric sound, followed by a wheeling sound. I looked to where the noise came from, and found a huge door opening up.

That usually happen in spy movies only, right? "Well, Miss. Hathaway, enjoy your car." Erica said.

I have her another smile. "Don't worry. I will."

"Try not to crash it, or run strigoi over with it. The insurance and registration is in the glove box."

"I'm not promising anything, especially running strigoi over."

He smiled. "Just be careful."

"With myself or the car?"

"Both."

I shook my head in aspiration. Boys and their toys. That thought reminded me of the song "big boy toys" by Aaron Tipton. I guess he is right. It is their pride and joy. Except, I'm a girl.

He handed me three things. One was the card, the other two were ID's. Both had my picture on it, but the ages were different, along with the names. One was my real name, and age, but the other was the human name, and the age of twenty one.

I smiled at that age. I could go drinking.

No, Rose. Stay on task, I scolded myself.

"Try and not be to naughty." He said with a twinkle in his eye. Aparently my father knew what I was thinking.

"I will."

Suddenly, a black SUV came screeching to a halt, and out of the passenger side popped the one man that my heart kept skipping a beat for.

Dimitri Belikov.