Hey everyone!

Wow, I'm on a roll...another chapter!

This one is a lot shorter than others - but it makes up for it - you'll see =P

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Enjoy!

Disclaimer: All characters belong to their rightful owner, Richelle Mead. I own nothing - except this plot and Alexei.

Chapter 11

RPOV

But Lissa was.

I could feel her getting closer – well technically she wasn't moving – she was at a secure hotel with a number of guardians.

She kept me going, sending me strength in her element – spirit.

It was exactly what I needed.

With a new burst of energy, I fought with everything I had.

I lost track of time, handing myself over to the fight.

Each kick was more powerful than the next, sending Strigoi flying in different directions.

I sensed – more than heard – the guardians arrive. With them they brought fire users – all of which were stationed outside, to prevent the house from burning down.

Slowly, Strigoi numbers decreased, until only Dimitri remained.

But then, they started advancing on him. The people I love, started attacking my reason for existence. I couldn't let that happen.

I threw myself in front of him.

"Stop!" I screamed, but they weren't listening.

Dimitri pushed me out of the way – with enough force to send me across the room. "Stay there!" he told me desperately.

His voice sounded so reasonable, keeping me firmly in place.

I watched him fight – always one step ahead of everyone else, blocking every kick and every punch with ease.

But what he wasn't expecting was for everyone to jump on him at once.

They grabbed him from every angle, dragging him to the floor.

The moment his back hit the ground, I was snapped out of Dimitri's compulsion; it was like a bucket of water being splashed in my face.

I saw my mother above Dimitri, with her stake in hand.

"No!" I yelled, as I watched her hand come down on him.

At the same time, Alexei screamed, 'DADDY!' and ran towards Dimitri, diving beneath Janine and the stake to shield his father.

Alexei's mental scream momentarily stunned everyone – before my mother could pull back the stake.

The stake was too close.

As Alexei dived, the blade slid across his back, slicing open everything in its path, leaving a ghastly slash along his back.

Dimitri lifted up his hand, throwing whoever was holding it back a good ten meters.

With his now free hand, he lifted Alexei's head to look into his eyes; just in time to watch them roll into the back of his head.

The second his eyes closed, the room was filled with light, temporarily blinding everybody.

And so I sat there, frozen and blinded in place; unable to see if my son was still alive.

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If you're unsure about something, or have any questions, just ask. I might even write a chapter about to clear things up.

~Serious~