I piled out of the car, walking around to stand beside Dimitri. The other Novices followed, standing behind the two of us. Looking about me, I did a head count. Fifteen Strigoi that I could see. This wasn't great. There were only five of us, only one a truly seasoned fighter, although Meredith and I had at least seen Strigoi before. I wasn't sure about Artyom or Elizaveta.
"Dhampir?" one of the Strigoi commented to another. "That must mean another car will be following with Moroi."
"Only the big one is a Guardian. The others are too young."
"Maybe Novices from the school?" another suggested.
"I told you, they closed the school after the attack and sent the Novices and Moroi elsewhere," a fourth voice argued.
It was with relief the headlights of Mom's SUV raked across the scene as she rounded the corner, pulling up to a stop directly behind us. She was out almost before the car had rolled to a stop, coming to stand beside Dimitri - Stan, Eddie, and Blake on her heels.
"Ahh. The Scottish Hellcat," one Strigoi spat recognizing my mother. I guess she had a certain reputation, even amongst Strigoi, I reflected.
Mom and Dimitri wasted no time starting the fight, each flinging themselves toward the nearest Strigoi. I followed, catching my first victim completely off-guard. If he'd thought I was some greenhorn and would be an easy kill, he'd paid the ultimate price for it. I pulled Dimitri's stake from his chest, quickly assessing the fight to see where I was most needed.
Mom was fighting a cluster to one side with Alto, and Blake was fighting next to my Russian God. I hated the idea of Blake having Dimitri's back, but when I saw Meredith, Eddie, and Artyom struggling with the number of Strigoi they were facing, I moved across to them.
The reason they were struggling quickly became apparent. Elizaveta had completely freaked out and was standing, shaking, with her hands over her face in terror. The other three were fighting while surrounding her protectively.
"Vitsin, we don't have time for this!" I bellowed, inadvertently attracting the attention of a wiry former Moroi who broke off from the main group to engage with me. "Get it together!" I snapped, starting a deadly dance with a new foe. We were circling, each looking for our opening when the tiniest flick of her eyes betrayed her. She'd looked behind me, so I ducked, and only just in time, avoiding being grabbed from behind.
A male Strigoi stumbled over me. He'd expected my body to stop his momentum, and when it didn't, he tumbled over my back and into the female Strigoi in front of me. Both knocked to the ground, Eddie shot forward and staked the male in the back, ending his life in an instant.
"Well done, Castile," I grunted, kicking the male's body away before landing on top of the female to dispose of her with equal expediency.
I was turning to rejoin the fight surrounding the novices when I heard Alto shout, "Hathaway!"
At first, I thought he was calling for me, but looking across to where my mother was fighting, I saw it had been a warning. Not that it had helped. I was ten yards away when I saw a Strigoi kick her viciously in the upper thigh from behind, and heard a sickening crack as my mother's left femur broke.
Landing on her side in the gravel at the roadside, I saw two Strigoi pounce on her, keen to finish her off and no doubt claim the glory of vanquishing the notorious Janine Hathaway.
Well. Not on this Hathaway's watch! Sure she was a bitch at times, and she'd all but disowned me in the middle of a Sheridan sidewalk. But she was still my mother, and I wasn't going to lose her on the side of Route 287 and this close to the Academy!
I sprang forward, grabbing the closest Strigoi and flinging him from my mother. I didn't have time to deal with him, though. The other Strigoi, a female almost as diminutive as my mother, was leaning down fangs bared. If I didn't act now, it would be too late.
I jumped on the Strigoi's back, inadvertently pushing her on top of my already wounded Mom. Grabbing the creature by the hair, I raked my borrowed stake across her throat.
Roaring in pain and anger, the Strigoi bucked me from her back, and I landed on the gravel on my ass, dropping my stake. The Strigoi was on me in an instant, and I was scrabbling backward toward my stake when a foot kicked the stake toward my hand. I looked up from the combat boot responsible and saw Stan engaged with other Strigoi who'd been attacking Mom.
"Thanks, Alto," I acknowledged, grabbing the stake and pulling myself back to standing.
The two of us circled before she attempted a kick similar to the one that had floored my mother, but I wasn't about to fall for that. I waited until she was committed and then kicked her as hard as I could in the ribs. I heard a crack, and my opponent roared, but I also knew she would already be healing, a Strigoi's constitution being what it was.
The battle was still raging around me. I wanted to look about to make sure Dimitri was safe, but I couldn't spare even a second from the deadly duel I was involved in. We kept trading blows, each waiting for the other to make a fatal error. She was a wily one and made me wait. But finally, she overextended with one punch, and I grabbed her arm, yanking it down hard, staking her with my left hand. I got in, and past the ribs, but it wasn't deep enough. I let go of her, but before she could spin or pull the stake from her chest, I slammed my right hand on top of the left, forcing the stake deeper into the chest cavity and into her heart. She slumped to the ground, taking my stake with her.
I stooped to retrieve the stake, righting myself to check the fight. Alto had just disposed of his Strigoi leaving the two of us momentarily unoccupied. Blake and Dimitri were still fighting, and I couldn't help but feel proud of the pile of Strigoi bodies heaped around my lover's feet. Eddie, Artyom, and Meredith seemed to be holding their own, too.
I checked my mother, and she was in a bad way. Blood was soaking through her pants, and I could see what looked like a bit of bone poking through the damp, torn fabric.
"Alto? Can you get her to the car? I'll cover you."
It was a risky maneuver. Carrying Mom, Stan would be completely defenseless if he were attacked. But at the same time, Guardians had each other's back, and we wouldn't leave Mom here to bleed out if there was a chance we could save her.
Stan picked Mom up, throwing her over his shoulder in a fireman's hold. It must have hurt like hell, but she didn't even whimper – knowing she couldn't afford to draw attention to us. Skirting the edge of the fight, I put myself between Mom, Stan, and the action. We managed to get her into the back seat of the car she'd driven without incident, laying her across the back seat.
"Mom, just hang on. We're not far from the Academy. We'll get you there as soon as possible," I promised, closing the door and following Stan back into the fight, hoping the Strigoi would leave the vehicle alone.
Stan was now near Dimitri and Blake, helping them with their batch of opponents. Seeing that fight covered, I joined Meredith, Artyom, and Eddie. Elizaveta was still frozen with fear. She was now sitting on the ground, her knees drawn up and arms over her head.
I'd heard of battle-freeze. It actually wasn't that uncommon. A phenomena experienced by new Guardians, the sight of real Strigoi could be enough to render them completely insensible and unable to fight. There was no knowing who it would happen to, or whether a Guardian would get over it. For understandable reasons, a Guardian's first battle-freeze was usually their last.
"It's battle-freeze," Eddie grunted, saying what I already knew. He was still fighting a Strigoi, and I was proud to see he was holding his own.
We had to get her out of here. I'd help her, but I doubt she trusted me enough to come with me. So I worked my way across to Artyom.
"You have to take your sister. Get her back to the cars. My Mom's in one of them. Put her in with her," I ordered, stepping in front of him to engage the Strigoi he'd been fighting.
I didn't have time to listen whether Artyom was obeying my instructions, as I immediately went on the offensive with my target. A short, stocky former Guardian, this guy knew how to fight. I could see him testing out my reach and speed, keeping me occupied while he got a sense of how I fought. I wondered whether he knew I was doing the same to him?
In the back of my head, I could hear Dimitri's voice running through his battle rules like a mantra. Number four seemed to be the most pertinent here. 'Do the unexpected.'
Trusting my Russian God in this, as with all other things, I interrupted the predictable right, right, left, kick combo I'd been doing and launched myself into the air, kicking the Strigoi with the heel of my combat boot right in its face.
The enraged Strigoi bellowed, spitting teeth out onto the dirt and howling incomprehensively. As soon as I landed, I followed my face kick up with a kick to the nuts. A second roar followed the Strigoi's first, and he dropped to his knees. It was only a moment's distraction, but that's all I needed. I slammed my borrowed stake into his heart and sent him to meet his maker on his knees with his hands clutching his balls.
The fight was winding down. Dimitri was fighting one, Stan and Blake tag-teaming another. Eddie had finally got his down and was now helping Meredith fight hers. I'd thought there were one or two more, but maybe not?
And then I heard a roar of pain. My head snapped up, and I looked toward the cars, just in time to see Artyom with a Strigoi behind him, his head pulled back, the Strigoi attached to his neck. Artyom was using his body to shield Elizaveta, who was pressed back against the car, watching her brother's plight in terror.
The Strigoi was draining Artyom's life force, and Elizaveta was completely impotent and unable to stop it.
I flew toward the three of them, stake drawn. Without even thinking, I staked the Strigoi from behind, using its own bloodlust distraction to my advantage.
The Strigoi slumped, falling and almost pulling Artyom with him. The Novice was alive, but it looked like only just. We needed to get him to the infirmary and fast.
I supported him, opening the passenger door and half lifting, half shoving him into the seat. I spun to face Elizaveta who was still standing uselessly against the car door.
"Come on," I coaxed, remembering Alto's advice in Bodyguard Theory and Personal Protection about how to deal with a terrified Moroi, or in this case Novice. "Let's get you into the safety of the car," I cajoled, making it sound like we were off for a merry jaunt in the country and not trying to evacuate her from what was still a dangerous situation.
After a couple of false starts, I was able to guide Elizaveta around the back of the car and into the back seat with Mom. I carefully lifted Mom's head, putting it in Elizaveta's lap when I coaxed the latter into the car.
"You ok, Mom?" I asked, noticing my always pale mother had even less color, and her skin looked clammy.
"Fine," Mom replied in a tone that told me she was anything but.
"We'll have you back to St. Vlad's in no time," I promised.
Shutting the door on the three of them I checked out the battle. Blake was probably the least 'useful' fighter, so I headed over to help Alto with the Strigoi the two of them were trying to finish off.
"Ayett? Do you know how to get to the Academy from here?" I barked.
"Straight up 287 and veer off just before Louisville?"
I nodded. "Go! Mom and Artyom are both injured, and Elizaveta has battle-freeze. Take them and head for the Academy. Call through and let them know you're on your way and don't stop for anything. Head straight for the infirmary, got it?"
"Got it," he said, running to the SUV and climbing in. He gunned the engine to life and drove off the edge of the road, bush-bashing in the dark to go around the huge tree the Strigoi had presumably brought down across the road.
Bringing my focus back to the fight, I grabbed Stan's Strigoi from behind, holding its arms back, so Stan had a clear shot at the heart. Sinking his stake into it with a loud grunt, followed by a rather rude word, between Stan and I we neutralized that threat.
Dimitri was standing beside us catching his breath after dispatching his last opponent, and a quick look to Eddie and Meredith saw they, too, were victorious. The fight was over and, so far at least, we'd all lived to tell the tale.
I shot my love a grateful smile.
"All clear?" Dimitri asked, referring to my Strigoi 'early warning system.'
I closed my eyes and felt with my body.
"We're good," I acknowledged.
Eddie was walking around counting the corpses, the largest pile surrounding Dimitri.
"Seventeen in total. That's quite some nest… No wonder they felled a tree."
He had a point. Strigoi traveling in threes and fours was rare enough. Seventeen in a group was virtually unheard of!
"How many did you kill, Hathaway?" Eddie asked, aiming for jocularity but failing.
"Five," I said, quickly doing a mental tally.
"Damn you," he groaned. "Two," he said holding up his fingers in what was paradoxically also a peace sign.
"I knew you could do it," I said softly so only hear could hear me. These were his first Strigoi kills.
"One here," Meredith said with only a small waver in her voice. "Artyom got one, too."
"Two for me," Stan confirmed.
"Six," Dimitri said modestly, starting to drag the bodies off the road. "I'll call the Alchemists and get them to block the road higher up. In the meantime hide these bodies off the road just in case. They'll be melting in the sun at first light."
We dragged the bodies out of sight, the task onerous now the adrenaline was wearing off, and battle fatigue was kicking in. We'd just finished, and Dimitri had reported into the Alchemists when Dimitri's phone rang. It was Alberta, and my Russian God was able to report that the rest of us were ok. He was also able to reassure me that Blake had reported in, and was almost back at the Academy.
The cleanup done, as well as we were able, Dimitri declared it time to go.
"Alto? You up to driving?" Dimitri asked.
"Sure thing? Second for me, Castile?"
Eddie agreed, so we climbed into the car; Alto and Castile up front, Dimitri, Meredith and I in the back. I took the middle seat, resting my thigh comfortably against my man's.
"Thanks for your stake, Comrade," I said, wiping it on my hoodie before handing it to him.
"Anytime," he joked, although truth be told it wasn't very funny.
Back on the main road, Stan steered us toward the Academy. We were all sore, and weary, but more than anything I wanted to see my mother. Her break had been a bad one, and she'd be out of action for quite some time – and that's assuming everything healed well. It had been eye opening to see Mom on her back and so close to losing her life to a Strigoi. I wanted to see her and make sure she was ok and that she knew I loved her.
I leaned my head on Dimitri's shoulder. Given the circumstances, it could be written off as tiredness from the fight. And if Meredith noticed Dimitri's hand clasping mine under the edge of his duster she didn't mention it, but I took solace in his rough, warm hand holding mine as we drove to the school.
They were waiting for us at the gates, and I wasn't surprised when Stan drove us straight to the infirmary. I bounded out the car door as soon as the car pulled to a stop, navigating the long familiar corridors of the infirmary to the two trauma rooms. With only a skeleton staff at the school, unless there'd been some other incident that took precedence, this is where my mother and Artyom would be.
Looking into the first of the rooms, I could see Elizaveta sitting on a chair, her back to the door. Artyom was asleep on the bed, and I could tell Elizaveta was weeping as she held his hand. But the absence of medical personnel was encouraging; Artyom looked like he was sleeping peacefully and would recover.
Giving the two of them their privacy, I stuck my head in the next room to see my mother lying on the bed. Alberta was sitting on the chair beside her, speaking with Mom quietly.
"Here she is now!" Alberta said with a relieved smile when she spotted me.
"They're just getting theatre ready for your mother," she explained. "They need to set the bone, but she should be fine. She's pretty drugged up, but she's been asking for you."
"Mom? Mom I'm here now," I said, grasping my mother's hand and pulling a chair close up by her bedside. "We all got back safe, and they're going to take you through to theatre to set your leg, but you'll be ok."
Mom opened her eyes, and nodded, before closing her eyes. I brought her hand to my lips and kissed it, holding my face against it.
"We need to take her now," a Dhampir orderly announced, undoing the wheel locks on the bed Mom was on and preparing to take her to the operating room.
"Don't worry about anything, ok? Everything's going to be fine," I promised her, surprising myself by bursting into tears.
"I love you, Rosemarie," Mom said as they started to wheel her away.
"I love you too, Mom," I said, watching as they wheeled her out before sagging into Alberta's open arms.