The guardians refused to let anyone leave until after they had made a thorough accounting of who was in the room. From what Guardian Dick said, this was happening throughout the dorm, and all across campus. Anyone with the slightest modicum of intelligent being would realize that the faster the guardians questions were answered, the faster they could get out of this stifling, sinking room. Unfortunately, it seemed that Adrian was the only one with any smarts. Everyone else was chattering away, ignoring Dick's demands for answers. Even Lissa was whining, wanting to make sure Christian was unharmed.

"People! As soon as we determine who's missing, you'll be allowed to head for one of the designated safe zones. The commons, the church and the dorms are the only areas that will be open to students at this time. Now, let's try this again. Was this room breached? Anyone taken?" The guardian's voice was tense, his anger obviously near its breaking point. Adrian couldn't resist a peek at his aura, and as suspected, Orange was the dominant color. Dick was about to snap.

Pushing through the crowd, he towed Lissa behind him, not stopping until he was practically in the older man's face.

"No Strigoi got in, but when the screaming started, several novices ran out to defend the others. Eddie Castile was the only one I know by name." He nudged Lissa. "Did you recognize any of the others?"

She bit her lip. "Um… Dennis Ratcliff. Samuel Montgomery. I think the other one was Tony Robinson. Is Eddie alright?"

"Castile and Robinson aren't among the bodies." Guardian Dick didn't look up from his notepad as he jotted down the names. "They'll be listed among the missing."

Lissa's knees buckled, and only Adrian's firm grip on her arm kept her upright. "What about Rose? Is she… "

The corners of the man's mouth quirked upward, and for a moment, an expression of pride crossed his face. "Hathaway is fine, Princess. She and Lord Ozera killed more Strigoi than the rest of us combined."

"Christian? How… What happened?"

"They teamed up. He set them on fire and she staked them. If it weren't for the two of them, the Strigoi would have taken the elementary dormitories. They saved a lot of lives. If Belikov hadn't sent Hathaway to warn us, this would have been a bloodbath."

Adrian remained silent, lost in thought. Bits and pieces of visions were weaving together in his mind, images of his little dhampire and Ozera fighting side by side. Was that what the dreams had been foretelling, or was there something more? He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that Castile's disappearance was the start of something. Something big. Something that would make the horrible attack they'd just experienced seem like child's play. As the guardians began directing the students towards the safe zones, he held Lissa back.

"Before we go… I need you to try and get in my head again, cousin."

"I want to find Christian," she said.

Adrian stared at her. "Lissa, this is important. What if something worse is coming? What if it involves Rose? We have to—"

"The only thing I have to do Adrian is to see my boyfriend." She pushed past him, refusing to meet his eyes. "Rose can take care of herself, obviously. You heard what Guardian Alto said."

He watched her walk away, stunned by the harshness of her tone when she spoke about her bond mate. She was angry at Rose, and he hadn't the slightest idea why.

Ozera had been raving about Rose's performance during the battle for the last thirty minutes. He was either a moron or very unobservant. He appeared to be completely oblivious to the fact that ever word he uttered was fuel to the already burning fire within his girlfriend. Studying her aura, he realized that she was jealous of her best friend. Why, he couldn't say, but he was damned sure going to find out.

"What's your problem, Lissa?" He asked, cutting off Christian's play by play.

She tossed her hair, forcing a smile. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Cut the crap. You're pissed off. And extremely jealous."

Christian glanced at her, realizing for the first time that she was irritated. "Liss?"

"I don't understand how she does it. She practically killed Jesse earlier, but they've all forgotten about it. Just because she warned them about the attack—"

"She did a hell of a lot more than just warn them, Lissa. She almost died trying to protect me. A Strigoi was about to drain her, and her only concern was that I run away to safety." His blue eyes were piercing. "Are you jealous of Rose?"

She sighed. "She should have been with me. If she had been there, Eddie would still be here. She's supposed to be protecting me. If she hadn't been off with Guardian Belikov—"

"If she'd been with you, I'd be dead right now. And so would most of the kids on the lower campus." Christian crossed his arms over his chest, eyes narrowed. "There's more to it than that Lissa. What is it?"

Adrian leaned back, smirking. He knew the answer now. Her aura had flared lime green when she mentioned Belikov and Rose. She might not know what was going on, but her subconscious suspected. "She's afraid someone will come between her and Rose. Or should I say that someone has already come between them."

"That's not true!" Jade green eyes locked with emerald ones. "That's a horrible thing to say."

"Lie." He arched a brow, imitating the voice she'd used earlier when she quizzed him. "You forget, Vasilisa, I'm a walking lie detector too. And I'm a million times better at it than you are."

"Who could come between you?" Christian asked. "Rose loves you more than anything. She'd die for you. In the middle of battle, she wanted to come find you."

"But she didn't. She was probably more concerned about…" She caught herself, biting her lip and shaking her head.

Adrian laughed. "Oh cousin. It takes you awhile to figure things out, but eventually, you do. Now the question is, how are you going to handle it?"

"What the hell am I missing here?" Ozera frowned, glancing between them. Lissa studied the table, refusing to meet his eye.

When the blue eyes were on him again, Adrian mouthed a single name. Rather than being surprised, Christian nodded. Interesting. Perhaps the boy had witnessed something during the wondered if Belikov realized how observant the boy could be. He caught sight of someone entering the cafeteria, abruptly changing the subject.

"There's Rose. Let's all play nice, shall we?"

They watched her selecting her food in silence. She looked exhausted, her beautiful face was almost haggard. She attempted a smile as she approached them, but it failed miserably.

"You get to tell her about Eddie." Christian hissed.

"Why me?"

"You were there. Lissa's in no shape to discuss it." He slid his arm around his girlfriend, pulling her into his side. "Be nice Lissa. I mean it. She's been through a lot today."

"So have I." She shot back in a low undertone.

Rose reached them, setting down her tray and collapsing into her seat. "Hey guys. Where's Eddie?"

Adrian bit his lip. "He's missing."

"What?" She stared at him, as if it were a joke and she was waiting for the punch line. "He was with you guys," She glanced at Lissa, her eyes full of unspoken accusation. "I saw him with you. Through your eyes."

Lissa looked up, her face pale and full of grief. Whether it was over Eddie's disappearance or her newfound realization , Adrian couldn't guess. "When the Strigoi got in downstairs, he and some other novices went down to help."

"They didn't find his body," he offered, searching for the right words. "He was one of the ones they took."

Christian sighed and leaned back in his chair. "He's as good as dead, then."

Rose stared at them, her expression one of intense dismay. She shot up from the chair and shoved her tray away. He gazed at her aura, worried as the darkness billowed around her. Oh shit. This was going to get ugly.

"What's wrong?" asked Lissa.

Rose stared at her as if she had sprouted a second head. "What's wrong? What's wrong? Do you seriously have to ask that?"

Her voice echoed around them, drawing the eye of every person in the room.

"Rose, you know what she means," he offered, his voice unusually calm. He filled the words with spirit, trying to catch her eye. He had to diffuse the situation. "We're all upset. Sit back down. It's going to be okay."

She glared at him, the darkness of spirit helping her to resist his compulsion. "It is not going to be okay—not unless we do something about this."

"There's nothing to be done," said Christian. He rubbed Lissa's back, trying to soothe her.

"We'll see about that," she said, turning towards the door.

"Rose, wait," Lissa called out.

Ignoring her, Rose stormed out of the commons and into the bright light outside. Adrian was on his feet in an instant, heading for the door. Through the smoked glass he watched as she bumped into her mother.

Oh hell. This had all the makings of a epic disaster.