14. Preparations

(Mikhail POV)

St. Vladimir's had been in full mourning since the accident and all classes were cancelled. It was decided that the Dragomir funeral should be held at The Academy to allow the whole school community to participate in the service - Andre Dragomir had been very popular and many of the staff and students wanted to show their support for Princess Vasilisa.

There were also many in the wider Moroi community who wanted to pay their respects, so Queen Tatiana had set the date for the funeral ten days after the accident to allow visitors from interstate and overseas time to travel. We had ample accommodation on campus to house the guests, but the sudden influx of visitors left a heavy load of responsibility on the school guardians.

The Academy was used to hosting official ceremonies and events, but rarely one of this size and political significance, and everybody was working around the clock to ensure the funeral would run to plan. To prepare us for the task ahead, Alberta held a guardian meeting every evening at 6:00pm to update our rosters, allocate additional duties and discuss security protocols. Our numbers were bolstered when the guests began to arrive a few days before the funeral (as many royals brought their private guardians with them) so an area of the training centre was set up as a conference room for the additional guardians to discuss their own security arrangements.

On the Monday before the funeral I was rostered on for afternoon patrol duty – my first in several days. The sun was low on the horizon as I completed a final sweep of the bottom field, and I rubbed my eyes tiredly as I squinted through the fading light. These long hours were starting to get to me, and I couldn't wait till everything calmed down again so we could all return to our normal routine.

As I approached the memorial gardens by the lake I couldn't believe my luck when I spotted Sonya sitting cross-legged in the shade with her eyes half-closed. We hadn't gotten a chance to talk since the night of the accident and I missed her terribly.

'What a surprise to find you here, stranger,' I called out when I was a few feet away. 'What are doing up so early?'

She opened her eyes and rewarded me with a smile as I offered my hand to help her rise.

'I just wanted some peace and quiet before everybody wakes up,' she explained. 'Having all the extra people around makes me nervous so I don't like to come out at night if I can help it.'

A warning bell went off in my mind and I wondered if Sonya was feeling troubled again, but her eyes were steady and she seemed more self-assured than usual.

'I'm still on duty but I have five minutes to check this section of the grounds. Would you like to take a walk with me?' I asked, and we strolled together through the long shadows of the garden.

'How have you been Guardian Tanner?' she teased lightly.

'Frankly, I can't wait for this to be over so I can get my life back,' I replied. 'I can't believe I haven't seen you in over a week! After the extra shifts I've only averaged four hours sleep a day, and with all the running around I think I'm going to need a new pair of boots!'

'You poor thing,' she smiled at me sympathetically, and my pulse quickened as she reached out to touch my arm.

'How about you?' I asked her, glad to talk about something other than Guardian business.

'Things have been pretty quiet this week, but I have taken up a new hobby,' she began shyly. 'Ever since your masterclass I've been thinking about how I can take more control of my mind to help with my anxieties, so I thought I'd start by doing some meditation each day. I still feel like I'm being watched sometimes but it doesn't frighten me as much as it did before.'

I looked down at her in admiration. 'That's amazing, Sonya!' I encouraged her. I knew she was strong – she just had to realise it herself. 'I'd be happy to show you some other relaxation techniques when things settle down after the funeral if you'd like?' I'd completed courses in acupressure, remedial massage and the Alexander Technique as part of my guardian training, and knew there were several easy postures we could work through together.

'That would be great, actually,' she accepted willingly, and her new self-confidence gave her face a radiance that stunned me into worshipful silence.

In another minute we'd already reached the edge of the garden and I cursed the fact that I was still on duty.

'I have to keep going, Sonya,' I apologised, marvelling at the flush in her cheeks as I turned to face her and took her hand in mine. 'As soon as this madness slows down let's make a date to get together. I hate having to rush away all of the time.'

When she smiled and nodded in agreement I felt lighter in my spirit, and I leant down to give her a quick kiss on the cheek before continuing on my rounds, turning to raise a hand in farewell before she disappeared back into the gardens.

Only a few hours later, I was off to complete my next assignment – checking that all roads and access points around St. Vladimir's were clear of debris, and ensuring that there was no suspicious activity in the area. With so many important guests arriving it would be a huge political incident if anything were to go wrong.

I was on my way through the underground carpark to collect one of the Guardian Jeeps when I heard a voice call out from behind me.

'Misha!'

Not many people knew me by the pet-name my friends used, back when I was a novice at St. Cassian's. I turned curiously in the direction of the voice and watched as a tall man with spikey blonde-tipped hair sauntered towards me.

'Spiridon! Long time, no see!' I greeted him warmly as he approached.

Spiridon was a few years below me at school but he was the best fighter in his class so his trainers moved him up to join the advanced combat class with the seniors. He was always ultra-competitive during training but once the bell rang he was an easy-going guy, always the first to have a joke or get the party started. We'd lost contact after I graduated, and although I'd seen him around often enough at Court, it was always in a professional setting so we rarely got the chance to catch up properly.

'How are you old friend?' he grinned broadly, slapping me on the shoulder and shaking my hand. 'What on earth are you doing at St. Vladimir's? I thought you worked at Court.'

'I don't seem like the teaching type to you?' I asked wryly, raising an eyebrow and making him smile. 'You're right – I'm just here on temporary assignment while one of their regular guardians is on leave.'

He nodded thoughtfully.

'Tell me, Spiridon. What brings you to The Academy today?' I asked him curiously. 'You're working with the Dashkov family aren't you? I thought the prince wasn't due to arrive until tomorrow?'

'I've come on a business matter, actually,' he replied with a touch of haughtiness to his voice. 'I'm here to organise a meeting with one of your teaching staff – on behalf of the prince, of course.'

'Sounds dry,' I joked. 'Not quite the exciting strigoi-destroying career we anticipated as novices!'

'Hardly,' he smirked in agreement, then glanced around quickly before returning his attention to me. 'Perhaps you can help me, Misha?'

'I'm not sure how I could help exactly. I only started in my post recently and my position here is not exactly prestigious. Most of the moroi teachers don't even realise I'm on staff.'

'Sounds perfect,' he said, with a strange glint in his eye.

'Let's say I wanted to talk to a teacher…,' he began, 'in private of course. How would I arrange a meeting?' His tongue flicked out nervously to lick his bottom lip. 'I don't want to bother Headmistress Kirova about matters that aren't school-related. I just need a quiet time and place to have a word with the moroi. It's no big thing.'

His words seemed innocent enough but I felt suddenly uneasy and mentally switched into defensive mode, my mind racing with questions. Why didn't he want the headmistress to know he was talking to one of her staff? What was this meeting about?

'Which teacher do you need to speak with?' I queried, trying to make the question sound light. 'Perhaps I can let them know you're here?'

'Don't worry about it. I'll find a way to get to her,' he said dismissively. 'Just forget I was here. Look, I've gotta go. I'll catch you later,' and he turned to depart.

I frowned to myself. Something was not right here. Spiridon's intentions may have been completely innocent but the whole conversation gave me a bad feeling. I immediately considered alerting the Madam Kirova or Alberta, but I realised there was no point sharing my suspicions unless I had some solid evidence. I needed to know more to ascertain if there was a threat.

I began to follow after the guardian, hoping to ask some further questions, when a car approached from the other direction. It squealed to a stop and two private guards dressed in black alighted from the vehicle, leaving the engine running.

'We found Karp,' the man with the dark beard called out to Spiridon. 'We've got a ten minute window to retrieve,' he reported, before suddenly clamping his mouth shut as he noticed my approach. Spiridon and the two newcomers turned towards me.

Retrieve? The word echoed in my mind like a gunshot. They were planning to take her - God knows where, or for what reason.

'What is your business with Miss Karp?' I demanded icily as my suspicions became clearer in my mind. Sonya had told me she was afraid people were watching her. I always assumed she was just imagining it, but clearly I was the one who was wrong and now I had proof with my own eyes.

'There are proper channels for contacting Academy staff, and you shouldn't be on school property without permission from Headmistress Kirova,' I continued, ignoring the hard expressions on the guardians' faces as they processed my words and realised I was onto them.

At a signal from Spiridon, the huge guardian with the beard walked a few paces away and folded his arms across his chest, facing the carpark's main exit. The younger man moved towards the stairwell, placing himself in a position where he could see anybody coming or going by foot. Meanwhile, Spiridon advanced towards me, closing the distance between us in a matter of seconds. All traces of false friendliness were gone as he grabbed me roughly by the arm.

'This is none of your concern, Guardian Tanner,' he hissed. 'As you said yourself, you're only temporary here. Nobody cares what you think. The moroi I work for is more important than your headmistress, and if you try to stand against us I can make your life very difficult when you return to Court.'

'I don't care who you work for,' I countered, gripping his shoulder firmly with my free hand. If I couldn't resolve this with words, I needed to be in a stronger position to defend myself. 'As long as you're on Academy property you are legally bound by our rules. If you want to speak with Miss Karp you will have to get the appropriate permissions.'

He laughed in my face. 'And if I don't want to follow the rules?' he asked.

'And if you don't want to follow the rules then you'll have to go through me,' I replied, squeezing his shoulder more tightly.

Spiridon continued to look at me with a sarcastic smirk. 'Three against one. I don't like your odds,' he scoffed. 'It wouldn't be hard to find a place to hide your body if things got a little… too rough.'

So whatever they wanted with Sonya, it was important enough for them to kill me to get to her? This was very bad. I had to stall for time.

I shook my head in mock exasperation. 'Think about it Spiridon. You were always a good fighter but you never topped the class when it came to strategy.'

A flicker of doubt played across his face and I knew I had his attention.

'I may not be very important in the wider scheme of things,' I continued, 'but I'm sure the Captain of the School Guard will notice if one of her men goes missing while on duty. Besides, the moment you set your stooges on lookout I knew something was wrong. I've had my radio on this whole time. All I have to do is trigger the voice activated alarm, and by the time you reach the gate to leave all the exits will be swarming with school guardians. You can't win today.'

'You're a fool Tanner,' Spiridon practically spat in my face, digging his fingers into my wrist and twisting it painfully. 'You have no idea what's going on, and nobody would believe you if you tried to tell. Breathe a word of this to anybody and I'll see that your position at Court is no longer available when it's time for you to return.'

He pushed me roughly as he released my arm and stalked off to the waiting car. His lackeys followed him and they left with a squeal of tyres.

I stood there alone, wringing my wrist – it was probably sprained – and wondering what the hell had just happened. I didn't care about the threats he made regarding my job. That wasn't consequential. But I did care about the threat to Sonya Karp. For some, unknown reason, Victor Dashkov wanted to see her. He was willing to take her against her will and had given his personal guardians authorisation to erase anybody who stood in their way.

I eventually came to the decision that it would be safer to keep this encounter to myself. Spiridon was partly right. If I tried to tell Ellen Kirova my suspicions she would dismiss them without a second thought. It would be difficult convincing Alberta that guardians trained to protect moroi lives were involved in a kidnapping plot, and I definitely couldn't tell Sonya. She was already worried about being watched. If she found out how close she had come to being taken it would almost certainly trigger an episode of depression and anxiety, and I cared too deeply about her to let that happen.

The only thing to do was watch and wait. Spiridon was competitive and he hated to lose. At some point he would be back for his prize and I would make sure I was there to stop him – with as many of the school guard as I could summon.

Author's Note:

Sonya seems the most balanced she's ever been – hopefully when she finds out about Dashkov's plans it won't ruin her groove.

Did you like Mikhail's sneaky kiss on the cheek? Something's gotta give soon!

Spiridon's character has always interested me. I love that he has no qualms about manipulating his friendships in order to achieve his goals (twisted but great initiative don't you think?!)