Another action-packed chapter for your enjoyment... and we're finally up to date with the plot-line of Last Sacrifice! :-) Lots of Rose & Dimitri in this chapter, and also some Sonya POV at the end so there should be something in here to pique your interest.

Thanks for reading all this way with me - I will make sure the ending is worth your time!

42. Accessory

(Mikhail POV)

Princess Vasilisa had staked a Strigoi and brought him back from the dead. It was nothing short of a miracle, and by the time I returned to Court with the last car-load of casualties from the warehouse rescue mission the news of Dimitri Belikov's return had spread like wildfire.

Most people dismissed it as a lie or a hoax but I knew differently. I'd only seen Dimitri for a minute or so but it was clear there was no trace of Strigoi left in him. His eyes were brown and his skin was no longer pallid and chalky but flushed with life. Above all, there was no threat in the man's expression – if anything, I thought he actually looked fragile, bewildered, frightened even.

Despite the overwhelming physical evidence that proved Dimitri was no longer Strigoi the authorities refused to accept it. As there were no previous cases of a Strigoi-Dhampir transformation listed in the official records, the ex-Guardian was labelled a freak of nature and locked up in a holding cell under heavy guard until the Moroi Council saw fit to decide his fate.

I didn't agree that imprisonment was the best solution – if it was Sonya in that cell right now I'd be clamouring to see her and lobbying to have her released at once – but I understood why Hans felt he couldn't take any risks. No matter how placid the prisoner might appear, nobody could deny that Dimitri Belikov and his sidekicks had just brutally murdered the Voda princess, along with several of her personal guard and at least six of our best Guardians. Emotions were running high and it would be difficult to convince the frightened and angry citizens of Court that Dimitri was no longer a threat.

My shift was well and truly over by the time I found Hans in the Guardian prison building (or 'The Fort' as I affectionately called it). He looked exhausted and I offered to help in any way I could.

'Go home and get some rest, Mikhail – that's an order,' he added when I opened my mouth to object. 'You've been a great asset tonight,' he continued, reaching out to shake my hand. 'I'll be rearranging the rosters ASAP and I think you've proved you're ready for some extra duties – welcome back on the team.'

I raised my eyebrows in surprise but nodded in thanks before heading back down the hallway in a daze, trying to come to grips with everything that had happened. How did Lissa bring Dimitri back? Could we do the same for Sonya? How soon could we try to find her? The sound of my name brought me back to reality and I looked over my shoulder to see Rose Hathaway.

'Mikhail! What's going on?' Rose asked, the tension clear on her face. 'Have they let Dimitri out?'

Of course – she was as focused on being reunited with Dimitri as much I was with Sonya. I shook my head in response.

'No, they're still trying to figure out what happened. Everyone's confused, even though the princess still swore up and down after she saw him that he's not Strigoi anymore.'

That threw her. Rose grabbed my arm and fixed me with a demanding gaze. 'Wait. Did you say Lissa saw him? You mean after the fight?'

'He asked for her,' I explained. 'So they let her in – guarded, of course.'

The young woman's troubled expression lifted, replaced by a hopeful, determined look as she turned away with a hurried word of thanks.

'Wait, Rose…' I took a few steps towards the retreating figure, wanting to explain that Dimitri wasn't seeing any other visitors yet, but then decided to let her go. Nothing I could say would stop Rose from trying to see the man she loved, and I knew I wouldn't want anybody keeping me from Sonya if she was here right now.

Sonya… my mind returned to her in an instant. I'd spent so long trying to find her – to kill her – and now I knew it was possible to change her back she felt further away than ever. How could I save her if I didn't even know where she was? Unlocking the door to my flat I slumped down on the couch to take my boots off. It felt like I'd been awake for a week and while my body was utterly exhausted, my mind refused to shut-down. I wandered over to the kitchen to make a cup of tea, reaching for my phone as I waited for the kettle to boil.

Thinking about Sonya reminded me I hadn't talked to her parents in several months and I had a sudden urge to reconnect – I couldn't tell the Karps that there was reason to hope yet, but I wanted to assure them I hadn't given up on finding their daughter.

It was Mariya who answered, and she quickly launched into an account of their recent activities. Apparently Thomas was on bed-rest recovering from a nasty bout of pneumonia; their niece Emily had recently stayed over for a long weekend and Mariya promised to send me some photos of Sonya that Emily had brought with her. Finally, she urged me to come and spend a few nights at the Torma Estate – it was Thomas and Mariya's thirty-fifth wedding anniversary coming up and they hoped I would help them celebrate the milestone. After I hung up the phone I sipped at my hot drink distractedly and considered Mariya's offer. Yes, I would like to visit the old couple who had practically adopted me as their own, but returning without Sonya would feel like I'd failed them all over again. I emptied my cup and left it on the sink, suddenly aware I couldn't keep my eyelids open a minute longer. Dropping into bed I pulled the covers up over my chest and reached across to turn out the lamp with a strange sense of calm. The answer was simple, I realised. I would just have to find Sonya. Once Vasilisa changed her back I would return her home to her parents. Yes. That would be nice.

A few days after the warehouse rescue it seemed like everything in my life had changed. The possibility of getting Sonya back, however remote, gave me a new lease on life and I felt the quiet anticipation building in the pit of my stomach every time I thought of her. I fantasised about rushing out to find the woman I loved, throwing her over my shoulder kicking and screaming and bringing her to Court where Vasilisa Dragomir would save her for all the world to see. I would hold her and caress her, laugh and cry with her, bed her soundly and never leave her side again.

The reality was, however, that I couldn't leave my post. With seven Guardians lost in the most recent Strigoi battle, Hans had re-organised the duty rosters to post extra Guardians at the main gates and in the council chambers to protect the Queen and her Moroi Council. For the first time since I'd returned to Court I felt I was actually doing something useful, and I relished the chance to get out of the archives in favour of a regular admin duty in The Fort. Sure, it was still a desk job which suited me well enough for now, but eventually I hoped to return to an active guarding position and this might be my way forward.

With no chance of taking time-off to search for Sonya in the foreseeable future I turned my attention to Rose and Dimitri. While I didn't have much direct contact with the ex-Strigoi it was clear to me that the prisoner was struggling, and I knew enough of depression from first-hand experience to know the signs. He slept poorly, hardly ate and was extremely anti-social, refusing all visitors except his saviour Lissa Dragomir. I couldn't help wondering if Sonya would be like this too if we managed to save her. I'd do anything to make her happy and whole again, and I knew it was killing Rose to be kept from her lover. Maybe there was a way I could sneak Rose in to see Dimitri – I'm sure she'd do the same for me.

As the days went by, the drama of Dimitri Belikov's return from the dead was soon forgotten in favour of deepening debate over Queen Tatiana's age-law reforms, and while Dimitri wasn't cleared to be released yet, Hans lightened the prisoner's guard to free up more Guardians for council duties. I realised that this was probably the best opportunity I'd get to smuggle Rose into The Fort so I waited until I was off-duty and headed over to Rose's room. She wasn't in, so I took a walk in the early morning sunlight and was lucky enough to bump into the person I was looking for.

'Mikhail,' she looked surprised. 'What are you doing out here?'

'Actually, I've been looking for you,' I explained quickly. The Guardian who'd taken over from me at the front desk promised to turn a blind eye to my unauthorised visitor but only if we arrived before he took his break. 'I heard you tried to see Dimitri… I think I can sneak you in to see him.'

Rose's face switched from confusion to disbelief. 'How?' she asked. 'I tried and…'

'Come on,' I cut her off. 'We don't have much time.'

As we hurried across the courtyard I filled Rose in on Dimitri's situation. She was understandably upset when she learnt that his case had been postponed because the Moroi Council was currently tied up with 'more important' issues, but she reigned in her emotions as best as she could by the time we arrived at entrance to The Fort. I reached up to push the door open but felt Rose grip my arm.

'Why are you doing this for me?' she asked searchingly. 'The Moroi Council might not think Dimitri's a big deal, but the Guardians do. You could get in big trouble.'

I frowned down at her in surprise. 'Do you have to ask?'

Rose frowned thoughtfully before shaking her head. I think she understood but I felt I needed to say the words aloud.

'When I lost Sonya I didn't want to go on living,' I felt strangely vulnerable as I tried to explain. 'She was a good person – really. She turned Strigoi out of desperation. She saw no other way to save herself from Spirit. I would give anything – anything – for a chance to help her, to fix things between us. I don't know if that'll ever be possible for us, but it is possible for you right now. I can't let you lose this.'

My friend's eyes filled with emotion and she gave my arm a sympathetic squeeze to show she understood, then the moment was over and we moved through the door together to complete our mission. The visit wasn't terribly productive, in fact we pretty much got hustled out of the building when Rose pushed Dimitri too far and he called for the guards, but every journey starts with a single step and at least now they'd made a start.

'Calm down,' I warned Rose as I steered her outside. 'This was the first time you've seen him since the change. There are only so many miracles you can expect right away. He'll come around.'

'I'm not so sure,' she grumbled fretfully. 'You don't know him like I do.'

And that was the last time I saw Rose until she turned up at The Fort a few days later, spitting curses as a tight knot of Guardians hustled her towards my desk. I stared at the handcuffed prisoner in shock as one of the Guardians approached me to book Rose into a cell.

'Name?' I clarified formally, although I knew exactly who she was.

'Guardian Rosemarie Hathaway,'

'Charge?' Did she try to break into the archives again? Offend another royal? Punch Hans in the face? Whatever she'd done, surely this could have been dealt with another way.

'High Treason. The murder of Her Royal Majesty, Queen Tatiana.'

What?! My eyes flew to the prisoner. She was staring straight ahead and I could tell that she was angry. Angry and confused. And innocent.

I'd experienced some pretty weird shit over the last two years, but now we'd officially hit a new low. In the past fortnight alone, Princess Priscilla Voda and her entourage were brutally killed by Strigoi; Princess Vasilisa Dragomir brought one of the undead back to life; Dimitri Belikov was officially declared a Dhampir and released from prison; the Dragomir princess was denied her rightful seat on the Moroi Council due to an outdated 'quorum' law that required royal families to have two or more members in order to vote; the new Guardian age-law was passed by the Moroi Council – an outrageous decision that meant Novices would graduate at sixteen before they were fully trained; and now our long-reigning queen had been murdered and the main suspect was my friend Rose.

I was used to dealing with personal tragedies, but I'd never seen turmoil on such a wide scale as this and I only hoped that Sonya, wherever she was, was faring better than the rest of us.

(Sonya POV)

No matter how hard I tried to keep to myself there were some things I couldn't avoid. Donovan dropped by once a month to collect his rent – I had no problem using compulsion to raise the money but I hated that he always outstayed his welcome, walking possessively through my home as he filled me in on current events.

A few months after I'd moved into the blue house I heard that Victor Dashkov had been stripped of his royal title and locked up in Tarasov Prison for the kidnap and torture of his god-daughter Vasilisa Dragomir. I was elated that he had been caught at last and hoped he rotted for what he did to the princess, for what he did to me.

Not long after the Dashkov news my landlord took great pleasure in informing me that Elena Ozera, the Strigoi who styled herself as a key player in the Louisville underground, had been killed by Guardians in Spokane of all places. Donovan was so pleased that his debts to Elena had been erased that he made me a generous offer to celebrate – one month of free rent and a Moroi feeder in exchange for a night with him every now and then. I considered the proposal seriously. The free rent was nothing to me, but having a Moroi of my own would mean I could give my human feeder a rest. I'd chosen Annie because she reminded me of Alice – my old feeder from St. Vladimir's – and while the woman was a very willing donor, years of drug-abuse meant she was hardly the best source of nutrition (or flavour for that matter). I nearly said yes to Donovan even though everything about the man repulsed me, but something held me back and I realised to my surprise that I still had feelings for Mikhail.

Ever since I'd seen Misha in Seattle and found out he didn't want me now that I'd turned Strigoi I'd tried my best to push him from my mind. I threw away any last reminders of him and tried to loose myself in the freedom of a life without rules or boundaries – stealing cars, breaking into houses, draining the occasional abusive drunk. The turning point came one night when I stumbled across a Dhampir blood whore – I stalked her for an hour but in the end I couldn't go through with the kill because something about her scent reminded me of the man I still loved. I returned home with the realisation that I would probably never be free of the bond we had once shared. Maybe you didn't actually need a soul to have a soul-mate.

When I finally acknowledged I couldn't escape the bittersweet memories of Mikhail, I reversed my strategy and began to look for him in his dreams. Most of my Spirit abilities were lost when I turned but sometimes when I was feeling strong after a feed I could catch a glimpse of him. I'm sure he never noticed me but it made me feel better just seeing him from a distance, feeling him growing stronger with time, gradually healing from the pain I'd put him through.

Donovan wasn't as friendly after I'd turned him down, which was good for me because I didn't have to see him as often, until one day – when I'd been at the blue house for two years – he rapped on my door bursting with the news that the Moroi queen had been murdered.

'Another one down,' he gloated, as if he had personally wielded the knife that pierced her heart. 'Soon we will be in charge – imagine it Sonya… no Guardians to hunt us and the Moroi will be ours to breed and feed.'

An interesting thought but I didn't particularly care about world domination. I had everything I needed right here – why risk that?

'So who did it? One of us?' I asked him, mildly curious.

Donovan's face split into a malicious grin. 'That's the funny part – it was a Guardian! Someone called Rose… Holloway or something.'

'Hathaway!?' I asked sharply. 'Rose Hathaway?'

'Yeah – that's right. You know her?' the Strigoi asked with a glint in his eye, probably already thinking up some way of using the connection to his advantage.

'I thought I did,' I replied dismissively, unable to comprehend the news. Rose had always been a rebel, but killing a Moroi? She'd trained her whole life to protect them. It just didn't sound right.

Donovan narrowed his eyes snakily before he finally responded. 'Well, I guess it doesn't matter if you knew her or not – they've already set the date for her execution.'

When I was finally left alone I couldn't get the news of the royal murder out of my mind. The whole situation made me angry. I wasn't particularly concerned about Tatiana's death – people died every day – but I resented that Rose had been dragged into the fray. It was just like Moroi to hide behind the nearest Dhampir when faced with a threat, and I wondered if such a weak and incompetent race would manage to survive if their Guardians ever decided to abandon them.

Guardians – of course. Maybe Mikhail knew what was going on? I phoned Annie and she was at my door in less than twenty minutes. I felt almost guilty when I saw her good-natured smile – she had no idea I was going to drain her tonight, but if I wanted to get into Misha's head I was going to need all of my strength. I dumped Annie's body in the spare room when I was done – I could deal with the housekeeping later – and sat down on my bed to focus on that frail connection that still linked me to my soul-mate.

He was awake and something wasn't right. Watching from the background I saw the familiar figure sitting quietly at a desk but his whole body was tense like a coiled spring. Without warning, a huge explosion sounded somewhere nearby and several Guardians rushed out of the building to investigate. Seconds later, a young Guardian I vaguely recognised dashed over to Mikhail and they exchanged a few words before hurrying down a short flight of stairs. After fighting their way past a handful of unsuspecting Guardians the pair came to a prison cell, and when I saw who was on the other side of the bars I realised that my brave, reckless Misha was breaking Rosemarie Hathaway out of prison. Wasting no time unlocking the door, Mikhail and his friend whisked the astounded prisoner back down the hallway past a third Dhampir – tall and muscular, almost god-like – and there was a brief conversation as the group met with another co-conspirator – a young Moroi with piercing green eyes.

'We need to go,' the chiselled god warned the others after a minute or so, looking around with growing agitation, and everybody moved into action at once.

When the group emerged into the sunlight the vampire world was in chaos, with Moroi and Dhampirs running in all directions. Everyone seemed to be dressed for mourning – of course, Queen Tatiana's funeral would have been today – but there was no sense of decorum or poise here. The citizens of Court were fleeing like rats from a burning ship, making for their cars to put as much distance between themselves and the explosions that had brought down two massive statues outside the cathedral.

The atmosphere of panic and confusion worked in Rose's favour, and they managed to reach their destination with only one serious altercation – having to take down three Guardians that tried to stand in their way. When the huge Dhampir they called Dimitri finally led the group to a grey Honda Civic parked just outside the furthest garage, a sinister looking Moroi was standing by the getaway car. I didn't recognise the man at first but there were enough physical similarities to suggest this was Rose's father.

'I couldn't leave without telling you goodbye, could I?' the man eyed his daughter sardonically before sharing a few final words of advice. 'Remember – they already think you're guilty, and you wasting away in that cell won't change that. Getting you out just ensures we have more time to do what we need to without your execution looming over us.'

'And what are you going to do exactly?' Rose asked suspiciously.

'Prove you're innocent,' the young Moroi with the green eyes piped up.

Rose didn't look hopeful. 'What? Are you guys going to destroy the evidence?'

'No,' one of the others answered. 'We have to find who really did kill the queen.'

A few more minutes passed as they ran over the final details of the escape plan, but Dimitri was growing impatient.

'Rose needs to leave now,' his voice was uncompromising. 'She's in danger. I'll drag her out if I have to.'

Rose seemed to take offence at being ordered around, but hurried up her farewells, stopping to thank each of the faithful friends who had acted as an accessory in her escape. When she came to Mikhail I felt a pang of jealousy as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

'Thank you so much for your help,' she murmured into his ear. 'I swear, we'll find her. We'll find Sonya.'

I froze and the shock of her words jolted me out of the dream. They were coming to find me? So Mikhail hadn't given up on hunting for me after all. Yes, I loved the man and knew he was just doing what he thought was right, but I wasn't going to let anybody take me down without a fight.

Author's Note:

There was a lot of creative scene-chopping that went into this chapter, but hopefully the main points are there. (I promise I tried to keep the word count down as much as possible!)

The Mikhail POV section is really a follow-on from the previous chapter, and covers a lot of the political background to what is going on at Court at this point in the story.

I wanted to put in the phone-call to Sonya's mum to give Misha some time to stop and think about Sonya amidst all the craziness that is going on in his life.

The Sonya POV section is the more interesting part of the chapter in my opinion, as we find out a bit more about what she did while she was living in the blue house. I've also expanded on the idea of how she might have made contact with Mikhail in his visions (mentioned a few times in previous chapters) & the idea to show the prison-break through Sonya's POV was a little piece of narrative genius (pure laziness on my part because I didn't want to include all of the dialogue from the scene in the book! Ha ha).

I also like the idea that she might have had a premonition that Rose was coming for her... next chapter!