Authors notes

Please be kind. This is my second story I'm publishing. I'm writing this on my phone so there may be mistakes!! Review and enjoy!

THE QUEENS PROTÉGÉE

Prologue

If you would have told me four years ago. That I would be taking Lissa and running away from it all. I would have said you were crazy. She was being groomed to be our next Queen and I was training to become her guardian. Our futures were set. Now I'm the crazy one packing only what we could carry into a stolen suv.

"That's the last of it." I said to Dimitri as I closed the hatch.

"I'm going to go see if Lissa and Christian are ready to go" I started to walk towards the apartment when he caught me off guard and grabbed me. He pulled me into a passionate kiss. One that makes you forget your name and what day of the week it is. Too soon he lets my lips go and rests his forehead on mine. I took a minute to catch my breath. Slowly breathing in his scent. It was a perfect mix of his aftershave and him. It always seemed to calm me down and right now I was anything but calm. I pulled my head away and looked into his bottomless brown eyes.

"Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?"

"Things are about to change and I just needed a moment alone with you."

"I know they are, but we have to do this. They come first."

"I just wish things were different for us. I told myself after the last time I ran that it was the last time. I hate to disappoint my family again." He lowered his head, hair hanging down covering his face.

"Hey, look at me, you're not a disappointment to your family." I pulled his head back up, pushed his hair out of the way, and put my hands on the sides of his face. "You did what you had to do to protect him and still are. It's not just about the four of us anymore." He let out the breath he was holding in.

"I love you Roza."

"I love you too comrade, but we need to get going. I'm not sure how long those pills are going to keep them asleep. I don't want to have to fight any of them if they wake up." I hated to drug them. They were good guardians who genuinely cared for Lissa. But it was necessary for us to get away and make sure they weren't implicated in our escape. We were leaving just after dinner time and had slipped sleeping pills in their food. It is the beginning of our vampiric night which is the start of the human morning. We planned this because it was safer for us to travel during the day.

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We got inside and my stomach clenched at the sight of guardians passed out on the floor. I carefully walked around them and headed towards the bathroom where I could hear Lissa throwing up. I'm glad we no longer had the bond because I didn't want to go through this with her. I gently knocked on the door. I heard Christian tell me to come in. I opened the door and walked in to see him holding her hair back while she was face down in the toilet. He was so good to her. I hated that they had to go through this.

"We need to get going as soon as possible." I said as gently as I could.

"I've already got some ginger ale and crackers in the car. All I have to get is the cooler full of blood bags and we will be all set to go."

"Ok we'll be there as soon as we can." Christin said as he wiped her mouth with a wet washcloth. I walked out into the hallway and ran into Adrian. Another innocent victim in this mess.

"Hey Little Dhampir, I guess this is goodbye."

"No, don't say goodbye. That makes it final and I plan on seeing you again once things get settled. How about see ya later."

"I hope you're right, but I know my aunt and she's not going to let this go. But I have faith in you and Belikov."

"I'm glad you have faith in us. Because to be honest I'm not sure how we're going to fix this."

"You will." He reached out to give me a hug. I let him wrap his arms around me and I leaned my head on his shoulder and let the tears fall. I don't know how long I stood there before I heard Dimitri clear his throat.

"We have to go"

I reluctantly let go of Adrian and wiped the tears from my eyes. Dimitri came over and gave him a side hug.

"See ya later cuz." Adrian said as he lets go and pats Dimitri on the back.

"Make sure you take care of this one." He said pointing in my direction.

"If she'll let me." Dimitri says back. Adrian reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out an envelope to hand to Dimitri.

"Take this and use it for emergencies." Dimitri raised an eyebrow and opened up the envelope to see a stack of hundred dollar bills.

"Adrian, we can't take this." Dimitri closed the envelope and tried to hand it back.

"You can and you will. This isn't even a small dent in my account and you will need it." He pushed it back into Dimitris' hand. I gave him a look like just take it. He nodded and put it in the inner pocket of his duster. Lissa and Christian finally emerge from the bathroom. Christian supported her the whole way.

"Alright let's get going before Hathaway cries even more." Christian says, trying to lighten the mood.

"Shut it sparky! We could leave you behind you know!"

"Nah you wouldn't do that"

"Try me!"

"Ok you two, we don't have time for this. We have to go plus there is a long car ride for you two to bicker all you want." Dimitri stepped in shutting us up. Adrian rolled his eyes and walked toward Lissa.

"I'm sorry that you have to leave like this. I never wanted this for you or any of us." Lissa let's go of Christian and leans into Adrian. He then grabs her in a hug.

"Don't be sorry it's not your fault. It's nobody's fault, but maybe the screwed up system we live in. I just don't want you to take the fall for this." She says as she starts to cry, dripping her tears onto his shoulder.

"I'll be fine, you just go be safe and happy." He gave her one last squeeze and passed her back to Christian. Christian looks at Adrian and reaches out his hand.

" Take care of yourself, Ivashkov and thank you for not forcing this on her." Adrian takes his hand and clasps it in between his.

"Don't thank me, it's the right thing to do. We don't love each other in that way and never would. It's not fair to either of us to be miserable for the rest of our lives just to please a few royals."

"I hate to interrupt, but we have got to go!"

I cut in trying not to look into Adrain's emerald green eyes. They are full of sadness and I see a couple of tears fall. He wipes them and starts to push us out the door.

"Go get out of here." He opens up the door. "I'll keep in touch as much as I can." Adrian points to his head. Meaning he will dream walk us, which is the only safe way for us to communicate.

We walked out and I turned around to take one last look at the life I am leaving behind. Why are we doing this? When did our lives turn completely around? Well to get to the answer you have to go back to where it all began four years ago.