Rose POV

The world was spinning before I opened my eyes, and when I lifted my eyelids the swaying became even worse. I closed them immediately, feeling not only a piercing headache in response to the light, but also increasing nausea. I would have been happiest to stay in my reclining position and not expose my poor body to any additional unpleasant stimuli. Sweat streaked down my face, and my clothes clung stickily to my wet body.

The skin on my neck was aching in a specific way I came to know. I remembered the last time I lost consciousness, when another Strigoi sank its fangs into a tender spot, right next to an artery. I remembered how I didn't even have the strength to push him away or protest. I could only feel disgust with myself for eagerly anticipating the high that was about to come. I drifted off not long after the third monster got to me.

The blissful relaxation took away my ability to think. My thoughts rippled through my head, like waves bouncing and scattering at sea. The shreds of anxiety I felt were drowned out by blissful, intangible thoughts. Even if there was a sense sparking somewhere that something was wrong, that I was in a place I shouldn't be, for a moment nothing could shake me out of my high.

However, the approaching footsteps made me realize that I was not alone. I was awakened by someone entering the room. I forced myself to open my eyes and tried to raise my hand to shield them from the light, but my hand would not cooperate. It remained inert on the dirty bedding. Only when my eyes became accustomed to the blinding brightness did I see that a strange man stood before me. Even in my poor state, I recognized the red eyes and pale complexion of the Strigoi.

Surprisingly, there was no fear left in me. Some thin voice in my head tried to remind me that this was my enemy. To remind me what I should have done. That I should have bolted out of bed and thrown myself at him. I should have fought him until I could find some clever fort to use his strength and speed against him. Then I should run away and run as far as I could until I found myself in the sun or among people. I should call Dimitri, and we both should return, armed and ready to finish them off. But now I couldn't turn my head without feeling dizziness so powerful that I couldn't tell the difference between up and down. I was completely at the mercy of the monster standing in front of me.

"Rose, you look a little worse. Like you're more tired than last time," he smiled wickedly, and my stomach tightened at the sight. He came to play with the food. I personally didn't remember him, but it didn't matter.

I desperately looked around for anything I could defend myself with if I wrenched the rest of my willpower, as the Strigoi began to slowly approach me. In my peripheral vision, there was a bottle of wine, no, champagne, and three glasses, but they were out of my hands' reach. Besides, they were useless. There were also blood-soiled towels on the bedside table, but I saw no use for them. The vampire mumbled in displeasure as he swung back my tangled, unwashed hair showing my neck. Even the lightest touch caused me pain, and I preferred not to even know what it looked like.

He brushed back my hair, and the movement reminded me of when I saw him. The first time they came to me as a group, and I tried to run away because I knew I wouldn't defeat them at this advantage. His hands brutally tightened in my hair, stopping me in my tracks and bringing a scream out of my mouth. I remembered attempting to fight back the first and second time. On my third try, I knew I would not succeed. When they came at me the fourth time, I didn't even try to fight back.

I remembered how I tried to steal a phone from one of the Strigoi and call Dimitri, but I was caught before I could type in the number. They then threw me against the wall, breaking my ribs. Not that I remembered any pain after they applied a fair share of their bites on me. I remember crying out for help, begging them to leave me alone. Each time the end was the same - the Strigois made a feast of me, and I was incapable of defeating them.

This time I didn't even have the strength to object when he flashed his fangs intending to plunge them into my abused neck. I wanted to do anything, scream, scratch, lash out. Preferably find an ax and chop off his head. But I didn't have the strength to do any of that. I raised my hand trying to push him away from me, but it was as futile as trying to move a wall.
"Please leave me," I whispered. The Strigoi chuckled right next to my ear. Shivers of disgust ran along my spine.

"Oh, but you're too sweet," he said, tenderly embracing me like a lover, exposing my neck so he could sink his fangs into my skin. I closed my eyes, preparing myself for another pleasant indulgence, leading to my ultimate doom.

The door opened with a bang, and Strigoi released me from his arms to face the figure rushing toward us. The newcomer moved too fast for me to recognize him as he threw herself at my would-be tormentor, but when my savior cried out my heart couldn't mistake that voice for anyone else's. A surprised sigh slipped from my lips.

Dimitri.

My boyfriend ran up to the Strigoi and threw himself at him with fury, starting a deadly fight. I couldn't keep up with all of his movements, but I could see the power and strength that was emanating from him as he dealt deadly blows to the monster. They began circling the room, trying to kill each other, but neither could break through the other's defenses. I realized how serious an opponent the monster was. I thought my drug-induced stupor was the reason I failed, but the son of a bitch was very fast and well-trained.

My heart hammered in my chest as I struggled to rise, desperate to do anything, anything to help Dimitri. A hand, an elbow, an arm - lifting every part of my body required all my strength. At the same time, I tried to watch the fight. The way Dimitri fought was almost unreal. With rage written on his face, he resembled a god of war, descending to earth to put up a bloody fight. The swings made by his muscular arms were smooth and graceful. I wished I could have seen his face, but he was constantly standing between me and the monster.

I blinked, and suddenly, Dimitri wasn't in front of me anymore; he was against the wall. The Strigoi held him by the throat, immobilizing his body. Dimitri jerked, trying to free himself from his opponent's grip, but Strigoi's unnatural strength held him in an iron grip. He began to run out of breath, which he was losing, trying to get out of the unbreakable hold.

I didn't know where I found the strength to straighten up and throw my legs over the edge of the bed. The image of the world around me whirled with nauseating speed as I tried to get my feet on the ground, grasping the edge of the bed to keep from falling over. I grabbed the bottle of Dom Perignon and tried to locate Dimitri and Strigoi in the blurry haze before my eyes. The sound of Dimitri choking made me stand up and wobbly, supporting myself on the wall with one hand, I moved toward them. I couldn't see them very well, but I saw the shape of the Strigoi's head, and without hesitation, I slammed the champagne bottle right into it.

The glass sprinkled on the floor along with the liquor, and the monster wailed furiously. I knew I wouldn't kill him with that hit, but I hoped to cause some damage. He turned around and pushed me violently. With my non-existing balance, I fell on the glass, not managing to shield myself. Sharp pieces pierced my skin, cutting into my face and hands.

However, that second distraction was exactly what Dimitri needed. Without hesitation, he threw himself at the monster and stabbed him in the side with his silver stake. Strigoi wailed in pain and my boyfriend flawlessly pulled the stake from his side and with frightening precision drove the sharp weapon into the monster's heart. He screamed and sank to his knees, then slid to the ground.

Dimitri was at my side a heartbeat later. His warm, familiar hands framed my face, inspecting the worst of the damage. He was breathing heavily, but his full attention was focused on me and my injuries. I noticed he noticeably froze when his fingers came across my bruised neck.

"Hi comrade," I whispered incoherently, attempting to distract him, "Just in time."

Dimitri tried to say something, but he just slightly shook his head.

"Roza…" that's all that came out of his mouth. He lifted me off the glass and, still kneeling, held me close. I melted into his warmth, into this promise of safety. Dimitri held me close, his hands exploring every inch of my body as if ensuring every part of me was still there. Finally, he moved away, "I'm taking you out of here," he said in a firm tone.

He stood up and helped me to my feet. The grip of his hand was strong and steady however, when we started walking towards the door, I could not catch my balance. The world swirled, the ground became unstable and the next thing I knew was that I was falling backward, unable to catch my balance. Dimitri's arms were wrapped around me before I could fall to the floor.

"I'm sorry... I can't walk," I admitted quietly as he helped me sit up on the bed. I had trouble staying in an upright position. Seeing this, Dimitri knelt down in front of me and held me in a stable support.

"It's okay, I'll carry you out. I just need someone to cover us while my hands are full," he reassured. He tapped his earpiece to summon someone to back up, and I leaned over, placing my heavy head in the hollow of his neck. With my eyes closed and my head stabilized the world stopped spinning for a moment. I felt Dimitri's lips on my head and moved even closer.

"I feel so pathetic... I hate being helpless. I hate not being able to control what happens to me," I spat out, with an almost inaudible hysterical note in my voice. Dimitri strengthened his grip on me. I knew that he too understood this feeling, that he too would rather fight to the death sooner than give up.

"I understand, though... you didn't seem helpless to me when, half-conscious, you hit the Strigoi with a bottle to the head, saving my life. Even in this state, you are one of the most dangerous people I know."

I snorted a laugh into his neck, and he hugged me tighter to himself.

"I would still have fallen over, even if he hadn't pushed me. Too bad you have such a clumsy girlfriend."

Dimitri pressed his lips to my temple.

"I've been looking for my clumsy girlfriend for two weeks straight and I wasn't going to stop until I found her. And now I don't care about anything except that she's alive in my arms and I'm about to get her out of here."

His words made warmth spread throughout my body. I hated being helpless, I hated it the most in the world. But I knew that not everything could be within my powers, even if I reached for impossible resources. And then I knew I could count on Dimitri.

"Belikov!" shouted the guardian who came to back us up. Dimitri swiftly lifted me into his arms, but the sudden movement triggered a throbbing in my head and a piercing wave of nausea. A moan slipped from my throat before I could stop myself. Dimitri immediately froze and held me closer, allowing me to slowly press my face against his chest and stabilize my position.

"I'm sorry, Rose," he whispered. He started walking towards the guardian, but his gaze once again rested on my abused neck. "Very, very sorry."