Chapter 19 - All signs point to...

R POV

Jill and I came downstairs and joined our parents, Dimitri, Sonya and Mikhail in the kitchen. I sat on Dimitri's lap and he placed his hands over my lower abdomen, while I leaned against his chest. Jill was wide-eyed when she watched our interaction and she squealed when he kissed the top of my head.

Emily Mastrano and her husband had grim faces and Mikhail and my mother looked serious.

"Jill, I don't expect you to understand, but I did what I could to protect you. I had a brief relationship with Eric Dragomir, which resulted in you. He was very sweet, but very sad. His father had just died and he was worried about his diminishing family. He was very kind to me." Emily continued.

"I know that he loved his wife, but he was in a dark place and we connected at a time when he was at his lowest. I contacted him because I thought that he should know about you- I made it clear that I had no expectations from him, but he would have acknowledged you if I had let him. But I saw what the politics of Royal moroi society entailed and I didn't want that for you. I allowed him to make financial arrangements for you, to make sure your future was secure."

I looked around the house, it was nice, but quite modest. There were no signs of her using the money provided in the bank accounts.

Emily noticed my scrutiny of the house. "The money is on hand for emergencies, but I mostly set it aside for Jill."

"What do you mean?" asked Jill, aghast. "What kind of money are you talking about?"

"You're an heiress," I said. "And royalty." Jill's jaw dropped open.

My old man cleared his throat to get attention. "She needs to take her place as a member of the Dragomir family"

Emily fixed him with a sharp stare, I could see John trying to tap her shoulder, looking at Abe with fear. Clearly he knew my father by reputation. "She is never going to court, never."

"This will happen eventually whether you like it or not. If we do it now, we can take all the precautions to ensure her safety." Janine replied.

"The death of the queen puts our society on the edge of social change. The factions are tied and without the Dragomir family, we are facing an uncertain future. The royalist factions want more severe changes which continue to push the preservation of royals over everyone else. Lissa and Jill could effect real change for our people and for generations to come." Abe stared Emily down.

Emily gave him a bitter smile. "What do you think they'd do if another Dragomir came forward? The people who oppose Vasilisa? What do you think they'd do if only one person stood between them and her family's power?"

I looked down at my feet, the thought of sweet, innocent Jill. She wanted to learn to fight and seek adventure, who blushed when she even thought about talking to guys. I didn't want her to be thrown into the shark-infested den that was moroi politics.

Emily seemed to notice my face and looked triumphant, feeling like she had won. Little did she know that my father had set his mind towards a goal.

Jill suddenly spoke up "I'll do it". Emily and john's heads snapped towards her. "I'll help Lissa, if I have the power to help our people… Well, I think that is something I can't ignore."

"You certainly will not" Emily jumped in.

Jill and her mother started arguing, John jumped into the discussion in support of his wife, but Jill was resolute.

Sonya jumped into the conversation unexpectedly. "Emily, listen to me. This is all going to happen eventually, with or without your consent. If you don't let Jill go now, she'll go next week. Or next year. Or in five years. The point is, it will happen. You don't want to push her away so that she does this without you."

Emily sank back against the chair, face crumpling. "No. I don't want this."

Sonya's pretty face turned bitter. "Life, unfortunately, doesn't seem to care what we want. Act now while you can actually stop it from being a disaster."

This seemed to knock the wind out of Emily's sails and she finally relented. My mother, ever the pragmatist, made arrangements for our transport to the airport to fly back to court.

Hans POV

The guardian dorms were on fire, literally.

More specifically, the room that guardian Belikov had been staying in and the adjacent apartments. Water and air users were utilised to stamp it out quickly and fire users had confirmed that it was started by fire magic.

Yet again someone tied to belikov seemed to be the culprit.

He had combed through the entire list of women requesting Guardian Belikov, cross-matching the ones who were fire users. One name kept coming up to him.. Tasha Ozera.

She was the only person who was a fire user with a history of requesting her to be his guardian prior to that disastrous court case.

He pulled up her file and noted that there was a recent report of her being found sleepwalking near the guardian dorms on the night of the fire. She was escorted back to her room and the issue appeared to be settled.

Someone just made the top of my suspect list.

Lissa POV

I stalled at the door to the outside, I pulled out the letter from my pocket and stared at it. Tasha was continually trying to get her magic program off the ground and it was being blocked by Tatiana. She was also still asking about Dimitri and wanting him to be her guardian.

Then there was her recent behaviour, she was developing some sort of tick and kept wringing her hands. Last I looked, her hands were red raw and peeling and she looked like she hadn't slept in days. Then there was her aura, it was becoming progressively darker and murkier every time I saw her.

I had to talk to Adrian, he was much better at reading aura's than I was. I still couldn't even manage to dream walk, and yet he had restored a strigoi and learnt healing. To say that I was jealous was an understatement.

I sent him a text:

Adrian,

How have you been?

I have some things that I really need to talk to you about.

Do you know when you will be returning to court?

Lissa

I got a response right away.

Cousin, no need to be so formal.

We are booking flights to return ASAP.

lots to catch up on…

I froze, the only reason that they all were returning was if they found my sibling. I started to spiral when I realised where I was, standing in front of the exit, about to be mobbed by a crowd of people. Come on Lissa, you are the head of the dragomir family and royal candidate for queen.

I steeled my shoulders, relaxed my face and pushed the door open into a crowd of people, significantly more than after the last trial. Christian and Pavel got to me quickly as I was surrounded by a thousand people. Everything felt too much, I felt like I was standing on the edge of a cliff and leaning forward, but outwardly I remained calm.

A few groups waved the Dragomir banner as I walked by, I gave the polite smiles to recognise their support as we made our way back to my room.

"Are you alright Liss?" Christian asked, looking at me all over, scrutinising me for any signs of injury.

I looked at him, feeling like a knife was stabbing me in the heart. I was suspecting his aunt, who protected him from strigoi and raised him, of being a murderer. "I'm just really tired, I have to return in 24 hours for the task and I just need some rest."

Christian did not look convinced. "What else?"

Pavel stopped walking, turning to look at me while still scanning our surroundings.

"They are all coming back tonight, they found my sibling."

Christian pulled me into his arms and held me tight. I wanted to start crying. He walked me back to our room, I was exhausted from the recent events, but the thought of my sibling made it difficult to sleep. Christian held me in his arms and stroked by back until I fell asleep.

R POV

I spent fifteen minutes with my head over the toilet, morning sickness had finally arrived. I thought I would check on the Mastranos. At the doorway of Jill's bedroom, I could see her packing for court with the help of Adrian and Sydney. Sydney was helping Jill fold and maximise suitcase efficiency, while Adrian was lounging around, offering advice.

"Jailbait, You must have something for a cocktail party or two" Adrian drawled.

"Adrian, I am 14, I haven't even gone to a school dance"

"Don't worry, we will pick a few things up for you at court."

I turned to see how Emily and John were fairing, Emily looked resigned, but on edge. John looked cross and fixed me with a glare. Sonya and Mikhail sat on the bed and she turned to give me a small smile. My mother wanted to us to leave at first light, during the moroi night. Abe had charted a small private plane for us and Sydney was returning to New Orleans.

I was about to turn around but I sensed someone behind me, I hadn't heard a sound, but smelt the scent of Dimitri's cologne. I felt his arms wrap around me as I turned to face him.

"You are so beautiful" He said as he kissed the top of my head. I snuggled under his right shoulder and leant my head on his shoulder.

Looking up at him through my lashes, I was struck by his handsome face and eyes full of love. "I love you."

His hand grazed my face and tucked some hair behind my ear. "I love you too. My beautiful Roza." He looked at me closely. "Are you feeling ok?" He placed his hand on my forehead.

"Relax comrade, just a touch of morning sickness." A touch was an understatement, I felt like I reenacted the exorcist 5 minutes ago. He fixed me with a stare and looked like he was going to pick me up and carry me around bridal style. "Many women have gone through this and survived."

"We will need to take you to the doctors for a check up" He said as he rubbed my flat stomach.

I rolled my eyes, this is going to be a long pregnancy.

Abe POV

Sydney left us at the airport, Adrian looked like someone kicked his puppy, but she looked mostly relieved to leave a large group of vampires.. mostly me. I noticed her glancing at Adrian when she thought that no-one was watching, I'll file that one away for later. I needed to be careful with Sydney while around my daughter, Rose was keen to find out what I was holding over Sydney's head.

It wasn't that I didn't like Sydney, far from it, but in my line of work it was important to have connections and the means to make things happen. I had an extensive network of informants and operatives, some I paid and others I influenced by less than savoury means.

I had actually been quite nice to Sydney, I did a few favours for her as a reward for helping Rose. I got her back to America and exacted revenge on someone who hurt her family. So if I have to call on her from time to time or use these favours to keep an alchemist in my pocket, why not. She is efficient and predictably reliable, I'm not letting her go any time soon.

She told Rose that the search for the identity of the mystery man was ongoing, but she would update her if it yielded any results.

Emily, Sonya and Janine sat with Jill in seats facing each other and Mikhail sat with John. The latter were having a tense discussion, it looked like Mikhail was trying to soothe John. Janine Hathaway was walking through court protocols with Jill and her mother.

Adrian and I sat at the back of the plane, I had requested a whiteboard to be placed on the plane. It was high time that I focused on who tried to frame my little girl. I was so proud of her, she was a vicious killing machine who had a flexible code of ethics, she was basically a hybrid between her rigid guardian mother and myself.

Sometimes I wondered what she would have become If I had raised her, but we are already too similar for my comfort. Rose seemed determined to be as different as her mother as possible, which was why it was hilarious that she found a man whose personality was so similar to her mother.

Dimitri and Rose were cuddled up in a seat in front of me, her head on his shoulder and him resting his head on hers.

Belikov had been another matter entirely. There were so many things to object about the man being with my daughter; their age gap, the fact that he was her mentor at school, her dropping out of school to hunt him and the state she was left in when I found her in Novosibirsk. No father should ever see his daughter like that, not that she knew who I was at the time.

I'd known Dimitri's family for a long time, I met Yeva when I was a small child. She was scary and intimidating, despite her small stature, she radiated an aura of power. I learnt quickly that power was not just for the physically strong, it would be wielded in other ways. So, I learnt how to use my intelligence to my advantage and built my empire based on that

Yeva called me, a little over ten years ago, she was sending her grandson to talk to me. She made a cryptic comment that I only fully understood until now, On sem'ya.

Dimitri was a tall thirteen year old, with bloody knuckles, eyes huge, darting everywhere. I asked him what he wanted, he told me about his father, a cruel man who financially abused and beat his mother. He was desperate to protect his mother and sisters from this man.

A royal moroi named Rand, he didn't know his full name, but I knew who he was by description and reputation. Randall Ivashkov had a history of using Dhampir women, he had been practically thrown out of the Ivashkov family.

I was intrigued, the young man who stood before me was the great nephew of the queen and a fierce protector of his family. Pavel had made some enquiries at St Basil's before Dimitri arrived to my hotel room, he was top of his class by far. We kept an eye out for exceptional guardians and Dimitri had the makings of being a great one. Naturally I was intrigued and looking out for someone to replace Pavel as head guardian one day.

I offered him a deal, he would owe me a favour and I would make sure that his father never blacked the door of the Belikov home. What can I say, having a dhampir daughter made me soft, usually I would have had someone like him signing an employment contract… Also Yeva still scared me.

Very rarely did anyone truely scare me, most of them were women; Yeva, Rose, Janine and Pavel, mostly when he is hangry.

Rose had been missing for over a year, so I made a few nudges at court, pushing the powers that be to make Dimitri the new dedicated guardian to Vasilisa Dragomir.

After the debacle of a court case, Janine and Pavel had insisted on Dimitri being forced to accompany Rose. I wasn't in favour of it initially, but they explained the subtle intricacies of guardian politics, if he ignored her she would have been treated worse than a blood whore.

Yes, there were many reasons for me to dislike Dimitri Belikov, the main one being that he held my daughters heart. He had the power to destroy her utterly and completely, he could break her if he wanted to.

I knew she loved him as soon as I saw her at his memorial in Baia. When he was turned, she had sought them out, hoping to find him. Rose soon discovered that no-one had informed them of his change. The village showed up to pay their respects and in true Russian tradition, they plied her with copious amounts of Vodka. She spilled her secrets like a fountain and that confirmed my suspicions about her "Mentor".

What I hadn't known, was what she meant to him. Was he a creep, or did he truely care for Rose. He hadn't been the most consistent lately, following his strigoi restoration, so I thought I would enlist some help.

"Adrian, I'm sorry things didn't work out with my daughter. No-one has ever taken my threats like you did, so scared, yet undeterred. I dont see many young men with your gumption."

"Mmm, well I think the liquor helped" Adrian said as he sipped a martin.

As I said, I like the guy, but part of me is happy that my daughter went for the straight-laced one-man army rather than the alcoholic royal moroi.

"What do you see when you look at Dimitri and Rose. Can I trust him with my Kizim."

Adrian took another sip, I was sure that this felt like a knife in his heart, even if they are newly discovered family. "His darkness is fading, and when he looks at her his aura burns so bright with love, its like looking into the sun. They are so annoyingly perfect for each other, it is practically written in the stars. If it wasn't, I probably wouldn't have given up my claim so easily."

I felt my shoulders drop and I relaxed back into my seat. Everything I did, since the day I heard Janine was pregnant, was for my family. There was nothing that I wouldn't do for family.

Once I knew he was the father of my grandchild, that made him family, which meant that his favour no longer applied. I knew how fiercely he protected his family and that now includes Rose and my grandchild.

That didn't mean that I was going to take it easy on Dimitri, far from it. Janine and I had plans for a hunting trip, to make sure that Dimitri knew what would happen if he ever displeases us as his in-laws.

I turned to Adrian and placed my hand on his shoulder. "Son, I know matters of the heart have not worked out as you hoped. One day, your aura will burn just as bright."

"Thank you Abe. And no, I'm not telling you about Janine's aura." That hadn't crossed my mind, I didn't need an aura to know about Janine.

I waved him off. "I presume that aura's make you good at reading people, do you mind going through the list with me? One step at a time, No point in letting the larger picture overwhelm us. We'll just start at the beginning."

I pointed to the white board where I had a list of names that Pavel and I had combed through. People who knew Rose and Dimitri and had issues with the queen. I had Daniela Ivashkov, Stan Alto, Ralph, Eddie Castile, Mia Rinaldi and the Russian strigoi population. I had heard about the run-ins that Rose had had in court with Jesse Zeklos, Camille Conta and Tasha Ozera.

"Jesse Zeklos and Ralph Sarcozy, they spread rumours about Rose at school and harassed her at court."

"They are your standard arsehole and Jesse is hurt because Rose doesn't want him, they are more likely to spike a drink than kill a queen."

Hmm, I think they just made my list, remind me to mention them to Pavel.

"Eddie Castile, a very personal friend of Rose -"

I stopped to see Rose crouched in her seat ready to pounce, glaring at me.

"Next" Said Adrian.

"Mia Rinaldi, spread vicious rumours at school"

"She was at spokane!" Rose replied. I was about to continue until Rose butted in again. "She helped me steal classified files, off the list"

Janine turned her head to look at Rose standing on her seat and Dimitri was frowning at her. She quickly dropped to her knees and avoided Dimitri's eyes.

Clearly this was related to her breaking into Tarasov prison. If Mia knew about that and didn't turn her in, she would have bothered killing a queen to throw Rose in jail.

I cleared my throat. "Stan Alto, out of all the school reports that I received, his were always very rude"

"You had my reports?" Rose asked

As usual, my daughter had what the kids are calling 'Main character energy' and felt she needed a say in everything. "Can you please let us go through this Kiz"

She stuck out her tongue and turned around. Dimitri pulled her in close and started whispering fiercely. Clearly the classified files were a point of discussion for him.

Adrian took a sip of his drink. "She drives him insane, but his aura shows grudging respect for her, not that he would admit it."

I made a mental note to have his status on my list downgraded.

"The russian strigoi population have nicknamed my daughter 'The little devil', but obviously they want to kill her not frame her."

"You just wanted to tell people that" Adrian said as he peered at my aura. Of course I did, she has a kill count higher than anyone and has made a name for herself, I was very proud.

"Daniela Ivashkov, I know she is your mother, but just bare with me. She doesn't always get along with your aunt, they have clashing ideas. She wasn't the biggest fan of your relationship with Rose."

"My father is much more likely to frame Rose than my mother. I watched her aura very carefully, she actually liked Rose, and she didn't think we would last. She was outraged by the court case revelation, but has managed to spin it to make me look good so she is happy."

I moved along, but kept Daniela as a secondary suspect and moved to my top suspects. "Camille Conta, She was flirting with Dimitri and requested him as her guardian. There were reports of her publicly cursing out the queen."

"I don't think she knew about my stake" Rose piped up, sticking her head between the seats. "And Daniela would never do that"

"Kiz, you will be surprised what someone would do for their children."

Rose was distracted by the flight attendant, bringing her a phone.

"Victor Dashkov - Dimitri killed her daughter, he has connections and he wants the throne"

"Currently MIA, but I think he considers them square after Vegas. We don't have any sign of his return."

"Definitely one to keep on the list." I said, I had scouts looking for him, I didn't think that he would be quiet for long.

"Tasha Ozera, She has requested Dimitri as her guardian multiple times, but she is currently dating Guardian Ethan Moore so perhaps she has moved on. She has a lot of political agendas that she keeps trying to push and gets no-where."

"Her aura is green, black and red when she looks at Rose and Dimitri, Green is envy, Red is desire and black is primarily negative emotions. She gives a lot of Fatal attraction vibes" Adrian said. My eyebrows hit my hairline, Tasha was intelligent and single minded.

"She can get information from Christian and Lissa…" I stopped for a second until it hit me. "Guardian moore-"

I was interrupted by Rose's shriek, her face was pale and then full of rage.

"is a palace guardian. What is it Kiz?"

"Tasha went to an alchemist facility, with the assassin."

Update: Exam in early march, writing is going to slow down, but the end is close... Put it this way, at the latest, the next chapter is coming out the second week in march.

Please review! I hope you like this one.