DIMITRI

I watched as Rose dumped the basket of clothes onto the bed, taking each shirt and pair of pants in turn and slipping them on hangers. The boxes of her personal belongings had finally arrived two weeks after I had sent them. While most were still stacked in the corner of the room, I could see that she was slowly unpacking and getting more comfortable. The first step was apparently expanding her attire from the handful of items that she had carried in her suitcase—along with a few old shirts of mine that she had claimed once she had arrived in Baia. She took the first handful of hangers and brought them to the wardrobe, hanging them in no particular order before returning to her pile of fresh laundry. I shook my head at the simple display of chaos, glancing over at my own closet and my need to organize by use and color. I was the type of person who had to put my books and CDs in alphabetical order, while Rose was more of a 'you don't need to know where it is as long as I do' kind of person. Not messy, per se, but certainly not the perfectionist I was either. Eventually, we'd probably have to find a compromise, but not for a while yet.

She had propped her phone up so that we could talk as she worked, and even from miles away, I had to smile at that almost-domestic nature of it.

"I...I wanted to ask you about something," Rose started, piquing my curiosity and making me a little nervous. It wasn't her words that concerned me. It was the fact that she was pointedly not looking at me. She appeared busy with her laundry, but I knew whatever was on her mind was making her hesitant. When she didn't immediately continue, I pushed her a little to open up.

"Sure," I said, trying to reassure her and giving her my undivided attention. "Everything okay?"

She nodded. "Yeah, everything's fine, I guess. But someone I was talking to a little while ago approached me about working private security for him." She met my gaze, not looking upset but obviously curious. "I didn't even know that was an option. Did you?"

"Now that you are mentioning it, yes. I just never really considered it before. It never occurred to me that you might be interested in something like that." It wasn't something that I maliciously kept from her. It honestly just hadn't crossed my mind. "Why?"

"No real reason, I guess." She shrugged, rolling a pair of socks together and setting them aside with a few she had rolled earlier. "Someone just brought it up the other day. I didn't even know a guardian could do something like that."

"Technically, a guardian can't. The people who work private security aren't really considered guardians. Guardians are sanctioned and placed by the Guardian Council," I explained. "Those that work private security are more like personal bodyguards. They may have the training and might even have a promise mark if they graduated from one of the academies and did sanctioned work for a while. However, in the eyes of the Council, they wouldn't be considered guardians any more than a human bodyguard would. I guess that's why I never brought it up with you. Why? Is that something you're interested in?"

Pursing her lips, she seemed to consider my question. "Maybe? I'm not sure. Would you ever do something like that?"

"Perhaps. I had a friend choose that route instead of registering with the Guardian Council after graduation. In theory, there are some benefits to working privately. You typically have more control over your contract and can negotiate pay and benefits. You also have more freedom and can choose who you work for rather than just accepting wherever the Council places you." Those alone made the idea appealing, but there were downsides too. Ones that she needed to know and understand. "However, there are risks. The Council provides some safety nets. Not only do they help with placement, but they can also advocate for you if there's any abuse, as well as provide services if you're injured. You wouldn't be bound by the same strict code I am, but you also wouldn't have outside support if needed. In general, working as a sanctioned guardian just seemed like the right move for me, and because we always focused on you being Lissa's second guardian, I guess I just never really considered bringing up other options."

"So you wouldn't work privately?"

Had someone asked me that six months ago, I would have instantly shot down the idea. Now, it seemed a little more appealing.

No, I reminded myself. There was a reason I stayed behind. Rose needed me to watch over Lissa. I promised her I would. Still…

"Not at the moment. But maybe in the future." This wasn't about me, though. This was about her. "You said that someone approached you about this? Who were they?"

"Some guy named Ibraham Mazur."

My blood froze in my veins the moment I heard his name. The world was filled with monsters and boogie men. Some were obvious, like Strigoi. They were ugly, mean, and upfront with their need to kill without hesitation. Others were simply men. Evil men like my father who lorded over others, believing them beneath him and taking joy in beating them into submission.

And then there are men like him.

How he found Roza, I'd never know, but everything in me screamed to run to her and hide her behind me so that he couldn't touch her. Couldn't speak to her. Couldn't see her.

Perhaps the most terrifying thing about Zmey was the unknown. He was incredibly powerful, maybe even more powerful than most royal Moroi. Word was that he could not only sway the Council of Twelve but possibly even the Queen herself. Nobody knew why, though. What he did for a living was a mystery, but whatever it was, you didn't want to cross him.

Unfortunately, I had ties to the man. The worst kind of ties.

I owed him an open favor.

One might think someone like Abe Mazur would be lenient on a thirteen-year-old boy begging for help, but they'd be mistaken.

I could still feel the fear of that night, sitting on the front porch and just waiting for the guardians to take me away for attacking my father. My royal father. It wouldn't have mattered if he had been beating my mother for years or if he had been standing over her with a knife in hand that evening. After all, she was just a lowly dhampir woman living in the communes. A blood whore in the eyes of many, even though she didn't live up to that title. She was nothing compared to the Moroi who saw no issue in his abuse.

And I was just a novice that had nearly killed him.

I had been so sure I would be taken that night that I had done the unthinkable to secure my family's safety when I was gone. I had asked for a favor from Zmey, begging him to make sure that my father never stepped foot in Baia again. I had no money to pay him for his services, but all he asked from me in return was that I'd honor my debt the day he called on me. I had agreed, giving him an open promise in order to save my family.

Whatever he had done worked. We never heard from Randall again. I wasn't sure if he was even alive, and I didn't care. As long as he never came near my family, I was happy. And I was never arrested, either. It took nearly half a year for me to stop looking over my shoulder or feeling the spike of worry whenever I saw an unknown guardian approaching me, but eventually, life returned to normal.

I had even begun to think that Zmey had forgotten me and our deal until I saw him on the day of my graduation. I had already been slated to guard Ivan by then, but the moment I saw him, I knew all my best-laid plans were at risk. If Mazur requested my service, I would have no choice but to accept his offer. I wouldn't protest, either. I'd hold my head high in gratitude and serve the man that had been so vital to my family's survival. I wouldn't like it, but I would honor it.

That was the last time I had seen him, but now he was back and threatening the woman I loved. Why? I wasn't sure, but it set me on edge.

"I know Abe Mazur, and trust me when I say that I wouldn't work for that man unless I had no other choice." I chose my words carefully, trying to dissuade her without striking the same fear in her heart that I was feeling.

"If I want to be a guardian, I don't have any other options."

"You're right," I admitted. "If you want to take on the role of a guardian, your only real option now is working private security. That, or as a rogue, which I need you to swear to me that you will never even consider." Somehow, that option scared me more than her working for Zmey. Stupid kids throwing their lives away with insane fantasies of hunting Stigoi weren't common in places like the Academy or Court, but in small towns like Baia? They ran rampant. When she didn't answer right away, I pressed the matter more. "Rose. Please, promise me. I've seen too many people die living that lifestyle, and I can't lose you to some stupid adrenaline rush."

"Fine. I promise." Her attitude confirmed that someone had already tried to entice her toward that path. "I wasn't going to actually do it, anyway. You're right. They're all just idiots."

I breathed a sigh of relief, and I'm sure she could see the weight lift off my shoulders. Still, that was only one worry down.

"You said that this man approached you to work for him?"

"Yeah. He's been kind of relentless, actually. He even showed up at my birthday party, if you can believe it." She laughed it off, but it didn't abate my nerves any. If anything, that made me more concerned. "He said that my mom sent him and that he knew you. I think there's something he isn't telling me, though. I don't know if he's outright lying to me, but I don't trust him."

"You shouldn't. Mazur is not a good person, and he never does anything that doesn't benefit him in some way."

Finally done with putting away her clothing, she picked up the phone and sat on her bed, making me a little dizzy with how the image on the screen shook until she settled. "And how do you know him? Or was he lying about that?"

"He wasn't lying. I do know him." The confession almost made me feel guilty, especially since I was trying to warn her away from him. Still, I hoped my honesty would make her second-guess the man who was trying to sway her toward working for him. "Remember how I told you about my father and his abuse? Well, that was only half of the story. It's true that I had stopped my father from hurting my mother that night, but Mazur was the one that made sure he never hurt her or anyone else in my family ever again."

"He did?" There was a certain awe in her voice.

"Yes, he did, but it came at a cost, Roza. Nothing is given for free, and I'm in his debt."

Now she looked worried, but not for herself. "What do you mean? Are you okay? Will he hurt you?"

"He can, but I doubt he would. I'm more valuable to him alive." I tried to soften my words with a smile, but that only made her seem more concerned. I decided that honesty was the best policy. "Let's just say that if he asked me to leave my position with Lissa and work for him, I would have no choice. And if I tried to resist, he could not only have me fired but probably demarked, too."

That seemed to catch her attention. Her jaw dropped a little as the full weight of my words struck home.

"Someone like that…" she drifted, and I didn't miss the little shiver she gave. "Am I even able to say no to someone like that? If he could do that to you, what could he do to me?"

I didn't want to think about that. The truth is that Ibriham Mazur could do many, many things. Probably more than I could even fathom. There did seem to be one bit of hope, though.

"You said he asked you to consider working for him? He didn't threaten you in any way."

After a moment of consideration, she shook her head. "No. He's been persistent, but all he's done is offer me a job. He gave me his card and asked me to meet with him or his guar—bodyguard to talk about the possibility, but he hasn't technically threatened me."

"I think you're safe, then. But next time you see him, I'd suggest being very clear about the fact that you have no interest in working for him." I paused a moment, knowing the implications of my next words. "If he tries to hurt you or do anything that makes you question your safety, then let me know. I'll… I'll take care of it."

She understood immediately, not looking comforted by my promise but at least knowing the gravity of the situation because of it. It wouldn't be the first time I threatened to kill to protect her, and just like the last time, I meant it.

"I'll call him later and decline," she promised, easing my worry a little. Not completely—not until that man was out of her life—but enough for now. I heard my mother's voice, muffled by distance, call out to her. "I have to go. Yeva apparently outsourced me to one of your neighbors today."

That didn't surprise me in the least. My grandmother was of the opinion that 'idle hands make for idle minds,' and without a proper job yet, it was frankly a surprise that she hadn't loaned Rose out to the entire town. "Call me later, okay? After you talk to him."

"I will." I heard her name again in the background, and she gave me an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. Love you."

"Bye, Ro—" The line cut out before I could finish. At the time, I laughed off the minor slight. However, I wasn't laughing when she didn't call me back that evening. Or the next.

Author's Note

Hey guys! Its been a busy week so I'll keep it sweet and simple!

Question of the Week: For those who like to listen to podcasts, what are your favorites?

Feel free to leave a comment down below and have a great week!