Chapter 46 - The kidnapping

Present day - Early May

Rose POV

I heard a knock.

I knew the door to my bedroom was locked so I got up and opened the door. I was met with the familiar chest of Dimitri before I raised my eyes to his face. He looked tense, and I opened the door to allow him into my room. He closed the door behind him and the click of the lock was daunting, cutting through the charged silence.

"I need to tell you something, something that I did."

I looked at him and noticed the tick of his jaw, the downcast eyes. I recognized that look, he was ashamed of something. His warm brown eyes met mine and I felt a shiver course through my body.

"The second night I slept in here, I crossed the border."

Oh.

I knew exactly what he had come here to confess, as ridiculous as it was. For some frustrating reason, neither of the guardians would listen to my opinion on this matter. I was perfectly fine with him sleeping in here, in fact, I very much preferred it. Those two nights were the best sleep of my life.

"I don't know how or when but I woke up and the pillows were scattered on the floor, the wall was gone and I had rolled over to your side."

I decided to spare him of his misery. "And you held me in our sleep?"

His eyes narrowed slightly. "You knew?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Yeah, I woke up and you were lying behind me with your arm thrown over me." My cheeks heated and I bit my lip. "I liked it, I felt safe."

That was an understatement, I had loved it. Since then, I kept going back to that moment, reliving it over and over again in my mind. The feel of his breath hitting the back of my neck, eliciting goosebumps. The solid and strong body of his holding me, his somewhat heavy arm over me. I was trapped and tucked into him, and I absolutely loved it. I remember stretching and entwining our legs together, which had made him pull me closer against him in his sleep. The deep moan he had made was something I'd never forget.

I watched his hand roughly rub his jaw. More days had passed without him shaving.

"You should've woken me up."

"Why?"

"Rose." He said my name as a warning. This argument was starting to get old, and at least for my part my patience was running thin. I suspected he felt the same, only he was much better at controlling it. I relented, we both knew what the other had to say. We were at a standstill on this matter.

"I'm sorry for that," he said eventually.

"You shouldn't be."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"I know enough," I bit out. "I'm late anyways, I'm meeting Dr. Olendzki now."

With that I marched out of my bedroom and up to the study. On my way, I made sure to close every door on my way to the study. First the door between the kitchen area and the living room, then the door leading into the library. The library door had a lock and I made sure to use it. I also closed the final door between the library and the study.

Usually, I didn't bother doing all of that but tonight I felt like I needed privacy, that I needed the distance between Dimitri and Spiridon. I was going to try to talk about something that would be mortifying if either of them heard.

I followed Dimitri's instructions and started the remote session on the computer. Dr. Olendzki was already waiting for me, something she had to do quite often.

"Hello Rose, good to see you," she greeted me warmly.

"Sorry I'm late," I said and smiled apologetically. I needed to work on being on time.

Towards the end of the counseling session I fell into an uncomfortable silence. I knew that there was something I wanted to talk about but didn't know where to start. I hadn't talked to Dr. Olendzki about Dimitri that much. So far we'd focused on Moore, Igor, and my general life at the Institution. My sickness was also something we had talked about a lot, however focusing mostly on my feelings of being exposed and in lack of control.

Dr. Olendzki waited patiently for me to gather my courage and thoughts. I liked that about her, that she gave me time.

"It's Dimitri." She nodded, still waiting for me to continue. She had met Dimitri once during our first session when he had been present but not since then. "We slept together and now everything is just tense and weird and Spiridon is watching us like a hawk."

She looked thoughtful. "What do you mean when you say you slept together?" she asked.

I threw my hands up in frustration. "What is this thing about sleeping together?! It means exactly what I say, we slept together, in the same bed at the same time! Not that other stuff Spiridon thought!"

"I take it that you mean it in the literal way, not referring to sexual intercourse?"

I groaned in embarrassment. I was so uncomfortable with the thought of doing anything like that. "Of course I don't mean sexual intercourse!" The last two words were said with some difficulty and my voice cracked.

"So you slept together? Did that make you uncomfortable?"

"No!" I exclaimed. I took a few deep breaths trying to calm myself. "I'm so frustrated. They won't listen to me, they just refuse to understand my side of it thinking that I don't know what I'm saying or that I don't mean it."

A few more deep breaths and I managed to gather my thoughts better. "I just don't understand why my opinion doesn't matter at all to Dimitri and Spiridon. It doesn't matter how much I tell them, especially Dimitri, that they're not making me uncomfortable. Dimitri has set his mind that there are boundaries that he can't cross, that he needs to keep his distance. I don't know if I'm making any sense, but this whole sleeping arrangement has caused so much arguing. He sleeps like shit, I sleep like shit. Together we don't sleep like shit. Simple solution, right? But he thinks that he's hurting me or something, that he's doing wrong by giving into my request. And it doesn't matter how much I tell them that I'm safe and comfortable with sleeping in the same bed as Dimitri, they won't listen to me!"

"What exactly does Dimitri say?"

"It varies, but mostly he thinks that it's wrong and that he doesn't want to impose, that he doesn't want to cross any boundaries."

"Do you have any thoughts on why he might say that?"

"He's being stupid and stubborn."

Dr. Olendzki gave me a motherly smile. "I can't know for sure, but it sounds to me that Dimitri is scared of hurting you. I would say that he feels very protective of you, Spiridon too. Maybe you should discuss this with them, try to understand where they are coming from. That way, perhaps it opens up the opportunity to discuss it and reach some kind of mutual ground."

"Maybe," I muttered dismissively. I didn't think I'd be able to get an answer from Dimitri, I had tried several times. Perhaps Spiridon would be better. "They read the journal that the girl kept, and it's been even worse since then."

"The one with Igor in it?" she asked and I nodded. "Have you read it yourself?"

I looked down and fidgeted with my hands. "I tried, but after I saw Igor's name in the journal I just kind of put it aside for now."

"You weren't ready?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "No, I guess not." Again, she just waited for me to continue, allowing me to gather my thoughts. "I think I'm scared. Igor was one of the few guardians who showed me some level of kindness. And I just keep going through all our interactions, analyzing them over and over again and realizing all the things that were wrong. And if I read then I might as well read my future if Dimitri and Spiridon hadn't rescued me."

Dr. Olendzki nodded thoughtfully. "There shouldn't be any pressure, you can read it when you feel ready. Or not, that's also okay. Is there anything else you want to raise? We still have a couple of minutes."

I couldn't say the words that were stuck on the tip of my tongue.

"Rose, do you consider Dimitri to be your friend?"

"Yes!" I said without a moment of hesitation. I truly did, no doubt about it, Spiridon too.

"Only a friend?"

"Well, he's my guardian too."

"That's not what I meant," she said gently.

I knew exactly what she meant, and felt my chest constrict. Despite needing to talk about Dimitri to someone, to receive some kind of validation that I wasn't stupid or insane for taking a liking to him, I couldn't speak up. If I said it out loud, it became too real. I wasn't ready for a rejection of that magnitude, even if it came from someone other than Dimitri. I couldn't bear to abandon all hope of ever getting to know him better, to possibly explore what it meant to be closer to him. I couldn't bear to hear Dr. Olendzki confirm how wrong it would be.

I had never wanted anything like that before, and I wasn't even sure what I wanted when it came to Dimitri. All I knew was that I craved to be close to him and get to know him more. And he felt like a safe man to do that with.

Above all I wanted him to be happy, something that hopefully might include me on some level, no matter what and to which extent of it.

I just ended up shaking my head, and to my relief we ended the session without her pushing further on this topic.

I was tired, but at the same time too wired up to sleep. It was how I usually felt after my counseling sessions, I always needed some time to process things. I knew that Dimitri and Spiridon didn't want me to leave the house when it was dark, despite having the wards, but I still felt like going out for a bit of fresh air. I slipped out the back door hoping that neither of them would notice immediately.

I walked by the shore of the lake, the stone pebbles loud underneath my feet. For each step I flinched slightly, hating how loud it was in the silent night. I ended up sitting on a rock, curling myself up to protect myself from the wind. I hadn't bothered to get my jacket so I immediately started shivering.

It wasn't long until I felt observed. I looked around anxiously, but there wasn't anyone to be seen. I couldn't hear anyone either.

The feeling didn't go away, so I stood up and hurried back towards the house. I wasn't far away and felt glad that I hadn't wandered off further. I was just about to exit the treeline when a dark shape stepped in front of me.

I didn't think.

I just acted, doing the first thing my body could think of. Not my mind, not my sense, just some kind of reflex. I brought my knee up in an attempt to inflict enough pain on the person in front of me, for somehow I still knew that it wasn't Strigoi.

It took that person less than a second to evade my attempt and bring me to his chest, my back tightly pressed against his front.

"Easy there."

I sagged in relief and Spiridon had to tighten his hold. For a while I just let my pulse calm down and my breathing turned to normal. When he felt I had steadied myself he released me.

"Look, before you lose your shit and get all mad it really wasn't my intention to scare the shit out of you."

I slapped him three times on his upper arm but he just smirked. "Were you watching me all this time?" I asked through gritted teeth.

He shrugged his shoulders, his smirk turning more serious and I knew that he had known the second I stepped through the door and followed me.

"You're such a creep, you know. At least let me know that you're out there lurking instead of just stalking me, douchebag."

"You looked like you needed some alone time."

"Well, it's not like I get any alone time, do I? That hardly counts."

"I know you might feel that we're excessively cautious by not letting our guards down, not even at this house, but we just can't take any risks of losing you. We still don't know who's behind decades of dhampirs missing, and we don't even know where the ones from the Ardeal Institution disappeared. If you were taken again, Dimitri would be devastated. We just can't risk your safety, so this is how it's going to be."

I sighed heavily, knowing that he was right. I was starting to get soft, taking things for granted. What I was already given by them was far more than I could've ever dreamed of, and now I just felt ashamed for being ungrateful.

"It's been a long day, let's head back inside," Spiridon said sympathetically, as if he could sense my plummeting mood.

"Do you feel what you're doing to me? How good you make me feel? I promise I'll make you feel just as good."

Moore pulled me tighter against him. His arousal was pressing against my behind and I was panicking, desperate to get away. Not that, anything but that.

"Baby girl, keep grinding me, just like that," he purred in my ear. His breath smelled bad, and I turned my head away from him. His hand gripped my jaw tightly and turned me towards him again.

My eyes opened wide.

The ceiling of my dark bedroom had never been so welcoming. I was drenched in sweat, my hair clinging to my forehead. I kicked the duvet away from me trying to free myself from the entanglement.

I sat up on the bed and took deep staggering breaths.

After the two blissful nights with Dimitri, the nightmares were back with a vengeance. I groaned and dropped my head, one hand rubbing my face roughly. There was no chance I'd be able to fall back asleep after reliving the basement so vividly.

After washing my face I changed into a pair of leggings and a hoodie and silently opened the door to my bedroom. The house was dark and hopefully both Dimitri and Spiridon were fast asleep. I headed upstairs, fighting hard to ignore the anxiety the stairs caused me. The memory of Moore in the basement was again all too clear. The kitchen area was dark, but I could hear the guardians. Their voices carried from the left which meant that they were in the library or the study. Based on their tones it seemed as if they were in full guardian mode. I was rarely included when they became like that so I crept closer trying to hear everything they were saying. I stayed in the living room trying to hide in the darkness.

"I say we strike in the morning."

"Don't you think the day would be better?" Dimitri countered. "Less likely that anyone is awake in the middle of the day.

"The brat drinks like a sponge, it's better if we go there immediately after he's passed out. And we would go after the curfew."

"When did we ever respect the curfew? The risk of someone seeing us is too big. Going in is one thing, but going out and carrying a passed out Moroi, a Royal for that matter, is not going to go unnoticed."

"Lure him out of St. Vlad's?" Spiridon suggested.

"It might be for the best, it would buy us time. If Ivashkov disappears from the Academy in the middle of their night there's going to be a search. A lot of attention. That won't just do, we can't attract that kind of attention to us."

"Lure him out, drug him, take him back here?"

"You do really seem keen on drugging him," Dimitri said dryly.

"As much as you might think it's some sort of twisted fantasy of mine to drug that asshole, it's to protect Rose. He cannot wake up during the ride here, and we can't guarantee that without a little aid. It's also for her benefit since we're going to need to take her with us on the retrieval mission. Unless Celeste and Yuri stay here with Rose."

"No, that's out of the question. She's not left behind, not for a single moment," he said. His voice was low and dangerous, but to me it sounded almost possessive.

"Exactly, so she goes with us. We can't have them do the retrieval either, it's one thing that we're willing to risk our careers for Rose but we can't ask that of them."

I felt my pulse beating in my ears and I wished that it would calm down so I could hear better.

"I can't ask that of you either," Dimitri said quietly.

"You're not asking me to risk my career."

"She's mine to protect." Again, the hint of possessiveness and danger shone through his words.

"I'm not going to deny whatever the two of you have going on, but this was my suggestion and there's no way I'm not going to be included in this. And I'm sure Ivashkov will be okay after we explain why we did it."

"You really think a Royal Moroi will be okay that we drugged and kidnapped him?"

"Honestly, I don't give a shit. If he's going to be a bitch about it we'll force him to help Rose and ditch him back somewhere where he can continue marinating his liver. The two of us aren't going to have any problems dealing with him, he's only one Moroi."

Dimitri just hummed. "So we lure him out of the Academy?"

"Maybe Lissa can help us with that."

"Vasilisa is a problem though. When Adrian sees Vasilisa and her guardians, he's going to know that she's involved in this. He's going to know that there's a connection between Rose and the princess. With that connection he might be able to find us later on."

"I agree, that's a problem. Out of everything that's one thing we can't really do anything about. But in the end, I think it's going to work out. I have a good feeling about this."

"We're placing a lot of trust in an Ivashkov," Dimitri said quietly.

"He's not the same as your father. From what I've seen and heard, Adrian seems fucking lost. Lissa is a good person and I don't think she would be friends with him if he was the typical Royal. The way I see it, we're trusting Lissa's judgment."

"Is that really better?"

"What alternatives do we have?"

I moved slightly and the floor creaked underneath me. I squeezed my eyes shut and stopped breathing. Several seconds passed but I didn't dare to open my eyes until my skin prickled.

Dimitri was staring at me at the door opening. He didn't look too pleased, but Spiridon behind him was grinning.

"Nice one, Rose. I'm proud of you, your stealth skills are so much better."

Dimitri looked annoyed, but stepped aside and gestured for me to join them. I kept my eyes on the floor when I passed him.

Spiridon plopped down on the couch in the library and I sat down next to him, trying to make myself small in case Dimitri was mad at me for eavesdropping. I felt Spiridon wrap his arm around my shoulder and pull me tight against him.

"Relax," he said happily and gave me a squeeze. I drew in a deep breath and looked up. Dimitri was watching me with an unreadable expression, his eyes dark.

"How much did you hear?" he asked me quietly.

"Some of it," I said defensively, averting my gaze. "I heard we're going to kidnap Adrian."

Dimitri just nodded and seemed deep in his thoughts. "Are you absolutely sure you want to go through with this? There are no guarantees that it'll work and he and Lissa are going to be able to break the compulsion," he said eventually.

"Can we do it without hurting him?"

"We're not going to hurt him," Dimitri assured. I looked at Spiridon who just shrugged.

"You said you were going to drug him," I reminded them quietly.

"He can't know our location and it's too risky having him awake during the ride back, so we'll need to use our stun gun on him. If he finds out where this house is located then we're most likely going to need to find a new place to stay," Dimitri explained. "We also don't know how cooperative he'll be so for the ride back it's unfortunately needed. But he'll just sleep after we stun him."

"Okay," I said defeated.

"So it's settled then," Spiridon said cheerily.

Dimitri had parked the car close to the side entrance of the casino, and the parking lot was dark and empty. The late hour meant that most people were already fast asleep, and I felt that my eyelids were heavy from the change of routine.

We hadn't been sure how to lure Adrian out of the Academy, but on his own accord he seemed to have gotten tired of the monotonous life of classes and restrictions at the Academy. Yesterday, Spiridon had trailed him to one of the largest casinos of a Native American reservation in Idaho and was currently monitoring Adrian on the inside. Dimitri and I had followed them here and we were ready to pick them up. The windows to the car were slightly open so that we could hear better. I wasn't only worried about Adrian and getting caught, the possibility of Strigoi lurking in the darkness scared me as well.

"How do you think Spiridon will get Adrian out of there without drawing too much attention?" I asked worriedly.

Dimitri was just about to answer when we heard Spiridon's voice.

"Don't worry man, I called your brother, he'll pick us up," Spiridon said with a slur. I looked around and saw him walking towards us, only he was staggering a lot with another man barely hanging onto him. Someone who seemed just as tall, but much leaner.

"Is Spiridon drunk?" I whispered to Dimitri.

He didn't answer me, too focused on the two men in front of me. His eyes were following the two intently, monitoring the surroundings too.

It seemed as if Spiridon was struggling to support the other man, his steps faltering. "Oh man, we drank way too much. My girlfriend's going to be so pissed off," Spiridon chuckled. They were close enough so that I could hear the other man groan in response.

Now that they were closer I could see them better. Spiridon didn't look like himself, his hair was dark instead of the usual blond and he wore completely different clothes that hid most of his musculature. Instead he seemed almost burlier, heavier and I suspected he had layers underneath. I suddenly remembered their plan to disguise him in case the Moroi would follow the camera trail left behind, and it all made sense.

After closing in the distance to the car Spiridon opened the car door and pushed Adrian in. I was sitting next to Dimitri in the front, thankful that I didn't have to be in the backseat. Spiridon didn't bother to go around the car, only pushing Adrian further in so that he could get in as well. Adrian groaned and sagged forward, his head hitting my seat. I squealed just as Spiridon slammed his door shut, and we were driving away from the casino.

"A few witnesses, hence the drunk act," Spiridon reported. He wasn't slurring anymore and seemed completely sober. He was maneuvering Adrian so that Adrian was sitting up leaning against the door on his side, right behind me. I couldn't see if Adrian was awake, but he made noises every now and then that indicated that he wasn't feeling that well. I felt bad for him.

"Did you raise any suspicion?" Dimitri asked and sped up.

"I can't be completely sure, but based on the annoyed security guards they were just happy to get two drunks out. Keep an eye out in case someone is trailing us. Although that seems unlikely, Ivashkov didn't have any guardians with him, and the only one he was talking to was a female dealer."

I heard Spiridon shuffle with something and I turned around. "Handcuffs? Really?" I said. "Don't you think that's a bit of an exaggeration?"

Adrian groaned again and leaned forward. He started hulking.

"Ah shit, shit, shit. He's going to be sick," Spiridon muttered and procured a plastic bag. Adrian wasn't in any condition to hold it however, so when he vomited it splattered all over Spiridon's hands. "Fuck, stop the car!"

"I can't stop now, someone might be trailing us," Dimitri said through gritted teeth and opened all the windows. The stench was horrible, and Adrian just kept on going.

"I don't care if Santa Claus is behind us, stop the fucking car!" Spiridon yelled. Dimitri reluctantly complied and a moment later we turned onto a quiet road. The second the car stopped Dimitri hopped out and hurried over to Adrian's door, opening it. Spiridon almost kicked Adrian out of the car, muttering to himself.

"Stay in the car," Dimitri ordered me, and I waited anxiously for them to return. They were just outside, Spiridon sounding angry and Dimitri in control and trying to rectify the situation.

"What did you give him?" I heard Dimitri ask.

"It was clear he wasn't going to leave alone if you know what I'm saying, and it's not like I could exactly stun him unconscious in the middle of the casino. I had to get creative," Spiridon answered defensively. "I didn't think he'd get this sick."

"What did you give him?" Dimitri asked again quietly. Too quietly, I could tell he was angry.

"Rohypnol or something like that, I don't know," Spiridon said just as Adrian vomited again. Spiridon yanked my door open and grabbed a water bottle and some tissues and started cleaning himself up. Afterwards, he cleaned the backseat and gave me antiseptic wipes. "Finish up," he said curtly.

I got out of the car and proceeded to wipe down the backseat. Luckily, there weren't many spills and Spiridon had already gotten the most of it. Hopefully the car wouldn't smell too bad.

When I was finished I turned towards the men.

Dimitri was standing guard looking like a stoic warrior. Spiridon was helping Adrian, who had luckily stopped vomiting. Adrian had his eyes closed and leaned against Spiridon, who gave him a brotherly tap on the back. I had never seen Spiridon look so guilty.

"We need to get moving, do you think he'll manage the ride back?" Dimitri asked.

"He'll have to. I'll cover the car interior with something in case he gets sick again," Spiridon said and got up.

I watched Adrian fumble with his hands, feeling up his pockets until he found the thing he was searching for. He clumsily pulled out a pack of cigarettes and tried to get one out. My eyes flicked over to Dimitri and he seemed to have noticed the same. Dimitri walked over to him and grabbed the cigarettes, Adrian didn't put up with much fight. Even though he was sitting on the ground he was swaying so I hurried over to him to steady him. When my fingers curled around his upper arm he turned his head towards me and opened his eyes.

They were emerald green, just like the picture in the book. His hair was all over the place and his eyes were bloodshot. Still, he managed to smile so widely that his incisors were visible.

"Hey, little dhampir," he slurred just before his eyes fell shut again.

"No little dhampirs here," Dimitri said in a deadly voice and yanked him up, shoving Adrian back into the car. Luckily, the worst seemed to have passed and he was feeling better.

Adrian said something unintelligible and groaned defensively just before Dimitri slammed the car door shut. He guided me to the passenger side and helped me into the car.

Adrian passed out before we got back on the highway.

"Remind me to never date rape drug anyone," Spiridon muttered as we turned onto the driveway. It had been a long ride home, luckily with an unconscious Adrian.

"Where did you even get the drugs?" I asked.

"Saw a creep at the casino, could tell that he wasn't up to anything good. Might have switched the drinks with the woman he was preying on so that he got to taste his own medicine."

I wasn't exactly sure what the creep was doing or his own medicine, maybe the drugs, but Dimitri seemed to put the pieces together. "Was that all you did?" he asked.

"He might wake up with some broken fingers, or something else that hurts. Can't really tell," Spiridon said dismissively just as we stopped the car. "Anywho, he had a little extra on him so I laced Ivashkov's drink. I wouldn't have done it if I didn't think it was necessary. From the way the dealer was batting her eyelashes she was just about ready to finish her shift and drag him somewhere private."

I cringed when Spiridon said the last part.

Lissa and her guardians would be here any minute now. It had been a long day and an even longer night and morning, but I knew that we needed to get this over with as soon as we could.

I watched Dimitri grab Adrian and carry him towards the house. Adrian was starting to stir but his legs didn't seem to carry him completely.

"Leave the garage door open, the others will be here soon," Dimitri said to Spiridon over his shoulder.

Once we got into the house they helped Adrian to the library and laid him down on the couch. Dimitri grabbed the trash can from the study and placed it next to the couch in case Adrian would get sick again. He ushered me out of the room leaving Spiridon there to watch over our new guest, or prisoner.

"Adrian might need to sober up and clear the drugs out of his system before they attempt to break the compulsion. You should catch up on some sleep," he offered, but I shook my head.

"Lissa might be able to help him," I offered just as his attention was drawn to the watch on his wrist. "They're here?" I asked and he nodded.

I decided I would take just a couple of minutes to myself and headed over to the bathroom in my room. I finished up in there and splattered water over my face trying to feel and look more refreshed than I was. By the time I headed upstairs they were all inside. I gave Yuri the same wide perimeter as always and moved over to greet Lissa. She hugged me tightly.

"Rose!" she said close to my ear. "I missed you, it's so good to see you. You look well."

"Thanks," I murmured a bit embarrassed and pulled away. I looked around and noticed Celeste standing to one side. She gave me a reassuring smile which I returned. Yuri also smiled at me. I knew my forced return of a smile seemed more like a grimace, and his own faded a bit.

Lissa looked around. "Where's Adrian?"

I felt really guilty knowing that Adrian had fared less than well.

"He's a bit hungover, I think we need to let him sleep for a while," Spiridon said as he came into the room. His hair was wet and blond again, only he did have some darker streaks on his neck that he had missed.

My eyes flicked over to Dimitri, who's expression didn't reveal anything.

"I told him he shouldn't drink so much," Lissa admonished. "Is he on the pull-out couch in the library?" she said, having guessed correctly, and started making her way there.

Subtly Dimitri stepped in her way. "Maybe we can go through your plan for breaking the compulsion first?" he asked. Only for me and Spiridon it was clear that he was trying to stop her from going to Adrian.

"I'll just check up on Adrian," she insisted, still unaware of the fact that something was wrong. Dimitri didn't step aside at first, but he seemed to come to the conclusion that it was inevitable that the others found out what we had done to Adrian. Guilt was churning in my stomach, turning into anxiety that spread through my limbs.

Lissa stopped by the door to the library and I heard her gasp. "How much did he drink?!" She didn't wait for a reply and hurried over to Adrian. I stayed by the door close to Dimitri. Spiridon had also stepped into the library and they both were poised. "Adrian, you can't do this to yourself anymore," she murmured and placed her hands on the center of his chest. He groaned slightly but was still unconscious. I didn't know what to expect, but all of the sudden Adrian stirred and seemed to get a lot better.

She had healed him, I realized after a few moments had passed.

Adrian blinked several times before he sat up. Lissa slumped down on the floor next to the couch and I felt an urge to go to her to help. Dimitri must've sensed my movement because he took half a step to the side effectively blocking me. Instead Celeste rushed over to Lissa and helped her up from the floor to the couch.

Adrian looked around and seemed confused, and when his eyes landed on me both Dimitri and Spiridon shifted their position so that I was behind their back. I peeked around them and caught a glimpse of Adrian, who was still looking at me. Or it almost seemed as if he was looking around me.

"What did you do to me?" he asked and turned to glare at Dimitri and Spiridon. Outwards they were still unfazed. "The little one over there is crippling with guilt and fear, and I've never felt so shitty before, not from drinking."

Lissa was still slumped down but her anger still flared up. "Did you do something to him?" she asked. Her eyes were flicking between my two guardians, eventually staying on Spiridon. "What did you do?" she said and her eyes seemed to center the room.

He went a little slack. "I drugged him."

"Why would you do that?" Lissa accused angrily, but Adrian didn't look that mad. He was looking at Lissa with some concern, again his eyes flicking around the princess in the process.

Dimitri spoke this time. "It was necessary. I also remind you that our location can't be disclosed to Ivashkov, no matter how well you think you know him. We needed to keep him down to contain the location, and we couldn't rely on his cooperation."

"Look, I don't know what's going on but you could've just asked me for help with whatever it is I'm here for," Adrian said.

"We couldn't give you a window to inform anyone. It was imperative to keep the information contained until you were here," Dimitri said. His presence took over the entire room, his voice was commandeering.

Adrian paled a little. "Okay, then how about someone explain to me what the hell is going on?" he said after a moment of tense silence. "And why is that one looking like she's ready to pass out from fear, did you do something to her? Did you hurt her?" It was the first time he actually spoke with anger, and his head nod indicated that he was talking about me. I realized I was shaking.

"It's nothing like that," Lissa assured him. She still looked weary. Adrian stood up and immediately Dimitri and Spiridon took one step forward, leaving me behind a lethal wall of guardians.

"Sit down," Dimitri commanded. Celeste dragged Lissa away from the couch and out of the room, ignoring her protests. Adrian hesitated for only a second before he sat down again. I noticed that Yuri followed Celeste and Lissa away from the library.

"Rose, get out of the room," Dimitri said quietly.

"I want to stay," I said nervously to his back. There was no indication that he'd heard me.

"Yes, why don't you let the girl stay, plenty of room on the couch," Adrian said, lowering his voice slightly and staring at me with those emerald green eyes. This time, Dimitri vibrated ever so slightly.

"Careful," Spiridon said dangerously. "If you think we would hesitate to harm you just because you're an Ivashkov-"

"Yeah, okay, you're dangerous, I should watch it, all of that," Adrian said dismissively. He was feeling up his pockets and frowned, probably realizing that his cigarettes were missing. "Why don't we just cut to the chase, why am I here?"

He wasn't rude per say, but he definitely had an arrogance only someone who was used to running the show could have. Someone who had the world bow to his will. Someone Royal.

"Vasilisa thinks you can help us break a compulsion," Dimitri offered, not revealing anything else.

Adrian blinked a couple of times, clearly not having expected that. "You don't need me if you have her."

"It seems as if we do."

"But she's the strongest compeller I know. I don't see how I could be of help. And who is compelled, is it the little dhampir you're so hard trying to shield?" I wasn't too keen on my new nickname, and I had a feeling that Dimitri wasn't either.

"You'll need to work together with Vasilisa." Dimitri didn't answer Adrian's last question, yet his avoidance revealed the truth.

"Okay, so what are we hoping to find out? Who is she?" he asked them, yet was met with silence. He turned to me. "Who are you?"

I flinched. I couldn't help it, I was terrified that a Royal Moroi was speaking to me directly, demanding an answer from me, someone who we had done bad things to already. Adrian's expression softened and he smiled. The smile was more mellow, and he kept most of his teeth hidden. I wondered if he did it not to scare me.

He stood up, slowly this time. "Did you steal my cigarettes?" he said, still feeling his pockets.

"Smoking kills," Spiridon said and I could hear from his tone that he was starting to ease up now that it seemed that Adrian wasn't going to be too difficult.

"Well, I wouldn't say getting drugged is that healthy either yet here we are."

Dimitri threw him the pack, and Adrian caught it and looked relieved. He grabbed one and placed it between his lips. "Not inside," Dimitri ordered.

Adrian looked around, noticing the two doors, one leading to the study and the other one to the living room where you could access the patio. Spiridon gave a nod towards the right door and Adrian started making his way out of the room. He stopped just before the threshold. "So, I can go out for a smoke, right? Without needing to fear that my body will be found in a dark alley a week from now?"

Spiridon smirked. "Why would you think that, you're our guest," he said and the words dripped with sarcasm.

"Oh, what a relief. I somehow got the impression that I was your prisoner. Maybe the whole drugging me and bringing me unconscious here thing led me off, but you know, I seemed to have misunderstood." He took a couple of steps out of the room. "For some inexplicable reason, I reek of vomit and I have an absolutely garbage taste in my mouth. Any chance I can grab a shower and some toothpaste? Considering that I'm your guest and all."

Not long after, freshly showered but still smelling slightly of cloves, Adrian was sitting on the couch at the tv area downstairs. Lissa was next to him looking better than before.

Everybody was gathered, Celeste standing close to Lissa with Yuri a few steps back. I wished Yuri would go away but I realized nobody knew what to expect, which meant he was here to stay.

Spiridon lifted the coffee table out of way and Dimitri placed the armchair in its place, directly in front of Adrian and Lissa. I knew that seat was meant for me, but Adrian was making me nervous. He leaned back on the couch, one leg thrown over the other and looked like he didn't have a care in the world despite knowing how he'd gotten here. I couldn't understand how he was so calm about it.

I gingerly sat down in the armchair, knowing that Dimitri and Spiridon were next to me. I avoided Adrian's eyes and focused on my hands and Lissa.

"I think it's better if you tell me what exactly we're trying to achieve," Adrian said.

Lissa opened her mouth to answer but looked up at Dimitri and shut it again. "We need information," was all that Dimitri said.

Adrian rolled his eyes and sat up. He leaned forward and took my hand. I was startled when he touched me, and tried to pull my hand away. He didn't let go, but his thumb rubbed me soothingly. Not that it helped. "What is it that you need help with?" he asked me just as Spiridon's hand landed on Adrian's shoulder, no doubt as a warning.

"I've been compelled to forget things," I said quietly with my eyes fixed on Spiridon's hand instead of Adrian.

"What kind of things?"

My mouth was too dry to form an answer, so Spiridon helped. "Appearances and names of Moroi, visitors, potentially abuse."

"Visitors? Where?"

"At the Institution."

From my periphery I noticed that he frowned. "Institution? I don't think I know what that is."

"She's a taken one," Lissa supplied.

This time Adrian huffed in shock, and it was clear that the realization shook him to the core. "I need a smoke," he muttered and started to get up, but Spiridon pressed him down.

"No more breaks. The sooner we do this the sooner we can whisk you back to whatever shithole we got you from."

"God, you must be fun at parties."

"Appearances and names of Moroi, as well as specifically any information about two Moroi that have been referred to as Headmaster and Headmistress of the Institution," Dimitri explained.

"I'm ready when you are," Lissa said and took my hand that Adrian wasn't holding. It struck me how weird the whole situation was. My needs were being catered to by two Royal Moroi. "Come closer to me," she whispered to Adrian. Spiridon moved back as he shuffled closer to Lissa.

My eyes flicked between them, drawn into the two sets of mesmerizing green eyes.

Jade and emerald.

Air.

I needed air.

I needed space.

Fuck.

My head was killing me.

I ran outside and struggled to keep moving. Over and over again I fell to my knees but forced myself up.

Images flashed, stabbing my brain with suppressed memories that were just too fucking much to handle at the same time.

I dry-heaved from the pain.

Fuck, it was too much.

My mind didn't know what to focus on and it felt like an excruciating, agonizing migraine.

My legs didn't want to run anymore. I didn't want to run anymore.

I was confused, staggering forward just knowing that I didn't want to be with the others right now. My eyes were on the ground, my sluggish mind watching my feet take one hesitant step after another.

Another pair of shoes appeared.

No, not appeared.

I walked into someone.

I looked up and straight into a set of icy blue eyes.

A flash of pain struck me. I fell backwards, sheer terror washing over me.

The Headmaster was here.