Rose hadn’t seen it coming and neither had I, but I should have known.
You will lose what you value most.
We had it all planned out. After a few short months she would graduate from the academy and we could be together. That was the plan, until she was ripped from my grasp. Literally. The Strigoi came out of nowhere and stole that future from us.
“ROSE!” The roar had escaped me before I had even fully processed what was happening. Rose struggled against his grip, and she tried to angle the stake over his heart.
“Dimitri, get them out of here!” She shouted. I blinked back to my senses.They come first. I grabbed the Moroi beside me and forced them to the exit. I had to make sure they were safe. Once they were out of harm’s way, I left the Moroi and turned to go back inside, my eyes searching for Rose. She was winning the fight. One simple flick of the wrist and she would have him, only…she didn’t manage it. Another Strigoi, a blonde, grabbed her hissing something at her. She was too far away, and though I tried, Lord knows I tried, I couldn’t reach her in time.
Rose met my eyes, and my heart broke at the emotion in them. Regret. Sorrow.Fear.
The Strigoi sunk his teeth into her neck and Rose let out a scream. Without thinking, I lunged towards the group, but they had already dragged her down a passageway. She was gone. I glanced towards the passage and then back at the group of Moroi who were cowering beside another Strigoi. How could “they come first” when Rose’s life was on the line? Yet, Rose’s words played in my head.Get them out of here.
I had to keep them safe. It would be what Rose wanted. She would find a way out, she had to. I grabbed the two closest Moroi, jerked them out of the path of the Strigoi and towards the exit. I pushed my way back outside pulling the Moroi with me.
“I have to go back in,” I told Alberta. She grabbed my shoulder and shook her head.
“Dimitri, we have lost too many already. The sun is about to set. We need to get back,” she hissed, I could tell from the tone of her voice that I must have looked like a man possessed. I shook my head.
“I can’t! Rose is in there! I can’t leave without her. I just can’t.” I could hear the frantic edge to my voice. Alberta’s eyes flicked to Janine and they both took a step forward.
“What do you mean Rose is still in there?” Janine’s voice was verging on hysteria.
My body sagged in defeat and I let out a choked sob. “I couldn’t get to her in time. The Strigoi- they’ve taken her,” I said helplessly.You will lose what you value most. The words haunted me. Why didn’t I make her stay behind? Why didn’t I do more to protect her? Janine’s eyes flickered to the cave and she let out a small gasp. A look that I knew must mirror my own crossed her face, but forcing the look off her face, she grabbed my arm, her strength quite a contrast of her tiny size.
“She’s gone Belikov and I amnot going to let her die for nothing. Do you really think she would want you risking your life trying to save her? She would want you to be safe. She would want you to make sure that these kids are safe. Now you get your arse in the vannow,” she hissed. I could hear the tremble in her voice and I knew she was struggling to keep it together.
Though I didn’t want to admit it, I knew she was right. Rose would kill me if I didn’t get these children to safety.
As we retreated with the crying Moroi children, Janine’s words swam through my mind.She’s gone. But she couldn’t be. Rose. My Rose. She was too strong, too passionate, too young to be lost to me forever. I would know in my heart if she was. So she couldn’t be. She just couldn’t.
The ride back to the academy was quiet, everyone absorbed in their own thoughts. Shock and loss were written all over Janine’s face, and I was sure I wore the same distraught and painful expression. Janine ran a hand through her hair and her eyes met mine. She glanced around the truck and sighed, moving into the seat beside me.
"How long had this been going on?” She asked. I stiffened; her tone wasn’t harsh or even disapproving, just curious. I raised my hand, nervously wiping the hair out of my eyes realizing in that moment I was shaking. I dropped the hand back on to my lap and tried to stop my lip from quivering.
