When the Lights Go Down

Chapter 2: Comrade

A big, wonderful shoutout to my beta reader, Sage.Meryllis.Banks on FF.net, for looking over this chapter for me. She is amazing and you should all go read her fics.

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"He's what?"

The pitch of Rose's voice grew higher as she talked, her head swiveling from the newcomer to her father. They were sitting at opposite ends of the table and it was giving her neck quite the workout.

How dare he? Rose fumed. After years and years of work as Lissa's personal security guard, she was just going to be shoved aside for some stranger? And by her own father?

"He is Vasilisa's new personal guard," Abe said calmly. His hands were clasped on his lap.

"No, no, no," Rose replied, wagging a finger at Abe. "I'm Lissa's personal guard. Have been, always will be. He's not even on the official team. Are you going to let a stranger go near her? Do you really think that's a good idea?"

Rose's tone became more urgent and unhinged as she continued speaking. Dimitri only stared at the two of them and didn't say a word. She took his silence as agreement to her point, but his expression was completely unreadable. It was even worse that he was so goddamn pretty. She could deal with someone normal, but a god descended from the heavens would easily knock her out of left field.

"Dimitri Belikov is a highly trained individual that I've had under my employment for years, kiz," Abe told her as he poured her a glass of orange juice. "But since Vasilisa has been threatened, she's become top priority."

"Oh, highly trained?" Rose scoffed. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Abe sullenly. "In what? Statue impersonations?"

"In a variety of martial arts and law enforcement procedures," Dimitri spoke from the other side of the table. The voice came as a surprise to her, the sound guttural. He was Russian. Dimitri accepted a glass of orange juice poured for him by Abe and drank. Rose thought he nearly smiled at her when the glass met his lips.

"See?" Abe said, gesturing to Dimitri. "And what qualifications do you have, Rose?"

Shut up," Rose replied. "I've been protecting Lissa ever since we were kids; it's only natural for us. I know how she works, where she goes, who likes to follow her..." She trailed off and made an "and so on" hand gesture.

"You're incapacitated," Abe said, nodding towards her wheelchair. "You couldn't protect Lissa if someone else decided to shoot her."

"Hell yeah I could," Rose said competitively. "I took one bullet for the bitch, I'll take another. We're sisters."

"Then of course you wouldn't mind if you were to, say, share the duties of looking after Lissa." Abe leaned back in his chair and observed Rose as her expression went from angry to shocked.

"Share?" Rose said in disbelief. "You must be kidding me, old man. If I wasn't in this stupid wheelchair I swear you would be down and out for the count."

"A wonderful notion, no doubt," Abe replied coolly. "But until that bandage comes off, Dimitri will be looking after Lissa. There's no negotiating this." He placed a croissant on Rose's plate. "Here, have something to eat."

Rose drilled daggers into the croissant with her gaze, determined not to eat it just to spite her father, but the grumbling of her stomach had other ideas. She picked it up and tore off a section with more aggression than necessary.

"If I'm causing problems, I can-" Dimitri began with an earnest look on his face.

"No," Abe said, cutting him off. His phone began to ring and he checked the caller ID. "I have to take this. In the meantime, don't kill each other."