loving the one you protect

Chapter 13

"I do! But only when I'm the one who actually gets to shop!" I whine while examining a beautiful red lace bra. I toss it back like its on fire, gawking at the price. I should definitely bring Lissa back here with me... and warn her to bring her trust fun. I giggle to myself thinking of Liss' face of horror over the ungodly prices in here. I miss her... the empty hole she left in my chest twinges with sharp pain. I really should have made a run back for my now cold coffee.

"Rose... are you ok?" Adrian asks tentatively.

"I just miss Lissa" I say quietly then kick myself for it. It's none of his business.

"None of this was fair to you" Adrian murmurs darkly. I say nothing but follow after Anna.

We go through row after row of lingerie, it all starting to blend together in a mass of skimpy fabric.

"Rose, what colour would look better?" Anna asks holding up a two negligees: one silky and red, the other lacy and yellow.

"Red, it's Adrian's favourite colour" I comment offhand, flipping through the silk bathrobes.

"Thanks Rose" She says with a sweet smile, her face twisting into a seductive smirk.

Her eyes rove my face and finally trail my outfit. She stiffens, then flashes me a sweet smile "Rose, you really shouldn't wear red, it doesn't suit you at all. It makes you look like a bloodwhore" Anna says, her voice filled with sincerity. She's acting as if she's an old friend giving me fashion advice! How dare she... I bite my tongue hard enough to draw blood. I do not have enough caffeine in my system to deal with this.

"How thoughtful of you to tell me" I say forcing myself to be polite. Just for today just for today...I just need to last until James comes. Then I can find that information for Tatiana and leave.

I take a deep breath. Calm Rose... calm... I chant to myself. I turn to vent to Adrian

"Adri-" I start. "Shit" I swear under my breath. Panic seizes me. Where did he go? I walk swiftly toward the front of the store, eyes darting left and right. My hand sneaks down into my boot for my stake. Time to give this baby some action...

"Rose I've got -oof" Something hard slams into me. I reach out just in time to snatch a falling bag before it hits the floor. Emerald eyes stare at me filled with amusement.

"Adrian!" I yelp and take a cautious step back "You are not supposed to go anywhere without me! Are you ok?"

"Rose, Rose, I'm fine" He soothes "I just went to get you coffee" He holds out my latte with an innocent smirk. Miraculously none of it spilled.

"You what?" I gape. Coffee? For me? I take a deep sniff. Is that vanilla?

"And a doughnut" Adrian says with a chuckle gesturing to the bag in my hand. "Glad to see you like your stake though" He adds grinning as I slip the beautiful treasure back into my boot.

I dive straight into my doughnut and coffee. Adrian laughs at my enthusiasm but I don't even have the heart to glare, my latte is too yummy.

"Adrian! Sweetheart, where did you go?" Annabel asks scurrying over to us and pecking him on the lips.

"I just went to get Rose coffee" Adrian replies, bringing a hand to his face and rubbing off her sticky lip gloss.

"That's going to make you fat you know" Anna tells me her lips pursed as if she tasted something sour. I fight the urge to groan.

"Hathaway" the godsend voice of James cuts in. He strolls into the room brimming with cool confidence. His charisma is contagious.

"James!" I smile at him, my eyes tracing the sharp angles of his face. He grins cheekily at me.

"Like what you see Rose?" James says sensually, his eyes lit with laughter.

"Oh shove off Burntwood, keep dreaming" I reply with a laugh.

The heat from Annabel's glare singes my neck.

"You ready for some shopping?" I ask James, I need to find a way to get the documents Tatiana sent me for...

"Yeah for sure, Rose, go take a break or something! I'll see you in a bit" James says, his eyes filled with sympathy. He's probably been on one too many "shopping" trips.

I don't think twice before taking off at warp speed - anything to get as far away from Bitchy Pants as I could.

My feet lead me out of the shopping mall and into a grassy cemetery, right where Tatiana directed me.

"Okay, think Rose, think..." I tell myself. "Where would you hide secret information if you were a guardian hunting strigoi?" I wonder aloud, sitting down on a large square headstone. I palm my eyes, rubbing sleep out of them. Engravings spiral across the weathered surface of the stone. I trace the design with my finger. The markings feel familiar... they're not just any markings, they're molnija marks!

Perfect. This has to be it. Where else would a guardian hide ancient documents? Now how to find them... I rise and run my fingers along the edges of the stone checking for gaps. Nothing. Stupid stone. I glare at it. I'm running out of time. My ring finger catches ever so slightly on a small divot. I stare at it with curiosity. It's a small round circle with no jagged edges. It's too perfect. I wonder... On a total whim I yank my stake from my boot. I glance with fervour between its point and the hole. They're almost identical. This is too weird. Time is running out. I shove my stake into the hole and turn it. A soft clicking sounds from the stone. A large crack forms across the top and splits open with a snap. I wince. The sound echoes ominously in the quiet of the cemetery. I heave the top of the tombstone; the jagged edges bite into my fingers.

Inside the hollow concrete rests faded leather bound book. I open it ever so slightly with wonder. It's a journal, the scrawling writing inside the ink is smudged, but still readable. I stare in awe. I've never been one for books but this, this is magnificent. I tuck the journal into my handbag for safe keeping and begin to wander back to the others.

An ear splitting scream pierces the air. I freeze. It's coming from the lot where we parked the SUV. I frowned in thought. The voice screams again. Annabel. I throw my handbag over my shoulder and take off at a sprint, my feet slapping the pavement. Faster, I need to move faster. I push my feet harder against the ground willing them to move. I have to get to Adrian, I have to. I skid to a halt in front of a sobbing Annabel and a petrified Adrian and land face to face with a strigoi.

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