I had been sleeping dreamlessly when the phone went off, waking me up. I blinked my eyes open, glancing at the caller ID.
'Belikov,' I answered, sitting up in the bed.
'Sorry to wake you up, Dimitri. A student is very adamant about seeing you. It seems serious.'
Well...wonder who that could be. 'It's Hathaway, isn't it?'
'Yep. So—you never know. Might be another one of her tricks.'
Rose was plenty troublesome, but I didn't think she'd bother to alert an authority figure if it wasn't serious. In that case, she would have just slipped on by, heedless of the consequences.
'I'm coming.'
I dressed hastily, running a hand through my hair before leaving the room. I headed over to Rose's dormitory, taking the stairs three steps at a time. When I opened the door to the hall, Rose and the matron were standing there, looking up at my entry. Rose was pacing back and forth, clearly agitated over something.
'Lissa,' I said, instantly guessing the source of her worry.
She nodded. Without another word, I turned around and started back down the stairs. Rose followed. We walked across the quad in silence, toward the Moroi dorm. Despite the lack of sleep, I felt awake and alert. The sun had that effect on me. I turned my face up, glad for the vitamin D. Sometimes I regretted living in perpetual darkness—back in Siberia, my family didn't have to. I felt a small pang of grief then. I missed my family...my sisters, my grandmother, but above all, my mother. I needed to call them soon. It had been too long.
I cleared my head once we entered the dorm. Together, we approached the matron stationed there. She gaped when she caught sight of us, though she soon recognised me.
'Is anything wrong?' she asked, beginning to frown.
'The Dragomir princess is in trouble,' I explained, looking down at Rose.
'She's in the bathroom,' she told us, though there was something hidden in her expression. The matron started to follow her, but Rose turned, blocking the path. 'She's too upset. Let me talk to her alone first.'
Rose's gaze flicked to me. I had to believe that whatever was bothering the princess was personal. It wouldn't help Lissa's case if authority figures barged in on her. She would want to see a friendly face first.
'Yes,' I agreed, nodding at Rose. 'Give them a minute.'
Rose pushed the door open. 'Liss?' she called gently. The door closed behind her, shutting off the noise.
I leaned against the counter, gaze fixing absently on the floor. For what felt like the twentieth time, I wondered what was going on with the princess. I was her assigned guardian, and although I didn't have to perform those duties to her here at school, I would eventually—in less than half a year. I needed to know what was up with her if I was going to do a good job of guarding her.
'So, do you believe it?'
I looked up at the matron, confused by her question.
'The bond, I mean. I heard....'
News travelled fast, even among staff. 'It's true.'
The matron looked amazed. 'It certainly is convenient,' she said, before tuning back into her own thoughts.
Wondering what was taking the girls so long, I knocked on the door. 'Rose?'
'Just a sec,' she called.
I stepped away, but the matron frowned with suspicion. 'We're coming in,' she called, opening the door. Since the matron was about two heads shorter than me, I saw right over her head. And what I saw filled me with alarm. I raced to their sides in an instant, eyes locking on the blood on Lissa's face.
'It's not mine,' she said quickly, seeing my expression. 'It...it's the rabbit....'
I assessed her. She was wearing Rose's hoodie, which was as well, because she looked pale and frail, and was shaking slightly. There was a haunted look on her face, and she had obviously been crying. Still, I saw no injury, and relaxed just a trifle.
'What rabbit?' I asked, recalling what she had said.
She pointed at a trash can. 'I cleaned it up. So Natalie wouldn't see.'
Rose seemed as shocked by this as I was. We both walked over and peered into the can. Rose pulled away immediately, but I kept looking, recalling the incident with the fox. There was blood, a lot of it, and a bundle of paper towels that Lissa no doubt had used to clean up. The whole thing reeked. My mood darkened.
I shifted closer to Lissa, bending down so we were at eye level. A lot of people were intimidated by me, but I needed the princess to know that she could trust me. 'Tell me what happened,' I urged, handing her several tissues.
Lissa blinked, regarding me for a second before speaking. She explained what had happened, but eventually, her voice broke. She began to cry. I moved away, letting Rose comfort her while her shoulders shook with tears.
'No one should be able to get into those rooms!' exclaimed the matron from behind us. 'How is this happening?'
How, indeed. We could have written off the first incident as a tasteless prank, but this...no, this was something else. And I needed to know why it was happening. If this was the reason why Rose and Lissa had left the Academy...well, then I couldn't entirely blame them. This time, though, they wouldn't be running away again. Because they had me.
I made my voice gentle, looking at the princess again. 'Do you know who did it?'
Lissa reached into her pajama pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. It was soaked with blood, but I managed to smooth it out, holding it in front of me so we could all read.
I know what you are. You won't survive being here. I'll make sure of it. Leave now. It's the only way you might live through this.
There it was. Icy anger made its way up my spine, but I kept my expression firm. Someone was targeting the princess. And Rose had known about it. The question was...why? I resolved to find out—but later.
'I'm getting Ellen,' the matron called, which I thought was just as well. This was serious—and dangerous.
'Tell her we'll be at the clinic,' I said, taking another look at Lissa. She was in no shape to go back to bed alone. 'You should lie down,' I murmured.
Lissa didn't move. She just kept staring at the note, that same haunted look on her face. Like something was chasing her. Again, I was eerily reminded of Sonya Karp's tapes. It had to be connected somehow. And yet, Rose had said she knew nothing about it. Something about that bothered me. I wanted her to trust me.
Rose was regarding her friend with deep worry, but she linked her arm through Lissa's and helped her walk forward. 'Come on, Liss. Let's get you out of here.' Rose kept supporting her all the way to the clinic, murmuring small words of encouragement. I felt a small tinge of admiration settle in my heart, seeing her so protective and concerned. Rose might have a lot of attitude, but I had to wonder if she used it to shield just how compassionate and empathic she was, deep inside.
The nurse on duty jumped up when she saw us come in, gaze zeroing in on the princess. 'Should I wake a doctor?'
I declined. 'She just needs to rest.'
Rose was helping Lissa settle into the narrow bed when the Headmistress and several other members of staff showed up. They began questioning her right away, which I thought was more than tactless.
Rose seemed to agree. She thrust herself in front of them, shielding her friend behind her. 'Leave her alone!' she snapped, scowling. 'Can't you see she doesn't want to talk about it? Let her get some sleep first!'
Kirova turned her cold gaze on Rose, and I had to smother another sigh. 'Miss Hathaway,' she declared, dislike lacing her words, 'you're out of line as usual. I don't even know what you're doing here.'
Oops, that was my fault. Not that I was going to apologise or explain. I settled for distraction, smoothing out my features. 'Headmistress, can I speak to you privately?'
Kirova gave me a knowing look, but she followed me out into the hall.
'This better be good, Belikov,' she hissed, through her anger wasn't directed at me. I could tell it was mostly directed at herself. Someone was targeting a student at her school, and she had no clue what to do about it.
'Headmistress—we both know that someone is targeting the princess. We have to believe that this was going on before—two years ago, when they left. Why else would they leave?'
'I know that you have faith in your student, Belikov, but it is entirely more likely that Hathaway orchestrated—'
I just lifted my eyebrows at that, to make her see how completely illogical it was to judge a student, a teenager, as if she were a criminal.
Kirova saw it and fell silent. 'I just don't understand why there is always trouble around her.'
'It's not about her,' I repeated, keeping my voice calm and firm. 'It's the princess. Rose is doing whatever she can do protect her—but what are we doing?'
Kirova sighed, looking like she'd rather just pin all this on Rose again, instead of understand what was really going on at her school.
'She still deserves punishment,' she whispered angrily. 'She's not supposed to leave her room.'
I frowned. 'I believe it's more important that we offer the princess some comfort right now. And Rose is best suited for that role.'
She shook her head at me, but finally, she conceded. We walked out.
Rose looked up, meeting my eyes before looking at Kirova, who addressed her stiffly. 'You may stay with her for a little while. We'll have janitors do further cleaning and investigation in the bathroom and your room, Miss Dragomir, and then discuss the situation in detail in the morning.'
'Don't wake Natalie,' whispered Lissa. 'I don't want to scare her. I cleaned up everything in the room anyway.' I felt tender looking at the girl. She was so selfless, even when she was the one being unfairly targeted. I could see why Rose was so adamant about protecting her.
Kirova looked doubtful, but retreated without further comment. I was sure she wanted us to check the rooms anyway, but Lissa didn't need to know that. Besides, the princess looked tired, and I could tell that she and Rose wanted to speak alone. I left them, consumed with thoughts, hoping that Rose one day would trust me enough to tell me all about what was happening.
Back in the bathroom, I went over all the evidence again. Some of the staff had plucked the remains of the rabbit out of the trash can, though it resembled nothing of the sort anymore. I was disgusted, but forced myself to think through what had happened here.
That someone was targeting the princess was obvious—the why remained. I hoped Rose could help with that, but I had to wonder, why attack someone like this? Why the dead animals? What could they possibly achieve, besides scaring her senseless? I tried some wild guesses, referring back to the note.
I know what you are. And what was she? The Dragomir princess, last of her name. She was important...politically. So, a political motivation seemed likely. Again, what? Did someone want to scare her away from pursuing an important political role? A girl that wasn't even an adult yet?
You won't survive being here. That sounded more like an empty threat. They could scare the princess, possibly traumatise her, but harm her? In the middle of an Academy? It seemed unlikely. Besides, Rose would know if that ever happened. She was our greatest ally in this, and Kirova just couldn't see it. To know exactly where your Moroi was, how she was feeling...to know immediately if she was attacked. It was a gift. I again found myself wishing I had the ability too. If I had, Ivan would be alive today. I forced myself to chase away that thought, refocusing on my task.
Leave now. That was the most important part of the message. Leave now. That's what they had done before. They had left, and still...they had managed to avoid capture. Whoever it was that was looking for them had ultimately failed. I felt a small tinge of pride over Rose. She might not have a clue how to protect the princess against Strigoi, and got mighty lucky in that sense, but avoiding capture? She'd done a pretty good job. They'd been gone for two years, after all. And that was a long time, especially in a teenager's life. I recalled something then. The psi hounds. She said she'd been attacked by them, that she'd handled them...but I still couldn't bring myself to believe that. It was more likely that they'd just been attacked by a pack of wild dogs.
Back to the animals. Dead animals. Possibly, the princess loved animals. Possibly, her attacker knew of this fact. Hmm, worrisome. If they knew something like that...it had to be someone she knew personally.
I sighed. I just wished I could discuss all this with Rose. She was bound to know something—anything that could help. But I had seen the determined look in her eye, her refusal to share with me. She wouldn't do anything she thought would compromise her friend. If and when the situation became truly critical, I had to trust that she would seek help. If it was the only way she could help her friend, she'd do it. I knew that.
Feeling a little reassured—reassured by my faith in Rose...damnit, why couldn't I escape her? Why didn't I want to?—I returned back to my room, and to sleep.
~
The next day went by in a blur. I kept mulling over the incident, ignoring what was going on around me, until—I heard her name being mentioned. Rose.
'Did you hear what happened?' There were snickers. I was instantly on the alert. Of course the news would get out. It annoyed me, thinking that the princess didn't need all this on top of everything else that was going on. Teenagers could be remarkably ruthless at times. Luckily, Lissa had Rose. She would deal with anyone talking crap about the princess—though I worried she might take it too far. Rose could do plenty of verbal fighting, but she could definitely not get into an actual fight. Kirova would expel her in a minute. I hoped she knew that. If anything, she would probably take greater care to keep herself within the walls of the Academy, if it kept her close to Lissa.
Somewhat reassured, I pushed gossip out of my mind and headed over to my practice session with Rose. When she walked in, she seemed distracted, preoccupied in thought. I gave her a puzzled look, inviting her to explain, but didn't ask any questions. I was in perfect mentor role today, and nothing was going to blow it. Once we got down to the exercises, her cloudy expression dissipated, and she threw herself into her workout with fervour. I was happy to see her taking her promise seriously, and watched her approvingly as she fought. When she was done, she left with a mumbled "see you later," not even looking back at me. If anything, that should have alerted me to trouble.
But I didn't think anything was amiss, not until I saw how on fire the conversations were among the students. Something was up. Maybe the rabbit incident had finally gotten out. But as I kept listening, it wasn't the princess they were talking about. In fact, she wasn't being mentioned at all anymore. No, it was only Rose's name that was being whispered, passed around like a bottle at a party. I couldn't catch exactly what they were saying yet, but I felt some relief that Lissa's incident with the Queen was forgotten, and more importantly, that the rabbit incident hadn't gotten out at all.
My relief was short, however.
'Wait, Jesse and Rose? That Rose?'
'Yup, she let him do it.'
'I heard that she more like, begged him to do it.'
More laughter. 'It was bound to happen. She can't help herself.'
'I have a mind to take a piece of that,' said another. 'Especially if blood's involved.'
'Well, get in line, buddy. I'd at least like a taste before she joins the feeder room. Everything's so stale there.'
I felt my blood boil, and immediately turned away before anyone could see the fury on my face.
Jesse and Rose.
Of course.
I had warned that little brat; I had warned him effectively. His eyes had practically bugged out with fear. And still, he had done it. Goddamn him, he'd done it, in typical royal Moroi fashion. They knew we couldn't hurt them. They knew they could get away with anything. And now, Rose was going to have to pay for it.
I stormed away from the mingling students, needing to get away. There was no point in underestimating what would happen now. This news would spread and multiply in intensity, until the kids over at frickin' elementary school knew all about it. It was absolutely infuriating, knowing I couldn't do anything about it. I couldn't speak up for Rose. Hell, it wouldn't even help if she spoke up for herself. This stuff was beyond her—and it wasn't even her fault. She'd never let Jesse drink from her that night. She'd never do it. And yet...she had done it. Many times, probably. With Lissa. I'd seen it with my own eyes. And I'd seen feeders too. It was an addiction, like any other. Jesse must have sensed her reaction, when he was...I couldn't even picture it in my head without seeing red. I hated to think of that sleazy moron with his hands on her body, with his lips on hers. She was leagues above him. Why the hell had she given in to her...—I stopped. What, exactly? I kept forgetting that she was a teenager. Teenager. She had hormones, like other teenagers. Obviously, she was going to act first, and think later. But goddamn her for doing it, anyway. I'd warned her, but I'd been too late.
I was storming past the cafeteria and was almost to the doors leading outside when I saw another group of Moroi.
'Hey Jesse, think you can hook me and Pete here up with Rose?'
Laughter. 'Anyone else?'
I caught the gleam of gold hair, and instantly recognised him. Jesse. I picked up the pace, meaning to confront him, but someone nudged his shoulder. He looked up, expression guarded. When he saw me, his face turned white. He turned on his heel and disappeared into the library to his right, friend in tow. I came to a halt outside, knowing I couldn't make a scene in there. I glanced over at the remaining Moroi. They were all slowly edging away from me, eyes wide.
'Don't you have anything better to do?' I said, taking a step forward.
There were several murmurs of "yes sir."
'Go,' I growled. They scrambled away before I could get another word out. With no one in earshot, I sighed, shoulders slumping with something close to fatigue. I could see now why Rose had been so unanimated in practice. Sympathy welled up in my chest. I wondered if I could say something...comfort her somehow. Immediately, I chastised myself. I couldn't keep letting this get to me. I couldn't threaten every male in school that treated Rose badly.
Hardening my heart to her, I started to walk back to the staff building. Before I could step inside, however, I was stopped by none other than the Dragomir princess. She looked worried, but determined, though her hand was nervously playing with the zipper on her jacket.
'Princess,' I said, nodding my respects. 'Anything wrong?'
She looked up at me, pleading in her eyes. 'Yes, actually.'
I was instantly on the alert. 'Did something happen?' I moved to grip her arm, then reconsidered. 'Are you okay?'
'No,' she said. Seeing my expression, she hurried to add, 'I mean yes, I'm okay. Nothing happened—to me, at least. But Rose....' Her eyes clouded with worry.
I sighed, looking away.
'You heard, didn't you?' When I looked back at her, there was something fierce in her eyes. 'They can't say those things about her. It's wrong.'
'It is,' I agreed, though I was trying to figure out what she wanted. 'There isn't much I can do about it,' I added gently, hating myself for saying it.
She took a deep breath, closing her eyes. 'I know, I know. It's just...she's been like a zombie all day. I'm worried about her. Do you think you could...I don't know, let her out of her prison for a while, just so I can check up on her?'
I gave the princess a look. 'I'm not sure that would be wise. She'll probably be okay until tomorrow. You can talk to her then.'
'I'm not so sure about that,' Lissa muttered, grimacing slightly. Then she met my eyes again, hers growing filmy with emotion. 'Please?' she pressed, keeping her gaze fixed on mine. 'Please let me see her? Just five minutes. I promise.'
I opened my mouth to refuse again, ready to tell her just how important it was that Rose remained at the Academy. I was doing it for both their sakes. But looking at the princess, the words became jumbled in my mind, and never quite made it out. What was I going to say, now again?
'Please,' she repeated, in a voice so gentle it felt criminal to refuse her. Finally, I nodded. Of course I had to help her. More importantly, I needed to help Rose.
'Alright. Follow me.'
We walked together toward the novice dorm, not saying anything. 'Wait here,' I said, leaving her outside while I walked alone toward Rose's room. I knocked, not sure what condition I'd find her in. Some part of me didn't think that anything could really get to her—she always exuded so much confidence.
After a second, Rose opened the door, looking up at me with muted surprise. She didn't say anything, so I took the time to study her face. Her eyes were red-rimmed, and her cheeks were wet. It was obvious she had been crying, so I quickly glanced away. I wondered what to say—what I could say. Whether to even tell her what I knew. Her expression suddenly twisted, reading my expression. Of course she could tell I knew.
I swallowed. 'Are you okay?'
She was silent for a second. 'It doesn't matter if I am, remember?' she said, looking up at me. 'Is Lissa okay? This'll be hard on her.'
Regret passed through me, thinking back on what I'd told her the other day. To suddenly have her speaking my own lessons back at me...I couldn't help but feel a little remorseful, guilty even. Rose had a remarkable spirit, filled with zest and raw energy. I had always thought of mentoring her as polishing an uncut jewel, of turning potential into purpose. For the first time, I felt like my lessons were depriving her of something...essential, something beautifully eccentric. In truth, I felt bad about denying her anything, even if it was necessary for a guardian career. Seeing her like this, the way she was forcibly undermining her own feelings for her Moroi's reputation...it made my heart ache.
Luckily, I could do something to ease her hidden misery. I beckoned her to follow me, leading her out through the back stairwell to where Lissa was waiting outside.
'Five minutes,' I warned, before releasing her. If anyone saw her at this hour, she was toast.
Rose shot me a curious look before stepping outside. I gave her profile a look before she disappeared, wondering what the princess would say to her. I couldn't hear through the door, and silence fell. I leaned back against the wall, hoping beyond hope that Lissa could help her friend, as she so many times had done for her.
After some time, I glanced at my clock. Ten minutes had passed, and she still wasn't back. Not that I had expected it in the first place. I stuck my head out, ready to summon her.
'You've got to get back inside, Rose, before someone finds you.'
Rose looked back at her friend, but I couldn't see her expression, neither could I hear what Lissa said before walking away. With a heavy sigh, Rose trudged back to where I stood, visibly swallowing her emotion.
Neither of us said anything on the way back to her room. Rose's brown eyes kept darting around. If anything, she seemed more worried than she'd been before. I couldn't think of anything to say either, since...well, I had vowed to keep out of her personal life. I felt regret over the fact that she couldn't confide her worries to me...but again, what could I do? Or say? Having a reputation as a bloodwhore was bad, but it wasn't like Rose was going to keep giving blood to Lissa, or anyone else. The rumour would fade, eventually. It just needed time.
Besides, Rose was strong. No matter how low she seemed right now, she'd recover.
When we reached her room at last, she turned, looking at me blankly. 'Thanks,' she said, unable to keep eye contact, 'for, um, helping.'
'No problem,' I said, feeling troubled. But it was late, and she needed to sleep. 'Get some rest now, Rose.'
'I'll try.... Goodnight.' She began to close the door.
'Goodnight.' Sleep well, I thought to add, but didn't, knowing that she wouldn't.