Here's the next chapter! I promised Lori9048 that I'd try to get this up in time for her birthday and I succeeded! I hope you like it!

As a side note, my hometown is having a festival this weekend and my family's really involved in the community, so I might not be able to get another chapter up until Sunday or Monday at the earliest.

Just a warning, this does get a little gory in a few places. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: I own the plot. Anything you recognize belongs to Richelle Mead.

From Last Chapter…

"Miss. Hathaway," he says. "You have a phone call."

"Tell them that I'm in a meeting and take a message," I answer, not really paying attention to him. I turn back to the Moroi, but his eyes are still locked on the guardian.

"I'm sorry Hathaway," he says. "But…"

"But what?"

"You're going to want to take this call." I look over at the guardian, still framed in the doorway. His face is extremely pale, jaw tight, and expressionless mask gone. He looks worried…no more like frightened. It's this simple act, the act of displacing the regular guardian mask, that sends a slight shiver up my spine.

And I suddenly believe that I'm not paranoid…that the inevitable other shoe has finally fallen.

Chapter 2

The silence in the room was so complete that I bet you could've heard a pin drop…you know if a pin had beendropped. And that was saying something because the floor was covered in carpet. Feeling everyone's eyes on me, I took the phone from the guardian before me.

"Hathaway."

"Rose, do you ever answer your phone?" Sydney questioned.

"Yes, just not when I'm in a meeting."

"Well I think you'll find this is more important than a meeting." Her tone went from teasingly berate to completely serious and I knew instantly that something was dreadfully wrong.

"What is it, Sydney?"

"I don't exactly know how to tell you this…"

"Just spit it out," I suggested, my impatience getting the better of me. I couldn't help it. If something had happened that made Sydney this worried, then it'll definitely worry me too. My thoughts immediately went to Katya, her face lighting up with joy as she watched herself in the mirror. I couldn't let anything happen to my little girl. And I couldn't let anything happen to Dimitri or Christian or any of my other friends.

"It's about the Keepers," she finally said. The Keepers? I thought back to the dozen or so times I had gone to see them with Sydney in the past year. The first time I'd met the group of Moroi, Dhampirs, and humans, I had definitely experienced a culture shock. The Keepers lived on the outskirts of civilization, keeping to secluded areas such as forests and mountains. No electricity, no plumbing. But more than that, they "keep to the old ways," meaning their civilization was made up of the crude traditions our world had been based on. For example, they saw elections as being a poor way to select a leader. Instead, all candidates should have to fight to the death; the last one standing would become king or queen. They referred to Moroi and Dhampirs in the modern world as the Tainted, as they had strayed away from the way things were supposed to be, and Strigoi as the Lost.

Thinking I was a spy, it had taken months for Sydeny to convince the Keepers to meet with me. While the majority of their customs may be perceived as backwards, they did have one thing going for them. Strigoi left them alone due to the fact that everyone was trained to use any means necessary to defend themselves. Not only that, but they would fight back if attacked. The Strigoi had much easier prey in Moroi of the modern world, as they, for the most part, wouldn't or couldn't. And the committee could learn a lot from people who worked together against a common enemy and trained Moroi to fight their own battles.

The first time I had gone with Syndey, as Alchemists drop off supplies, food, and medicine to them every few months, I'd been taken aback, even knowing that what I'd see would be completely different from what I was used to. Living in caves or small shabby buildings, the village was centered around a huge bonfire that seemed to burn twenty four hours a day, acting as a kind of meeting place or town hall for those living there. I'd met with Raymond, a Moroi who seemed to be one of the more influential Keepers of the group, and we'd gotten along well. Welcoming me into his home – more like shack – for dinner, I had gotten to meet his family and become more familiar with the ways of the Keepers. Sarah, his human wife, had served stew and bread that had been surprisingly good. Not that I'm very picky when it comes to food. They had a daughter, Angeline, and a son, Joshua, as well as two other children who lived with them. Joshua, who was about my age, had taken a liking to me right away. He had even taken me to see his small cave, which he was quite proud of. It was on the outskirts of the village as, apparently, they were beginning to run out of space.

I'd picked up quite a bit from them, not all of which would be usable in modern day settings, but was still good to know. And now suddenly something was wrong concerning them. For some reason, I was worried. These people had taken me in, let me in on the secrets of their society, and grown to trust me almost implicitly. I could admit that I didn't want anything to happen to them.

"What's happened, Sydney? What's wrong with them?"

"I went out there today for a routine supply drop and when I arrived…the easiest way to describe it I guess would be to say that they were mass murdered." I couldn't help but suck in a breath. I'd seen them train and how strong they all were. And now those resilient, lively people were dead?

"What do you mean?" I asked, my voice coming out as more of a whisper. I felt myself sit down into a chair, knowing subconsciously that I'd need all the support I could get. I didn't even bother trying to keep the look of dismay from spreading across my face.

"It's not something I can really…explain. You'd really have to see it to believe it. I contacted a nearby Alchemist post and they came out to investigate. All signs point to Strigoi and it looks like the Keepers were killed about twenty-four hours ago."

"But they said Strigoi wouldn't go after them…and it makes sense that they wouldn't." I was grasping at straws, trying to prove to myself that the Keepers couldn't possibly have been killed, and I knew it. But the simple truth was that I really didn't want to believe it. Because if these people, who had been training all their lives to defeat any Strigoi they came in contact with, had all been massacred…then honestly what chance did any of us stand?

"Trust me, Rose. I've seen my fair share of deaths caused by Strigoi and these mesh with their routine killing patterns. Everything except…."

"Except what?"

"It's something I've never seen before. Something none of the Alchemists who came to investigate have ever seen either."

"What is it, Sydney?"

"You'd have to see it for yourself," she answered finally. "It can't really be described. When can you get down here?" I glanced up from the spot on the table that I'd been staring at since I'd picked up the phone to look at the queen.

"I'm sure I could have my team assembled and on its way relatively shortly. We could be there in maybe an hour, two at most."

"Hurry, Rose." Without even waiting for a reply, Sydney hung up.

"What was that all about?" Christian asked. I ignored him and just keep looking at Queen Tatiana.

"Rose?" she finally asked. Taking that as permission to speak – I know, when have I ever needed it? – I began to relate everything that Sydney told me.

"You must go," Tatiana said finally. "Take your team and a few more guardians and find out whatever you can from the Alchemists on site as well as draw your own conclusions."

"Yes, Your Highness," I said, rising to my feet.

"And Rose?" I gave her my full attention. "I expect a full report when you return." I nodded my understanding before leaving the room. I could feel rather than see Dimitri follow me out of the conference room and into the hallway. Pulling me into a nearby empty room, he closed the door behind us.

"You do realize how dangerous this could be, don't you?" he asks. "The Strigoi could be lying in wait for you to come to the scene so they can ambush you."

"Yes Dimitri, I realize that."

"And yet, you're still going?"

"I can't just not go."

"You're the one person in the world they want to kill most. Don't you think it would be wise to lay low instead of running off in the heat of things?" I knew what this was about; he didn't want to take the chance of losing me, no matter how small that chance may be.

"Dimitri, I took it easy during my pregnancy. I laid low then and for good reason. But I can't just sit around and do nothing for the rest of my life. Even if it means risking my life, I have to do what I feel in my heart is right. Just as you do."

"But you have a daughter now…things are different. She relies on you."

"And on you," I pointed out.

"Why do you feel so strongly about this?" He gripped my arms tightly, obviously trying to understand. "You aren't a guardian. You don't have to be a part of this investigation."

I sighed. "Because if I'm the real target for the Strigoi, then I'm responsible for leading them to the Keepers. I was their only real contact to the modern world besides the Alchemists…and I may have just gotten them all killed." Dimitri's eyes never left mine as I continued. "They put their faith and trust in me, Dimitri. I think the least I owe them is to return one last time and see everything for myself." Now it was his turn to sigh.

"And around Court it may not be considered your job anymore," he said, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear. "But it's in your blood to protect people. It's who you are."

I nodded, confirming that as well. It still amazed me sometimes how well we could read each other.

"It's also one of the reasons that I fell in love with you to begin with. And I wouldn't take that part out of you, even if I don't want you to go."

"I will come back," I promised, kissing him.

Pulling back a few seconds later, he said, "You better."

We went out into the hallway, where my team had assembled. Lissa, standing beside Christian and holding his hand, looked pale and anxious.

"You'll take care of my girl?" Christian asked.

"I promise," Dimitri answered immediately. "And you'll take care of mine?"

"You can count on it."

After an hour long flight on one of the court's private jets, we finally arrived in West Virginia. Renting two SUVs, we quickly drove to the site of the Keeper's village. I got to drive the first one, as I'm the only guardian who knew where we were going. The closer we got, the more I began to study the landscape in the beams of my headlights. The Appalachian Mountains towered over the roadway on one side, still a bit off into the distance. Turning down a narrow gravel driveway, we drove into the foothills. The further and further we got away from civilization, the more and more my stomach seemed to knot up. And not in the nauseous, there-are-Strigoi-around way. I was simply nervous to see the destruction that had been wreaked out against the Keepers.

The trees got thicker and thicker before finally randomly disappearing to reveal a sort of clearing. Knowing we'd have to go the rest of the way on foot, I parked my SUV in the makeshift parking lot and led my team and the seven other guardians into the woods, pulling out flashlights to better guide our way in the darkness. I could hear a few people talking a ways up in front of me, accompanied by a small flicker of light, and I followed the sound until we reached the outskirts of the Keeper village. Sydney was standing with a few other Alchemists, probably discussing the turmoil they'd seen. The same turmoil my team was about to walk into.

"Rose," she greeted, noticing me as we got closer.

"Sydney."

"If you want to leave a few of your associates here, my superiors will fill them in on what's happened and what they've concluded," she said, nodding towards the two men beside her. I chose three of the guardians to remain behind and the rest of us continued on with Sydney.

"I hope you haven't eaten anything lately," she murmured loud enough for only me to hear.

"Why's that?"

"Because it's pretty gruesome."

"Your definition of gruesome and mine are probably different."

"Rose, I see dead bodies for a living. I think our definitions are probably pretty similar." I had merely been joking, but thinking about it, she was most likely right. That really didn't make me feel any better. As we neared the turnoff directly before the village, I tried to prepare myself for the carnage I'd be witnessing in a few moments. And utterly failed.

If you didn't look closely, it almost looked like nothing had happened, no one had been attacked. But one thing I did notice right away was the fire, which had seemed like an eternal flame, had finally gone out. I thought it was kind of ironic that it had disappeared, just like the life of its civilization, but thought it best not to mention it.

Directing my gaze away from the ash-filled fire pit, I slid the light coming from the metal cylinder in my hand over my surroundings. The shacks stood in the same places, but where there had once only been filthy, brown planks of wood, random coatings of red were smeared in occasional spots. It almost looked like someone had been attempting to remove the evidence that any damage had been done.

"This is gruesome?" I couldn't help but say, releasing a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. "Sydney, you saw worse than this with me in Russia." Instead of answering, she simply led me over to the closest shack and pushed its door open. And I nearly puked. My jaw definitely dropped at the horror within, but I quickly closed it and swallowed back any bile that had been trying to rise in my throat.

Broken bodies and the crimson of blood covered the dirt floor. The faces were nearly unrecognizable, almost appearing to have been run through a meat grinder. Some seemed to have been fed on, their throats being brutally torn open and leaving pools of blood behind. One in particular, a small boy with blond hair – or at least that's what color I thought it had been before being stained crimson – looked different, his neck on an odd angle. And I knew for a fact, his neck had been snapped.

The family appeared to have been all in the kitchen at the time of the attack, still in the homemade threadbare clothes they'd been sleeping in, and I wondered if they had heard something in the night. Perhaps something that had tipped them all off to the danger that would be descending upon them any moment. Crude looking stakes were lying on the small table right beside the door, cruelly showing that they had just been a bit too far out of reach. Flies had found the beginnings of rotting flesh and had begun to assemble around it, buzzing as they flew around the bodies. The bitter scent of blood and fear hung in the air, still remaining from when the havoc had been wreaked.

"That's…that's horrible," I heard one of the men behind me stutter. The others remained eerily silent.

"Why don't the rest of you have a look around," I said. "Try to get a feel for the attack, a possible estimate of how many Strigoi it took to accomplish this." I heard everyone spread out, going their separate ways as each of them tried to get a handle on what they'd just seen, investigating both caves and wooden structures.

"An entire family wiped out at once…" I muttered, still taking in the scene before me. "Are they all like this?"

"All but one," she answered.

Finally looking away and facing Sydney, I simply said, "Show me." She led me the all too familiar way to Raymond's home. Knowing tears were threatening to blur my vision at the thought of seeing the family I had become so close to, I tried desperately to push my emotions aside. I could examine my feelings later; for now, I had a job to do.

"Prepare yourself," Sydney said. When I swallowed and nodded that I was ready, she led me into the small house. I'd been in here on numerous occasions. I remembered chatting with Sarah at the fire pit in the corner of the kitchen. I remembered holding one of the little kids on my lap as I listened to Joshua explain how housing and family worked in their community. I remembered Angeline glaring at me from the stool near the table while Raymond went over different fighting techniques. And now all of that was demolished.

The ladder, which had once led up to the loft above, was laying in multiple pieces. Chairs had been thrown around the room, splintering and falling where they may. The table's legs had been torn from the surface it propped up, scattered in different areas of the main room. Quilts had been retrieved from the bedroom, being shredded and strewn haphazardly all over. Large, padded mats, which I assumed had once been beds at one time, had been slit open, the stuffing pulled out. All in all, the room was a jumbled up pile of chaos. The other shack had been largely untouched, besides its former residents. In this one, apart from a few pots and pans that littered the floor, everything else had been ripped apart. Including the people who had once lived here.

Sarah, her blue eyes staring unseeingly at the doorway, had been the lucky one. Her neck had merely been snapped, killing her but making it as quick and painless as possible. The children's throats had been ripped out, spraying blood on the walls and coating the floor on which they now laid. But Raymond, strong, powerful Raymond, had gotten the worst of the assault. Although it looked as though he had been fed off of, his neck was still intact besides two small puncture marks. But his chest and stomach had been callously sliced open, spilling his organs and entrails out onto the floor. A puddle of crimson had spread out around him. But even with all this death and destruction surrounding me, I couldn't help but be distracted…because there was something else that was different about this area of attack. Something I'd never seen before when it concerned a Strigoi raid.

Pictures. Hundreds of them. Scattered around the carnage and stuck to the walls. I couldn't figure out what they depicted, mostly because every single image was blurred, completely worthless. To me, it seemed like someone had maybe attempted to photograph the scene and had done a really poor job of it.

"I'm assuming these are what you were referring to as being indescribable."

"Yeah," Sydney replied. "Someone really seems to be a shitty photographer." I would've turned around, shocked at her lewd language, which was against Alchemist protocol, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from the photos. For some reason, they grabbed me. Something in them called to me, but I had no idea why. They were just horrible shots of fatalities. But I still asked Sydney to have them bagged up and put in my SUV.

I still felt like I was missing something, something important. Looking around, I tried to place it. I felt my forehead wrinkle in confusion before I realized what it was.

"Where are Angeline and Joshua?" I asked.

"Hmm?" Sydney had been staring at the appalling scene around us, still trying to accept what I guessed she had seen nearly half a dozen times already.

"All the families were in their homes, maybe sleeping or preparing to end the day, when the attack began?" I asked.

"Yes, that seems to be the common consensus."

"Then where are Angeline and Joshua? And why are they not with their family?"

"I…I have no idea," she said, slightly startled by this revelation. "Estimations place the time of the assault in the early morning, human time. In vampire time, they should've been home and getting ready to go to bed. The Strigoi probably figured they'd be at their most vulnerable during that time or at least the most vulnerable when they could actually get to them. They couldn't very well attack when the Keepers were asleep during daytime." Something tugged at me in the back of my mind…I'm kind of on the outskirts. We keep growing and growing and there's not much room in the town's center. But the caves keep going, so there's still space. As soon as I had my "ah-hah" moment, my feet were propelling me out the door.

"Rose? Rose!" I heard from behind me. But I couldn't stop myself. I had to see if I was right. She followed me as I began sprinting towards the trees. As I passed by Christian, Lev, Artur, and Denis, they fell into position behind me. They had absolutely no idea what I was up to, but they trusted my judgment and wanted to be there in case I needed back up.

It took me about ten minutes to finally get to where I seemed to remember the entrance. Flashing my light around the area, a hole at ground level became apparent as I moved a few shrubs. I hadn't remembered anything being in front of the opening and from the way the roots of the brush were above ground, I'd say they didn't belong there. Someone had been attempting to hide the cave.

Quickly pushing aside the covering, I entered the small hole, the boys and Sydney following closely behind. Careful not to cut myself on the jagged edges of the rock walls, I evaluated my surroundings and took in the flickering light of the torch in its wall sconce. Everything seemed to be about the same as the last time I'd been in there. Everything, that was, except the two bleeding people on the hard-packed dirt floor. Rushing over to their sides, I couldn't help but feel happiness rush through me. At least two people had survived. I immediately realized how dismal that thought was, only two surviving members of a civilization. But I had to admit, two was better than none.

"R-Rose?" Joshua asked weakly as I dropped to my knees beside them, my flashlight falling out of my hand.

I nodded. "I'm here."

"You came…I knew you would."

"Too bad it was so late," Angeline shot at me. I turned to look at her, trying to see how badly she was beaten up in the poor lighting, and realized that all the blood dripping down her face was coming from a cut on her forehead about the size of a fork prong. Her hands, which were on Joshua's chest, were bloody as well. I tried to pull them up and attempted to find the injury, but she shoved me away, immediately putting her hands back where they had been. But not fast enough. I had seen the gaping wound, ragged edges and all, on Joshua's chest as more crimson liquid ran out. Blood dribbled down his side, soaking his already saturated shirt. Glancing back up to his face, I noticed the sweat on his brow and how very pale he was.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Strigoi attacked us," Angeline snapped. Smart ass. But I bit my tongue, knowing she'd been through enough in the past twenty-four hours as it was. And chances were good that she'd probably lose her brother on top of that.

"We had been…making a…few adjustments to…my cave," Joshua said. His breathing was shallow and his lips were beginning to turn blue. He was also blinking his eyes in rapid succession every few seconds, as though his vision was failing him. I took one of his wrists in my hand, pressing two fingers to a pulse point while noting how clammy his skin felt. His heartbeat was fast yet weak which, combined with the other symptoms I'd noticed, indicated shock.

"Be quiet and save your strength," Angeline said quietly, brushing his hair back away from his forehead with her fingers, incidentally smearing blood on his skin. It was the one and only time that I'd ever seen her be anything other than sarcastic and snarky.

"We were running late and on the way back home we heard screams and picked up our pace," Angeline said, picking up where her brother had left off. "Joshua was in front of me and broke through the tree line first. He was met by a Strigoi, which slightly caught him off guard. He fought really well but the Strigoi still managed to get a hold of him." She paused, her eyes filling with tears.

"I couldn't do anything to stop it," she moaned. "It just happened too fast."

"It's okay," I said, trying to comfort her. Her mourning gaze shifted immediately to a glare.

"Don't patronize me," she snapped. "Anyways, Joshua was wounded and I brought him back here."

"You weren't followed?"

"I think they were a little preoccupied with everyone else." And they probably figured that Joshua was going to die anyway. I was actually pretty surprised he'd made it as long as he had. But I kept my mouth shut and added pressure to Joshua's wound on the slim chance it might stem the flow of blood. Honestly, if it hadn't stopped in the past day, I didn't think it was going to. Apparently I hadn't hidden my thoughts as well as I had believed though.

"I'm not going to make it, am I?" Joshua asked. He had been watching my facial features, probably trying to distinguish what I thought about all of this. I debated how I should answer. I could lie, but he'd arrive at death's doorstep eventually anyway. Or I could tell him the truth and I knew how the Keepers valued honesty, especially from those on the outside. I had never lied to any of them before, never hidden what I thought or what my mission was. I didn't really think now was a good time to change that.

I slowly shook my head. "I don't think so, but I'm no doctor. I've seen injuries like this before though and…"

He nodded, understanding. "I kind of thought so, what with how awful I feel."

"Don't talk like that!" Angeline said loudly. Her voice echoed off the rocks around us, bouncing around the cave in as much outrage as the original protest had been. "He'll be fine!"

"Angeline," he murmured soothingly. "It'll be alright."

"No it won't," she said quietly. "It won't…not without you." Joshua opened his mouth to reply, but swallowed hard instead. I knew it was probably getting harder for him to breathe.

"You're all I've got," Angeline whispered.

"No I'm not," Joshua choked out. His gaze met mine. "Promise me…promise me that you'll…look after her."

"I…" I honestly didn't know what to say. Me? Take care of Angeline? We didn't even get along, let alone like each other. She hadn't even let me comfort her. How could I take care of her?

But Joshua wasn't going to take no for an answer. He grasped my hands and pulled them away from his chest, pulling me closer to him. I think in that moment, as he fought back death for a few minutes more, he was doing it for his sister. He needed to make sure she'd be well cared for in his absence. It was a sentiment I could respect, even if I didn't want to be saddled with the girl.

"Please Rose. I know you…can protect her." His eyes pleaded with me. "I trust you to protect her." Finally I nodded. I mean, what else could I do? Deny a man his dying wish? I'd just have to deal with it and do my best by her.

A weak smile unfurled itself across his lips. "Thank…you." His eyes closed. He took a few more shallow breaths. And then he was gone.

One. One out of at least two hundred. That's all I could think of as we loaded up the SUVs and prepared to return to Court. I would never forgive myself for bringing Strigoi down upon these people, effectively killing off this branch of the civilization.

"What are you going to do about the girl?" Denis asked quietly. He was trying to be discreet, but I understood by the hard look on Angeline's face that she knew we were discussing her. Lev, Artur, and Christian were standing with us and looked just as curious about my answer.

"I really have no idea," was the only truthful answer I could come up with.

"The poor thing," Artur said. I was about to scoff when Angeline strode right up to him and jabbed a finger into his chest.

"I am not some 'poor thing.' And I am not some charity case that you need to take on," she said, the last part aimed at me.

"You really think you can survive out in the real world?" I questioned.

"Of course." She said it like it was the most ridiculous question that I could've asked. Christian sneered, as was his usual reaction to something he found incredibly stupid.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"And what would you know?" Angeline asked. "You're a Tainted Moroi. You don't do anything but cower behind Dhampirs and wait for the fight to end." I saw Christian's jaw tighten and reached out to grab his arm. Even if the girl was unruly and a pain in the ass, she didn't deserve to be gone off on after losing her entire family all within the span of a couple days. Apparently Christian disagreed.

"Listen, little girl," he snarled. Her glare became even more prominent when he called her that, but it had gotten her attention. "I've killed countless Strigoi."

"Oh, right. I'm sure you have." Her tone said everything; she didn't believe him.

"Christian, turn around," I said.

"What?"

"Just do it." When I'd come for my first visit, they'd made me prove who I said I was. I'd had to fight one of their most vicious warriors and show them the marks on my neck, which counted the vast majority of all the Strigoi I'd killed. When my team and I had been over in Russia, I'd arranged for all of us to stay up to date with our Molnijas, not because they were a badge of honor but because they acted as a constant reminder. Not for all the death we doled out but for the souls that were lost to the Strigoi state and the lives subsequently lost as a result. They were still people…they had been part of our species at one time or another. And no one deserved to be forgotten.

But it also came in handy when dealing with the Keepers. When Angelina saw how many marks Christian had, she had the decency to look slightly abashed. Spinning back around, Christian glared at her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her shoulders slumping forward. I could tell the past two days had definitely taken their toll on her and she was finally beginning to break under all of it. It had to have been hell sitting in the cave, watching the life bleed out of her brother. Even if I didn't get along with her, I felt bad for everything she'd gone through. Christian must have been thinking along the same lines because his eyes softened.

"It's alright." He paused, glancing between me and Angeline. "What would you say about staying with me for a while? My wife and I, we don't have any kids. And I bet we could all get along pretty well." Her eyes narrowed as she tried to figure out why he could possibly want her to live with him after the things she'd just said.

"I mean, you're almost as snarky as I am," he continued. A smile pulled at the edges of her lips before she could squash it back down. "And I guarantee that you'd be better off with me than Rose."

"Hey!" I said. "I can take care of a kid."

"You've proven that with Kat, but you actually like her," was his only response. His eyes were still trained on Angeline. And I realized why he felt so connected to this girl. She'd just witnessed her family get killed, if not all of them then at least her brother. Both he and Liss had lost their families at an early age as well. He probably figured they could help her through such a difficult time much more effectively than I could. And truthfully, they were probably right.

"I suppose…I could come live with you and your wife." I could just imagine how thrilled she'd be once she found out she'd be staying with, not only two royals, but the soon-to-be queen and king of all Moroi. I'd pay to see her reaction to that.

"Then it's settled," Christian said, nodding his head once. He led her to the SUV and settled her in the back seat, taking his place between her and Lev, who kept turning and trying to flirt with Angeline. I had to give him some credit; he'd succeeded in getting her to smile more than once already and we hadn't even left yet. I got in the middle set of seats, strapping myself in beside Sydney, who'd decided to return to Court to see Adrian. I think after seeing what being mortal meant in so many vicious ways, she really wanted to spend time with the living. And who could be better suited to making her feel alive than her boyfriend?

Denis took the keys from me before getting in the driver's seat. I didn't really think I would be able to function properly much longer and driving didn't seem like such a good idea. Seeing so much death had taken a toll on me as well. Artur was the last one in, sitting in the passenger seat before we left the Keeper commune forever.

Staring out the window, I watched the familiar scenery disappear from sight. The moon was nearly invisible tonight, casting the world in shadows. Out here in the wilderness, this only made the stars seem brighter and somewhat closer to Earth. I reached down and felt the cool hard structure of my stake, reassuring myself that it was still with me. You could never be too careful at night.

I couldn't help thinking about my friends and family and what I would do if something similar to what I'd just seen happened to them. In my mind's eye, I could see their bodies laid out on some carpeted floor, covered in blood and fatal wounds. Christian with his throat ripped out, blood pouring out onto the floor as he gasped like a fish out of water, his hands reaching up to try to cover the injury. Lissa and Adrian being fed off of, their lives slowing slipping away. And Dimitri with his brown eyes, the eyes I loved so much, staring unseeingly at me as I ran in to try and save them…arriving too late once again.

Shaking my head, I tried to get rid of those horrible mental pictures. I didn't need to be haunted by something else; the occasional ghost visits were enough as it was. The silver Spirit charmed ring, which sat on my finger, helped keep them away when my own will wouldn't, but the images of my dead friends and family was something I couldn't have help to escape from.

Leaning my head against the cool glass of the window, I also couldn't help thinking that my worries were coming true. The inevitable other shoe had definitely fallen. And I couldn't help thinking that this event showed that the results of academy attack hadn't destroyed the Strigoi completely. It had diminished their numbers greatly, but they could come back. They were becoming stronger and I knew for a fact that that didn't bode well for the future.