Soul Bound

Chapter 34

DPOV

We arrived at the hotel. We had gotten her in quietly and I moved her to the bed, my intention was to get her under the blankets, but she wouldn't let me go. I was fairly certain she was asleep, she just didn't let go of me. She would grip my shirt tighter when I laid her body down away from me.

Eventually, I gave in and just lay on the bed with her, both above the covers. Not that it mattered, it was Las Vegas and it was still hot at night.

I wrapped my arm around her keeping her close. She had her head on my chest and her hair was fanning out around her head. I pulled some of it away from my face and gently stroked it. Even in her sleep, my touch seemed to calm her down. I was grateful for this. It was the only sign of recognition I had gotten so far.

Adrian sat himself up against the headboard on the other side of Rose. He looked at me and at Rose. I could hear his thoughts. I had similar concerns. What did we bring back?

I saw the transformation and it worked. Rose was a Dhampir again. I saw her brown eyes meet mine, but all I could see in them was pain. After Adrian staked her I heard her cry. A sound so heart-wrenching that it made the hair on my skin stand up. When I held her I felt her hang on to me as if I was the only thing keeping her here. I know living as a Strigoi was not what she wanted, but did she want this? Maybe it was just the transformation, the shock of it all. All people cry when they were born into this world, maybe being born again was the same.

So I held her in my arms all throughout the night. Adrian was next to us. He had one hand on Rose's shoulder. We could hear her sob occasionally and Adrian would send a bolt of spirit through her and I would grip her tighter.

I was grateful he was here. We had started this journey together. And somehow we had made it. I couldn't have done it without him, and I doubt he would have ever figured out how to restore a Strigoi if we hadn't come here. So now we both laid in bed with the girl that had brought us together. The girl we both loved. Well the girl I was still in love with, I think he was starting to get over her. She would always be important to him. He had risked his life for her and I knew he would continue to do right by her. But he had a new love interest, and I think he was starting to realize the difference between the infatuation he had with Rose and the feelings he had for Sydney. She might be a very unlikely candidate, but she was just what he needed. They complemented each other. They fit, just like Rose and I did.

He moved a little closer towards Rose and he too began running his hands through her hair. Her hair was long enough so we could focus on different parts. We both needed the contact as much as Rose did. We needed to know she was still here. I didn't want to go to sleep, I was afraid that when I woke up, this would have just been a dream and I would wake up in the Strigoi compound again. Or I would wake up with her blood on my hands, knowing I had killed her. I was holding onto her even if it was a dream. I never wanted it to end. I hugged her a little bit tighter.

"It's OK, Dimitri. She will be here in the morning. We really did it. It is over. We have her back."

I wanted to believe Adrian so badly. I knew the girl in my arms wasn't Strigoi anymore, but this was a far cry from our Rose. I wondered if she would ever be the same.

Both of us slept little. I knew Adrian dozed off for two hours but I think I was awake all night. It didn't matter to me. Even if she would never return to her normal self I would still be there for her. The alternative was just not an option.

When morning came Adrian woke up by a knock on the door. I could feel Rose tense up again but she didn't wake up yet.

Adrian got up from the bed and opened the door. When I felt Adrian's heart skip a beat I knew who it was at the door. I smiled. She came into a Moroi owned hotel with God knows how many Moroi staying here at the moment. Although an Alchemist would probably raise less suspicion than a regular human, it was still odd. I realized she had been here before, when I was kidnapped. Sydney might not be in love with Adrian but she obviously cared enough to overcome her deep-rooted fear of this hotel.