The Secrets We Hold

Chapter 36

The first part of the meeting is just the rundown of what happened the night before. We discuss the rescue process as well as the breakdown of what happened from the moment of the dance to the end.

"Princess Vasilisa. Do you mind explaining why Mr. Dashkov took you?" Alberta asks.

"He said that I was the only one who could help him. His illness was declining his health quickly and he thought that I was the only one who could heal him."

Alberta's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "Why would he have you heal him without any proof that you could? Yes, you healed Rose from the car accident, but that could very well have been a one-time thing."

"The fox." I blurt out, remembering the image of the dead animal lying on her bed.

"What about the fox?" Eric asks, sitting up in his seat.

"What if that was a test? What if he planted it to see if Lissa would heal the fox? And when she didn't, he didn't have another opportunity since you all were keeping a close eye on her."

"So why take her now? Why not wait until he had another chance to test her?" Alberta says, intrigued.

"Because he doesn't have much time left. In a few weeks, the school will be let out for the ski trip. Not only that, but his health is declining to a point where not even Lissa would be able to help him."

They are all silent for a moment before Alberta speaks up. "So, now that we have an understanding of his plan, we need to address a comment he made. He said that 'it's too soon.' Almost like he wasn't expecting us for a while."

After a few moments, Dimitri talks, lying through his teeth. "He put a charm on Miss Hathaway's necklace that he gifted her. When she came to speak to me about Princess Vasilisa, we exhibited aggressive behavior. The charm must have been a fighting one. Her necklace fell off though so the charm broke quickly." His eyes flicker to me for a second before focusing back on Alberta.

I knew that it was hard for him to lie, especially to his superior. But we both knew how much trouble we would be in if they knew the true purpose of the charm.

"Well, I'm glad that the fight didn't get too out of hand. Now the only thing to discuss is the trial. It will be held in a month and everyone in this room will be attending."

"Why in a month? Why not earlier?" Rhea asks.

"As Rose mentioned, the ski trip is coming up. And midterms are starting soon. I talked to the Queen early today and we both agreed to wait. This meeting is now over. Rose, I need to speak with you. Guardian Belikov, you can wait in my office. I need to discuss something with you after I'm done with Rose. Princess Vasilisa, would you watch over her daughter?" She nods and grabs the carrier. Everyone leaves the room, Lissa sparing me a glance before exiting.

"What do you need, Alberta?"

"Victor requested your presence. I don't know why, but he wants to talk to you. I will escort you to his cell if you wish to speak to him."

I think for a moment before nodding. "Okay. I will speak to him."

Alberta guides me down the stairs to where Victor's cell lays. He was sitting on the floor with his cane lying beside him. His gaze turns to us once he hears our footsteps.

"Rose. I didn't think that you would come." He says, standing up with the help of his cane.

"I have questions."

"I will be in the corner if you need me, Rose." Alberta tells me before walking away.

"Well, ask your questions."

"What do you know about Lissa's power? And me?" I ask, not beating around the bush.

"I know that she can heal people but also that she brought you back to life. You weren't just injured. You were dead the night of the accident. You are shadow-kissed Rose."

I've heard that term before. In the journals, Anna is also referred to as being shadow-kissed. "What does it mean? The phrase shadow-kissed."

Victor sighs as if I'm stupid, causing him to let out a terrible cough. "When you died, you crossed a barrier that you shouldn't be able to come back from. You were touched by shadows when you were on the other side. That leaves a mark on your soul."

"You were always so kind to us. How could you do this to Lissa?" I demand, getting frustrated and switching to a different topic.

"I don't regret it. Kidnapping her. I do regret not taking more precautions to make sure that you didn't come too soon. I'm dying, Rose. She was the only one who could save me. I needed to stay alive to carry out the rest of my plan."

"And what was the rest of your plan?"

He ignores me. "You know what I don't understand is how you were able to get to us so quickly. The charm should have incapacitated you for a while."

"The charm didn't work." I state.

"But I was so sure that it would. You don't think that I know of your feelings for Guardian Belikov. And I was certain that he reciprocated some of your feelings."

I lie straight to his face. "Well, he doesn't. Why would he? I'm his student."

"Well, that is the only explanation for the lust charm not working. Unless you both do have feelings for one another and already acted on it. The charm is meant to help with repressed feelings." He gets closer to the cell bars.

"Guardian Belikov does not have feelings for me. He sees me as nothing but student that he needs to mentor." I enforce, stepping away from the cell.

"I'm not so sure of that."

I was going to respond but heard a shout come from upstairs and saw a body tumble down. Alberta gets into her fighting stance and I join her. She hands me a stake and takes out another one from her pocket for herself.

A guardian runs down the stairs and begins attacking Alberta. While she was engrossed in her own battle, I notice the blood coming from the neck of the dead body on the ground. Oh, shit.

Natalie comes down next, still in her sparkly blue dress from the dance. The first thing I notice was the blood dripping from her mouth and then how gray-toned her skin was. This wasn't Natalie. This was a Strigoi.

"Ah. I was waiting for you, my darling niece." I hear Victor say and she smiles before her eyes find mine.

"I'm going to enjoy ripping you apart, Rose."

She comes at me and I sidestepped her barely, her body colliding with the wall in full force.

From the side of my eye, I see Dimitri and Alto rushing down to help only to face their own Strigoi. They looked like the guardians that helped Victor take Lissa though I didn't know definitively.

Once Natalie recovers, she sneers at me before hitting my cheek, causing me to hit the wall. I brought my hand to my mouth and pulled back to see blood. Standing up, she tackles me to the ground and my back and head hit the floor hard. I get a little lightheaded but did my best to brush it off. Her eyes lock in on my neck and it takes all my strength to hold her away from me. Eventually I was able to reverse our positions and I pinned her down.

Holding her with one arm across her chest, I let the hand with the stake pull back.

"Don't hesitate, Rose." Dimitri had said in one of our lessons.

I impaled her chest right where her heart was and the stake goes all the way in. Natalie lets out a loud cry in pain before she quiets, her body falling limp. I get off her body and walk away from it, though my eyes are still trained on where the stake was. She was my friend and she turned out to be a psychopath.

My head was pounding and I started to get dizzy. I feel myself falling backwards into someone's chest as their arms wrap around my waist. It was Dimitri. I could tell by the familiarity in the hold. My eyes begin to flutter close and I allow myself to fall into the dark.