The Disappearing Act (Vampire Academy Fan Fiction Book 2)

Chapter 25: Every Last, Shattered Piece

Chapter 25: Every Last, Shattered Piece

The flashbacks didn't start crushing me until my eyes locked on Jill's empty ones.

She sat in the middle of the courtroom, her hair slicked back and a prisoner's rags draped onto her too thin body. She looked better than before; less bite marks and real clothes, at least. But she was more broken than I was, and it was obvious in the blank way she stared at her surroundings.

I blinked and my vision flooded with images of Strigoi. They swarmed the room, attacking and pillaging the grand Court with all its important Moroi Royalty that these monsters found to be a complete joke. They broke their necks, drained their blood, and made Jill their Queen, just like before. They rescued her, like we'd been trying to do for so damn long.

"Guardian Belikov?"

I blinked once more and my eyes focused on the reality set before me. Lissa sat in the highest chair, a golden crown tucked carefully into her thinning curls as she gazed down upon us all. Dimitri, Cassie, Eddie, and I all sat in a row before her with Jill and her lawyer safely to our left. The rest of the Royals were perched below their family crests, though they all looked to be falling asleep in their chairs. This case wasn't interesting anymore now that Jill was home once again and being kept quiet under heavy medication; all they need was the condemning testimonies and she'd be back in prison once again. I'd been in this position too many times to keep track of; it was starting to get boring.

"She told you everything she remembers," Dimitri said, his respectful voice laced tightly with ice. His brown eyes were controlled, but I could see the lines of tension in his shoulders. He didn't like them interrogating me; I'd learned to stop minding it.

"I'd like to hear it again," the Queen said, her tone mimicking his. "For the Council, of course."

The lawyer who'd been with us since before Annessa's adoption clicked her tongue, flipping a page in her notes as she looked up at the Queen over her irritating little black glasses. "I believe both Guardian Belikovs have had enough for the day, Your Majesty. You know she's still suffering from the PTSD, and reliving the incident multiple times so close together isn't healthy for her."

The Queen's glare flickered to me in my ironed Guardian blacks and tied up hair. I stared at my feet; at Dimitri's impatiently tapping foot, Cassie's nervously bouncing leg, Eddie's untied shoelace. I just couldn't look at her. That would trigger the flashbacks even worse than Jill.

Her voice rang across the silent room again. "Have you had enough today, Guardian Belikov?"

Before I could open my mouth to speak, Dimitri answered, "I have, thank you, Your Majesty. If we may be excused, we're late to pick up our daughter."

She huffed in annoyance. "Let's move on then."

Dimitri rose and I followed, only flinching slightly as I felt Jill's cold eyes following us out of the room.

The Guardians at the door locked the heavy pieces of wood behind us, shutting us into the cool hallway of the Court's main building. Leaning against the windows across the hall, I couldn't stop myself from sliding down until I was sitting on the floor. Dimitri joined me and carefully wrapped me into his arms, placing his warm lips to my forehead. The few Guardians scurrying down the hall gave us passing glances before Dimitri's scowl hurried them along.

"You are so brave, my Roza," he whispered into my hair, lips against my ear. "I cannot understand how you're dealing with all of this, but I am so proud of you. You're–"

"I'm not," I said back, voice clipping as I pushed away from him to stand up. My boots clicked against the floor as I paced in front of him, his gentle brown eyes just studying me. "I broke, Dimitri; I cracked and there's no putting me back together again. They can all see it – Vlad knows the Queen's just trying to push the right buttons to send me into the psyche ward again."

My words carried down the hall, catching a few people's attention but I didn't care anymore. I was crazy and everyone knew; it was like walking in a huge world made of eggshells nowadays. No one knew when I was going to shatter next; hell, I didn't even know anymore.

Tugging on my ponytail angrily, I continued my pacing until Dimitri finally stood up, his strong hands holding me in place as he forced me to look into his eyes. It took a moment, but I could feel his calming touch working its magic on my racing heartbeat. He ran a finger down my cheek, erasing the stubborn tear that had managed to escape my eye.

"You are strong," he said confidently. "You are the strongest person I have ever known. But, Roza, even you don't need to have everything together every moment of the day. People break – it's inevitable. Yet, what makes them strong is the fact that they get back up on their feet and try again, just like you are doing right now."

I blinked at him for a moment before collapsing into his embrace, burying my face in the comfortable scent of his t-shirt. After a moment, I whispered, "You really believe that?"

"With every last shattered piece of my own soul," he answered, a smile on his lips. He squeezed me tighter for one more moment before tucking me under his arm and beginning to guide me down the hallway. "Let's get out of here. I know Annessa's going to be asking after us."

I smiled weakly, leaning my head against him and walking without protest. Maybe being broken wouldn't be so bad if I had him by my side.

We went out to the SUV and drove silently to Mia's, our fingers intertwined between the seats as I watched the landscapes of Court roll by. I still wasn't used to being back in this place; I missed Europe and all it's ancient, beautiful scenery. I missed its freedom and unique people and history; I longed for anywhere that had better memories than the ones I kept running into here.

Dimitri pulled into Mia's driveway and cut the engine. The curtain of the house's front window twitched, revealing a ponytailed little girl with a toothy grin on her face. A ghost of a smile played on my lips as we got out and went to greet her on the lawn.

Annessa ran into Dimitri's arms first and he swung her in the air like every single time we picked her up. I came up beside them, receiving a kiss on the cheek from both of them.

"Are you ready to go home, zaika?" he asked and she nodded quickly.

"Auntie Mia said I was a good girl and that we could get ice cream on the way home!" she beamed, bouncing in his arms before he gently placed her back on the ground. She scrambled back inside the house to go grab her backpack, flying past Mia leaning against the door.

"She did, huh?" I said, meeting Mia's gaze with a playful glare as we walked up the steps.

"I figured you all deserved a little ice cream today," she answered with a sly smirk, all of us watching Annessa rush around the living room to collect her various belongings. This had become her second home as Mia often babysat for us or watched her after school if we were in the middle of house renovations; she had been a life saver in more ways than one. "I just got off the phone with Cassie."

Dimitri scowled. "Not now, Mia, please. We're just here for Annessa."

Her lips pursed, her arms crossing over her chest as she looked up at him. For a munchkin, she sure could be intimidating. "They're going to ask for you back, you know."

"Not now," I repeated as the blonde pigtails came bounding to my side. She smiled brightly and took my hand. "Say goodbye to Aunt Mia," I said quietly and Annessa waved quickly.

"I'll call you later," I added as I gave her a pointed look. I could feel Dimitri's eyes glaring at her over my shoulder, but I didn't have the energy for a fight today. I just wanted to spend time with my family and forget about the crazy girl who'd done everything she could to ruin our lives.