The Underground City of Cinders

Chapter 18

Chloe led us quickly through the crowded restaurant. The rumblings of blissful conversations distracted me from my thoughts and I was left feeling empty when Chloe pulled us into his office and closed the door, shutting off the noise. I lowered myself onto the couch he had resting against the far wall and let out a deep sigh, "What the hell is going on?"

My question was directed more at myself than anyone but Chloe answered me, "Chase has some things he needs to sort out with Dimitri. I have a little information on what is going on but I don't know all the specific details. He instructed me to keep you here for a while to give him time. He wants you both to be safe."

I nodded absentmindedly, suddenly feeling nauseous, "I really hope Chase is going to be okay. I can understand he wants to protect me but doesn't he have any concern for himself. I know Dimitri has been an ass lately but if either of them were hurt... I don't know what I would do."

Izzy sat beside me, "Everything is going to be okay Liz. I have faith that Dimitri and Chase will figure things out. They're smart. I don't care if Lareina is Dimitri's mother, I will rip her head off myself if it means you will be safe. So what if she is an elder?"

I shook my head in disbelief at the events that led up to this night, "I can't believe this is all happening. If you would have asked me a month ago if I believed in vampires I would have called you crazy. Even as much as a movie buff as I was I always assumed vampires were a concoction of fantasy writers. Now everything seems to be exploding all at once. Everything is so overwhelming."

Izzy pulled me into her arms in an attempt to console me, "Everything is going to be fine Liz, you are freaking yourself out over nothing. I know things might be scary right now because you have a crazy vampire lady trying to kill you but you have me, Chloe, Chase, and Dimitri. We are all here for you and we are all here to protect you, no matter what."

A tear slid down my cheek, "That is why I am freaking out so much. You all have done so much for me. You have no idea how grateful I am that you two are even here right now." My conscience eyed me with a look of annoyance, "Seriously girl? You need to get yourself together. You are not doing anybody any good just sitting here throwing yourself a pity party. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and be the vampire that everyone fears you can be." I knew she was right even though I had a hard time believing it at first. I wiped my tears away and took a deep breath to steady myself.

Chase observed Dimitri's hardened features as he paced across his living room floor, muttering inaudibly to himself. He could see the infuriated worry etched all across Dimitri's face, "What are we going to do?"

Dimitri was silent for a moment, continuing to pace, "I don't know. All I know is my mother needs Elizabeth to progress in her research so we need to avoid the situation at all costs. We may have taken her from the immediate danger that presents itself here but are you sure she will be safe with your friend?"

Chase nodded, "I trust Chloe with my life and he will do whatever it takes to make sure she gets out of this safe. Izzy is scrappy. She may seem like a preppy rich girl but she has her own talents and I wouldn't want to go up against her alone. I'm sure everything will be fine. We just have to focus on how to stop Lareina. Going up against an elder is not going to be an easy task but I feel like it is the only option at this point. She has many followers and I'm sure each and every one of those followers would march to their deaths if it meant pleasing her."

Dimitri nodded, "That is my biggest concern. My mother has her hands on just about every aspect of the city and that makes her even more powerful. We won't be able to take her on by ourselves if it came down to a physical fight, we wouldn't last more than a couple minutes. This is going to be difficult."