I Never Told You I Love You - Complete

Chapter 33 - The Woman He Loved

"Get back to the restaurant," Pavel ordered, but turning around it was already too late – halfway between the restaurant and the car as they were, red eyes were approaching from both sides. They were surrounded. Pavel moved to one side leaving the other Guardian facing the restaurant. "Stay between us," he ordered Rose and Abe.

"Are either of you carrying a second stake?" Rose asked urgently as the Strigoi moved closer - surveying them with amusement. Pavel reached into a side pocket of his jacket, passing his spare to Rose. Abe started to say something to Rose about leaving the fighting to the Guardians.

"Can it, old man. In three months I am one of the Guardians. This is what I do."

Looking around, Rose counted seven sets of red eyes. If she could stake two, then that left five for the other more experienced fighters. She could hear Pavel giving additional instructions to Abe in another language – probably Turkish because it didn't sound like Russian. Next thing she knew Abe was pulling a handgun out of his coat.

A gun wouldn't kill a Strigoi – but if you had silver bullets, it could incapacitate or slow it down. At least momentarily. Before Rose had a chance to ask whether the bullets were silver, or charmed, the fight was upon them.

Three of the Strigoi charged simultaneously, the others each choosing a target but hanging back. Rose expected the focus to be on the other two Guardians as they were older so presumably the more experienced fighters, but strangely four of the seven marked her. Maybe they thought to pick her off first to make their odds even better? A male former Moroi was the first to engage her. Smiling at Rose, and brandishing his fangs, he was about to say something when he looked down, seeing her stake in his chest. He crumpled as the tip of the stake pierced his heart.

Somewhere in the back of her head, Rose could hear Dimitri's voice. 'Well done – you didn't hesitate. Now identify the next target.' She did – a very tall slim female former Moroi. This one must be older than the one Rose had just killed – she was certainly a more wary fighter. She was dodging just outside of Rose's reach. Rose was tempted to go for her, but it would break the circle around Abe. Still, it would only be for a moment...

'Never let them draw you away from your guarding partners or your charge,' she could hear Dimitri's voice in her head again. 'Separated you are weaker, and you leave your charge unprotected.'

Mentally nodding Rose dodged and weaved with her prey, waiting until finally the Strigoi was almost within arms reach again before doing an aerial, booting her solidly in the face. The Strigoi went down, knocking into the male Strigoi behind her. Rose was upon them both in an instant – staking the woman swiftly. She was preparing to do likewise with the male she'd knocked down too, but he was up too fast. Makes sense – this one had been Dhampir, and a Guardian, if the molnija on his neck were anything to go by.

Behind her, Rose could hear Pavel and the other Guardian fighting. She couldn't turn to see if they'd downed any, but she suspected so, as one of the four who'd targeted her had moved away to that side of the fight. With just one target in front of her now Rose started another deadly dance.

Her Strigoi would have been stocky in life. Not a lot taller than her, but heavily muscled. While the first two Strigoi had moved with a grace born of their days as Moroi, this guy's movements spoke power. He was going to be strong and trained in the art of fighting. Rose's only chance was speed – which wasn't that much of a chance given he was now Strigoi so would be faster than her, too. Still – something about the way he moved suggested he was somehow less at ease in his body than she. Maybe it was due to being turned? Or perhaps he'd been that way in life, too? She'd noticed it in other Novices before - some people were less comfortable in their own bodies than others.