Blood Promise Chapter Two

Chapter TwoGoing for her instead of me was bad form on the Strigois moodyset. I was the threat he should begin neutralized me placegrowth. Our positioning had put Sydney in his way, however, so he had to dispatch her before he could prevail to me. He grabbed her shoulder, jerking her to him. He was fast-they always were- hardly I was on my game tonight.A swift kick knocked him into a neighboring buildings w in on the whole and freed Sydney from his grasp. He grunted on impact and slumped to the ground, stunned and impress. It wasnt easy to get the drop on a Strigoi, non with their lightning-fast reflexes. Abandoning Sydney, he focused his attention on me, red eye angry and lips curled seat to show his fangs. He sprang up from his give ear with that preternatural speed and lunged for me.I dodged him and attempted a punch that he dodged in return. His next blow caught me on the arm, and I stumbled, ripe scarce keeping my balance. My stake was still clutched in my right ba rgain, only(prenominal) I needed an opening to hit his chest. A smart Strigoi would fork oer travel himself in a way that ruined the line of sight to his heart. This bozo was only doing a so-so job, and if I could stay a rifle foresightful bountiful, Id likely get an opening.Just and so, Sydney came up and hit him on the choke off. It wasnt a very strong blow, exactly it startled him. It was my opening. I sprinted as vexed as I could, thro okaystage my beneficial weight at him. My stake perforated his heart as we slammed against the wall. It was as simple as that. The life-or undead life or whatsoever-faded away from him. He stopped moving. I jerked egress my stake at one snip I was sealed he was dead and watched as his body break down to the ground.Just like with every Strigoi Id killed lately, I had a momentary surrealistic feeling. What if this had been Dimitri? I tried to consider Dimitris face on this Strigoi, tried to imagine him lying before me. My heart twisted in my chest. For a calve second, the find was there. Then-gone. This was just some random Strigoi.I promptly move the disorientation off and reminded myself that I had important things to worry close here. I had to check on Sydney. Even with a valet, my protective nature couldnt athletic supporter but kick in. ar you okay?She nodded, flavor shaken but otherwise unharmed. Nice work, she give tongue to. She well(p)ed as though she were forcibly trying to sound confident.Ive never Ive never actually seen one of them killedI couldnt imagine how she would have, but thus, I didnt get how she knew close to any of this stuff in the prototypic place. She looked like she was in shock, so I took her arm and started to organize her away. jazz on, lets get out to where theres to a greater extent volume. Strigoi lurking beside the Nightingale wasnt that crazy of an idea, the more I belief about it. What better place to stalk Moroi than at one of their hangouts? Though, hopefully, roughly guardians would have enough sense to keep their charges out of alleys like this.The suggestion of departure snapped Sydney out of her daze. What? she exclaimed. Youre just going to come out him too?I threw up my reach. What do you expect me to do? I guess I piece of ass move him behind those trash cans and then let the sun incinerate him. Thats what I commonly do.Right. And what if someone shows up to take out the trash? Or comes out of one of these rear end doors?Well, I can hardly drag him off. Or set him on fire. A vampire barbecue would sorting of attract some attention, dont you count?Sydney shook her head in exasperation and walked over to the body. She make a face as she looked down at the Strigoi and reached into her large leather purse. From it, she produced a small vial. With a deft motion, she sprinkled the vials contents over the body and then quickly stepped back.Where the drops had hit his corpse, yellow smoke began to curl away. The smoke easily moved outward, spreading horizontally rather than vertically until it cocooned the Strigoi entirely. Then it as sure enough and contracted until it was nothing but a fist-size ball. In a hardly a(prenominal) seconds, the smoke drifted off entirely, leaving an innocuous pile of dust behind.Youre welcome, state Sydney flatly, still giving me a disapproving look.What the hell was that? I exclaimed.My job. female genitals you please call me the next clipping this happens? She started to turn away.Wait I cant call you-I have no idea who you are.She glanced back at me and napped blond hair out of her face. Really? Youre serious, arent you? I thought you were all taught about us when you graduated.Oh, well. Funny thing I mannequin of, uh, didnt graduate.Sydneys eyeball widened. You took down one of those things but never graduated?I shrugged, and she remained uncommunicative for several seconds.Finally, she sighed again and said, I guess we need to talk.Did we ever. Meeting h er had to be the strangest thing that had happened to me since coming to Russia. I necessityed to accredit why she thought I should have been in contact with her and how shed dissolved that Strigoi corpse. And, as we returned to the restless streets and walked toward a cafe she liked, it occurred to me that if she knew about the Moroi initiation, there exponent be a chance she also knew where Dimitris village was.Dimitri. There he was again, popping back into my mind. I had no clue if he in reality would be lurking go on his home townsfolk, but I had nothing else to go on at this point. Again, that spiritual feeling came over me. My mind blurred Dimitris face with that of the Strigoi Id just killed ghastly skin, red ringed eyeballNo, I sternly told myself. Dont focus on that yet. Dont panic. Until I face up Dimitri the Strigoi, I would gain the most strength from store the Dimitri I loved, with his deep brown eyes, warm hands, fierce embraceargon you okay um, whatever yo ur name is?Sydney was double-dyed(a) at me strangely, and I cognize wed come to a halt in front of a eatery. I didnt know what look I wore on my face, but it must have been enough to raise even her attention. Until now, my impression as we walked had been that she wanted to mouth to me as little as possible.Yeah, yeah, fine, I said brusquely, putting on my guardian face. And Im Rose. Is this the place?It was. The restaurant was bright and cheery, albeit a far birdcall from the Nightingales opulence. We slid into a black leather-by which I mean fake plastic leather-booth, and I was delighted to see the menu had both American and Russian food. The listings were translated into English, and I nearly drooled when I saw fried whiner. I was starving afterward not eating at the club, and the thought of deep-fried meat was luxuriant after weeks of cabbage dishes and so-called McDonalds.A waitress arrived, and Sydney ordered in fluent Russian, whereas I just pointed at the menu. Huh. Sydney was just full of surprises. Considering her tart attitude, I expected her to interrogate me right away, but when the waitress left, Sydney remained quiet, scarce vie with her napkin and avoiding eye contact. It was so strange. She was definitely uncomfortable roughly me. Even with the table between us, it was like she couldnt get far enough away. Yet her earlier outrage hadnt been faked, and shed been adamant about me following whatever these rules of hers were.Well, she might have been playing coy, but I had no such(prenominal) hesitation about busting into uncomfortable topics. In fact, it was kind of my trademark.So, are you secure to tell me who you are and whats going on?Sydney looked up. Now that we were in brighter light, I could see that her eyes were brown. I also noticed that she had an interesting stain on her set about left cheek. The ink looked like gold, something Id never seen before. It was an enlarge design of flowers and leaves and was only really vi sible when she tilted her head certain ways so that the gold caught the light.I told you, she said. Im an Alchemist.And I told you, I dont know what that is. Is it some Russian word? It didnt sound like one.A half-smile play on her lips. No. I take it youve never heard of chemical science either?I shook my head, and she propped her chin up with her hand, eyes staring down at the table again. She swallowed, like she was bracing herself, and then a rush of words came out. Back in the Middle Ages, there were these heap who were convinced that if they found the right formula or caper, they could turn lead into gold. Unsurprisingly, they couldnt. This didnt stop them from pursuing all sorts of other mystical and supernatural stuff, and finally they did find something magical. She frowned. Vampires.I thought back to my Moroi history classes. The Middle Ages were when our kind really started pulling away from demesne, hiding out and keeping to ourselves. That was the time when vampir es truly became myth as far as the rest of the world was concerned, and even Moroi were regarded as monsters worth hunting.Sydney verified my thoughts. And that was when the Moroi began to stay away. They had their magic, but serviceman were starting to outnumber them. We still do. That almost brought a smile to her face. Moroi sometimes had trouble conceiving, whereas humans seemed to have too easy a time. And the Moroi make a deal with the Alchemists. If the Alchemists would help Moroi and dhampirs and their societies stay secret from humans, the Moroi would give us these. She coupleed the golden tattoo.What is that? I asked. I mean, aside from the obvious.She gently stroked it with her fingertips and didnt puzzle hiding the sarcasm when she spoke. My guardian angel. Its actually gold and-she grimaced and dropped her hand-Moroi blood, solicitationed with body of pee and earth.What? My voice came out too loud, and some people in the restaurant turned to look at me. Sydney con tinued speaking, her tone much lower and very chip shotter.Im not thrilled about it, but its our ?reward for helping you guys. The water and earth bind it to our skin and give us the same traits Moroi have well, a couple of them. I almost never get sick. Ill live a long life.I guess that sounds good, I said uncertainly. perhaps for some. We dont have a choice. This ?career is a family thing-it gets passed down. We all have to condition about Moroi and dhampirs. We work connections among humans that let us cover up for you since we can move rough more freely. Weve got tricks and techniques to get rid of Strigoi bodies-like that potion you saw. In return, though, we want to stay apart from you as much as we can-which is why most dhampirs arent told about us until they graduate. And Moroi hardly ever. She abruptly stopped. I guessed the lesson was over.My head was reeling. I had never, never considered anything like this-wait. Had I? Most of my education had emphasized the tangible aspects of universe a guardian watchfulness, combat, etc. Yet every so often Id heard vague references to those out in the human world who would help hide Moroi or get them out of weird and heartbreaking situations. Id never thought much about it or heard the margin Alchemist. If I had stayed in school, maybe I would have.This probably wasnt an idea I should have suggested, but my nature couldnt help it. Why keep the charm to yourselves? Why not share it with the human world?Because theres an extra part to its power. It stops us from speaking about your kind in a way that would endanger or expose them.A charm that set them from speaking that sounded suspiciously like compulsion. All Moroi could use compulsion a little, and most could put some of their magic into objects to give them certain properties. Moroi magic had changed over the years, and compulsion was regarded as an immoral thing now. I was expect this tattoo was an old, old spell that had come down through with(pred icate) the centuries.I replayed the rest of what Sydney had said, more questions spinning in my head. Why why do you want to stay away from us? I mean, not that Im looking to become BFFs or anythingBecause its our duty to God to protect the rest of mankind from evil creatures of the night. Absentmindedly, her hand went to something at her neck. It was mostly covered by her jacket, but a parting of her collar briefly revealed a golden cross.My sign reaction to that was unease, seeing as I wasnt very religious. In fact, I was never entirely comfortable around those who were hard-core believers. Thirty seconds later, the full impact of the rest of her words sank in.Wait a minute, I exclaimed indignantly. Are you talking about all of us-dhampirs and Moroi? Were all evil creatures of the night?Her hands dropped from the cross, and she didnt respond.Were not like Strigoi I snapped.Her face stayed bland. Moroi drink blood. Dhampirs are the paranormal offspring of them and humans.No one had ever called me unnatural before, except for the time I put ketchup on a taco. But seriously, wed been out of salsa, so what else was I supposed to do? Moroi and dhampirs are not evil, I told Sydney. Not like Strigoi.Thats true, she conceded. Strigoi are more evil.Hey, thats not what I-The food arrived just then, and the fried chicken was almost enough to distract me from the outrage of be compared to a Strigoi. Mostly all it did was delay me from responding immediately to her claims, and I bit into the golden crust and nearly melted then and there. Sydney had ordered a cheeseburger and french hot up and nibbled her food delicately.After taking down an entire chicken leg, I was finally able to resume the argument. Were not like Strigoi at all. Moroi dont kill. You have no reason to be afraid of us. Again, I wasnt tart on cozying up to humans. None of my kind were, not with the way humans tended to be trigger-happy and ready to experiment on anything they didnt understand.Any human who learns about you will inevitably learn about Strigoi, she said. She was playing with her fries but not actually eating them.Knowing about Strigoi might enable humans to protect themselves, though. Why the hell was I playing devils advocate here?She finished toying with a fry and dropped it back on her plate. Perhaps. But there are a lot of people who would be tempted by the thought of immortality-even at the cost of serving Strigoi in exchange for being turned into a creature from hell. Youd be surprised at how a lot of humans respond when they learn about vampires. Immortalitys a big draw-despite the evil that goes with it. A lot of humans who learn about Strigoi will try to serve them, in the hopes of eventually being turned.Thats insane- I stopped. Last year, wed discovered evidence of humans helping Strigoi. Strigoi couldnt touch silver stakes, but humans could, and some had used those stakes to bust Moroi wards. Had those humans been promised immortality? And so, sai d Sydney, thats why its best if we just make sure no one knows about any of you. Youre out there-all of you-and theres nothing to be done about it. You do your thing to get rid of Strigoi, and well do ours and save the rest of my kind.I chewed on a chicken wing and restrained myself from the implied meaning that she was saving her kind from people like me, too. In some ways, what she was saying made sense. It wasnt possible that we could always move through the world invisibly, and yes, I could admit, it was necessary for someone to dispose of Strigoi bodies. Humans works with Moroi were an ideal choice. Such humans would be able to move around the world freely, particularly if they had the kinds of contacts and connections she kept implying.I froze mid-chew, remembering my earlier thoughts when Id first come along with Sydney. I forced myself to swallow and then took a long drink of water. Heres a question. Do you have contacts all over Russia?Unfortunately, she said. When Alchemis ts turn eighteen, were sent on an internship to get firsthand experience in the trade and make all sorts of connections. I would have rather stayed in Utah.That was almost crazier than everything else shed told me, but I didnt push it. What kind of connections exactly?She shrugged. We trace the movements of a lot of Moroi and dhampirs. We also know a lot of high-ranking government officials-among humans and Moroi. If theres been a vampire sighting among humans, we can usually find someone important who can pay someone off or whatever It all gets swept under the rug.Track the movements of a lot of Moroi and dhampirs. Jackpot. I leaned in close and lowered my voice. Everything seemed to hinge on this moment.Im looking for a village a village of dhampirs out in Siberia. I dont know its name. Dimitri had only ever mentioned its name once, and Id forgotten. Its kind of near Om?Omsk, she corrected.I straightened up. Do you know it?She didnt answer right away, but her eyes betrayed her. Maybe.You do I exclaimed. You have to tell me where it is. I have to get there.She made a face. Are you going to be one of those?So Alchemists knew about blood whores. No surprise. If Sydney and her associates knew everything else about the vampire world, theyd know this too.No, I said haughtily. I just have to find someone.Who?Someone.That almost made her smile. Her brown eyes were thoughtful as she munched on another fry. Shed only taken two bites out of her cheeseburger, and it was rapidly growing cold. I kind of wanted to eat it myself on principle.Ill be right back, she said abruptly. She stood up and strode across to a quiet corner of the cafe. Producing a cell telephone from that magic purse of hers, she turned her back to the room and made a call.Id polished off my chicken by then and helped myself to some of her fries since it was looking less and less like she was going to do anything with them. As I ate, I pondered the possibilities before me, wondering if finding Dimitr is town would really be this simple. And once I was there would it be simple then? Would he be there, living in the shadows and hunting prey? And when faced with him, could I really drive my stake into his heart? That unwanted image came to me again, Dimitri with red eyes and Rose?I blinked. Id totally spaced out, and Sydney was back. She slid back into her spot across from me. So, it looks like- She paused and looked down. Did you eat some of my fries?I had no clue how she knew, seeing as it was such a huge stack. Id except made a dent. Figuring me stealing fries would count as further evidence of being an evil creature of the night, I said glibly, No.She frowned a moment, considering, and then said, I do know where this town is. Ive been there before.I straightened up. Holy crap. This was actually going to happen, after all these weeks of searching. Sydney would tell me where this place was, and I could go and try to close this monstrous chapter in my life.Thank you, thank you s o much-She held up a hand to silence me, and I noticed then how miserable she looked.But Im not going to tell you where it is.My mouth gaped. What?Im going to take you there myself.