Vampire Academy: Last Sacrifice (Dimitri's POV)

Chapter Three

We sprinted there, and I could sense Adrian lagging behind.

"That's a lot of open ground to cover," Rose pointed out. Adrian was using spirit to make us appear blurry to others. However, we weren't sure if it was working. Nobody seemed to recognise us, and they were all in a panic anyway. There were many people running in our direction, and I could see a queue of cars lining up at the gate to get away already. Moroi were so afraid of the slightest little thing. "What's Lissa doing during all of this?"

"Lissa needs to stay innocent. She can't be linked to any part of the escape or explosion," I explained. No need to add that it was her idea in the first place. "She has to keep herself visible with the other royals. So does Christian. Those two would certainly be my first suspects if something blows up." I could imagine it; Lissa doing anything to help her friend and Christian setting the whole Court on fire. I'd seen some of his practices with Tasha, and he'd even set someone alight on behalf of Lissa in class.

"But the guardians won't suspect them once they realize that the blast wasn't caused by magic. And, hey, where did you guys get hold of C4? Military grade explosives are kind of extreme, even for you."

Before I could reply, three guardians were in front of us. Two of them I recognised as Court guardian. Tomas and Simon, actually. The third was a grad from Rose's class. I saw the slightest hesitation on Rose's part before she quickly took her out. Meredith had always been worse than Rose, so it was no surprise that their fight was over within seconds. I'd already taken down Tomas, and Mikhail and Eddie were finished with Simon. Eddie and Rose both wore grief on their faces at betraying their friend, but we pushed on.

"You did what you had to do," he murmured. "She'll be okay. Banged up, but okay."

"I hit her hard."

"The medics can deal with concussions. Hell, how many did we get in practice?" Eventually, we reached the garages. I weaved my way through the crowds of people, having memorised the map of the garages. At last, I spotted our car. A grey Honda Civic, perfect for blending in. There was a man there, silhouetted against it. He turned around and I saw the recognition on Rose's face.

"Abe!" He smiled at her and I had to restrain myself from growling.

"What are you doing here?" I demanded. "You'll be on the list of suspects too!" He shrugged and I felt my palms tingle. Rose glanced my way warily.

"Vasilisa will make sure a few people at the palace swear they saw me there during suspicious times," he explained. "Besides, I couldn't leave without telling you goodbye, could I?" Rose shook her head wildly.

"Was this all part of your plan as being my lawyer? I don't recall explosive escapes being part of legal training."

"Well, I'm sure it wasn't part of Damon Tarus' legal training. I told you Rose, you will never face execution-or even a trial, if I can help it. Which, of course, I can." I remembered Rose had turned down Damon Tarus, an official lawyer, for her illustrious father." I twisted the keys between my fingers, leaning against the car impatiently.

"If I run, it's just going to make me seem that much more guilty."

"They already think you're guilty. You wasting away in that cell won't change that. This just ensures that we now have more time to do what we need to without your execution looming over us." He had a point.

"And what are you going to do, exactly?"

"Prove you're innocent," Adrian chimed in. "Or, well, that you didn't kill my aunt. I've known for a while that you aren't all that innocent." My eyes narrowed; I couldn't have people talking like that about her.

"What, are you guys going to destroy the evidence?"

"No. We have to find out who really did kill her," Eddie stated.

"You guys shouldn't be involved with that, now that I'm free. It's my problem. Isn't that why you got me out?"

"It's a problem you can't solve while you're at court," Abe added. "We need you gone and safe."

"Yeah, but I-" I cut her off.

"We're wasting time arguing," I grumbled, anxious to get going, or we'd never get out. I handed her a stake. "I know everything looks disorganized, but you'll be amazed at how quickly the guardians will restore order. And when they do, they're going to lock this place down." It was the truth. I'd seen the guardians work before. They were five times better than human security, even in situations like this.

"They don't need to. We're already going to have trouble getting out of Court. We'll be stopped-even if we get to the gate. There are going to be cars lined up for miles."

"Ah, well," Abe began, twiddling his fingers, "I have it on good authority that there's going to be a new 'gate' opening up soon over on the south side of the wall."

"Oh lord. You're the one that's been doling out C4." Well, who else? Not me. He frowned for once.

"You make it sound so easy. That stuff's hard to get a hold of." Did that matter? No, not at this moment. And that was when I decided.

"All of you: Rose needs to leave now. She's in danger. I'll drag her out if I have to." I would make good on that, and they knew it.

"You don't have t go with me," she snapped. She really did hate me. "I'll take care of myself. No one else needs to get in trouble. Hand me the keys." I almost laughed at her open hand. I gave her a rueful glance.

"Rose, I can't really get in much more trouble. Someone has to be responsible for helping you and I'm the best choice." Eddie hugged her quickly.

"Go. We'll be in touch through Lissa." Mikhail gave her a hug too, and she moved to Adrian. He was grinning but I could tell that he hated her going off with me. I turned away as they embraced. Suddenly, there was a colossal bang and the sound of screams echoed in the air.

"There, you see?" Abe smiled. "A new gate. Perfect timing." Rose hugged him too. "Ah, my daughter. Eighteen, and already you've been accused of murder, aided felons and acquired a death count higher than most guardians will ever see." He was a smart man and had every right to be proud of her, but we need to get moving. Couldn't they see that?

"Goodbye, old man," she laughed. "And thanks." Finally, she jumped into the car and we sped off towards the 'gate'. I could sense that Rose wanted the wheel, but there was no way I was giving it up now. Especially as she had no idea where we were going. We burst through the hole in the wall and raced towards the road, bumping up and down.

"Why is our getaway car a Civic?" she asked. "It's not really great for off-roading."

I explained the reason- about it being common and her eyes widened when she realised we were going to abandon it. "Abandon- Look, now that we're out of there, I want you to know I mean it; you don't have to come with me. I appreciate your help in the escape. Really. But hanging out with me won't do you any favours. They'll be hunting for me more than you. If you take off, you can live somewhere among humans and not be treated like a lab animal. You might even be able to slink back to Court. Tasha would put up a fight for you." It was true. Tasha and I had been good friends since, well, for ever. I took a while to answer, and put my words right without offending her. Eventually, I said, "I'm not leaving you. None of your Rose-logic arguments are going to work. And if you try to get away, I'll just find you."

"But why? I don't want you with me."

"It doesn't matter what you want. Or what I want. Lissa asked me to protect you."

"Hey, I don't need anyone to-"

"And, I meant what I said to her. I swore I'd serve her and help her for the rest of my life, anything she asks. If she wants me to be your bodyguard, that's what I'll be." I turned to look at her now. "There's no way you're getting rid of me anytime soon."