Page 14 (1/2)

The next day was Easter Everyone was up and around, getting ready to go to church The whole house s My stomach rumbled, and I wondered if I could wait until this afternoon for the huge dinner she’d prepared Even though I wasn’t always sure about God, I’d gone to church a lot inpolite and social Dione because he found peace there, and I wondered if going today ht on what I should do

I felt a little shabby acco the others They’d dressed up, but I didn’t have anything other than jeans and casual shirts Viktoria, noticing ht but still looked good Once I was settled with the fa how Dimitri could have taken solace in the Acaderown up with this place

It was huge It could have held four chapels The ceilings were higher and old decorations and icons of saints see to the eye Sweet incense hung heavy in the air, so much so that I could actually see the smoke

There were a lot of people there, human and dhampir, and I was surprised to even spot soh to coht be engaging in And speaking of Moroi

"Abe isn’t here," I said to Viktoria, glancing around She was on ht While he hadn’t struck ious type, I’d kind of expected him to follow me here I hoped that maybe his absence meant he’d left Baia I was still unnerved by our last encounter "Did he leave town?"

"I think he’s Muslim," Viktoria explained "But last I knew, he’s still around Karolina saw hi"

Daood friend or a bad eneavebad when he’s around He usually has s and then disappears I meant it before when I said I didn’t think he’d hurt you, but now you’re worrying me Are you in some kind of trouble?"

Excellent question "I don’t know He just seeure out why"

Her frown deepened "We won’t let anything happen to you," she said fiercely

I smiled, both at her concern and because of her resemblance to Dimitri in that ht be looking forup onso and screaood

Viktoria see the truth "Well, I mean it I won’t let hi off our conversation While the priest’s chanting was beautiful, it meant even less to me than church services usually did It was all in Russian, like at the funeral, and no one was going to bother translating it forin the beauty ofTo the left of the altar, a golden-haired angel looked at me from a four-foot-tall icon

An unexpected otten permission for me to accompany hiuardians Idaho wasn’t any place I was keen on going, but I welcomed the time with him, and he’d convinced school officials that it was a "learning experience" That had been shortly after Mason’s death, and after the shock wave that tragedy had sent through the school, I think they would have allowed , to be honest

Unfortunately, there was little that was leisurely or romantic about the trip Dimitri had a job to do, and he had to do it quickly So weonly when absolutely necessary Considering our last road trip had involved us stu uneventful was probably for the best As usual, he wouldn’t let et us there in half the time Or maybe that hy he wouldn’t let as and scrounge some food from the station’s store We were up in the mountains somewhere, in a tiny town that rivaled St Vladimir’s for remote location I could see mountains on clear days at school, but it was a totally different experience being in them

They surrounded us and were so close it seemed like you could just ju up with the car Holding as station to get a better view

Whatever civilization the gas station offered disappeared as soon as I cleared it Endless snowy pines stretched out before me, and all was still and quiet, save for the distant sound of the highway behind me My heart ached over what had happened to Mason, and I was still having nightoi who’d held us captive That pain was a long way fro sootheddown at the unbroken, foot-high snow, a crazy thought suddenly caround The thick snow e cos and ar out new hollows in the snow When I finished, I didn’t get up right away I si up at the blue, blue sky

"What," asked Di your sandwich cold"

His shadow fell over me, and I looked up at his tall form In spite of the cold, the sun was out, and its rays backlit his hair He could have been an angel hiel," I replied "Don’t you knohat that is?"

"Yes, I know But why? You "

I had on a heavy winter coat, hat, gloves, and all the other requisite cold-weather accessories He was right about the sandwich "Not so uess"

He shook his head and gave me a wry smile "You’ll be cold when you’re in the car and all that snow starts "

"I think you’re more worried about the car than about hed "I’ hypotherround beside o"

He continued looking down at me "So I can freeze too?"

"So you can have fun So you can leave your mark on Idaho Besides, it shouldn’t bother you at all, right? Don’t you have some sort of super cold resistance frohed, a sh to warain, convinced Siberia is like Antarctica I’m from the southern part The weather’s al excuses," I told hioing to have to el too"

Diht he ht and open, though, and his expression was filled with a fondness that , he flopped into the snow besidethere quietly

"Okay," I said when he did nothing s"

"I kno to el"

"Then do it! Otherwise, you’re more like a chalk outline at a police criain, and the sound was rich and war on el of his own When he finished, I expected hiet back on the road, but instead, he stayed there too, watching the sky and the mountains

"Pretty, huh?" I asked My breath uess in some ways, it’s not that different from the ski resort’s view but I don’t know I feel different about it all today"

"Life’s like that," he said "As we grow and change, sos we’ve experienced before take on newIt’ll happen for the rest of your life"

I started to tease him about his tendency to always deliver these profound life lessons, but it occurred tofor Di I’d never felt anything like it before I’d been convinced there was no possible way I could love him more But now, after what I’d witnessed with Mason and the Strigoi, things were different I did love Dimitri more intensely I loved hi how fragile life was made me appreciate him more It had made me realize how much he meant to me and how sad I’d be if I ever lost him

"You think it’d be nice to have a cabin up there?" I asked, pointing to a nearby peak "Out in the woods where no one could find you?"

"I would think it was nice I think you’d be bored"

I tried to i stuck in the wilderness with him Small room, fireplace, bed I didn’t think it’d be that boring "It wouldn’t be so bad if we had cable And Internet" And body heat

"Oh, Rose" He didn’t laugh, but I could tell he was sain "I don’t think you’d ever be happy so to do"

"Are you saying I have a short attention span?"

"Not at all I’ you do, that makes you need to better the world and those you love To stand up for those you can’t It’s one of the wonderful things about you"

"Only one, huh?" I spoke lightly, but his words had thrilledthose onderful traits, and feeling his pride injust then

"One of many," he said He sat up and looked down at me "So, no peaceful cabin for you Not until you’re an old, old woman"

"What, like forty?"

He shook his head in exasperation and stood up, not gracing arded me with the same affection I’d heard in his voice There was ad as Di down, he extended his hand "Ti hi, we held hands for a heartbeat longer than necessary Then we let go and surveyed our work

Two perfect snow angels-one much, much taller than the other Careful to step inside each outline, I leaned down and hacked out a horizontal line above each head

"What’s that?" he asked, when I stood beside hirin "For heavenly creatures like us"

"That els for a fewat where we had lain side by side in that sweet, quiet moment I wished what I’d said was true, that we had truly left our mark on the els would disappear into the whiteness and be nothing ently, and without another word, we turned around and headed back to the car

Compared to that memory of him and the way he’d looked atback atin coation was filing back to their seats after taking bread and wine I’d stayed seated for that, but I did understand a few of the priest’s words Life Death Destroy Eternal I knew enough about all this to string together the oodit were truly that easy to vanquish death and bring back those we loved

Church ended, and I left with the Belikovs, feeling melancholy As people passed each other near the entrance, I saw soed

Viktoria had explained that it was a big tradition around here A few people I didn’t know gave soive in return I also wondered hoas going to eat them all They were decorated in various ways Soned

Everyone seemed chatty after church, and we all stood around outside it Friends and faossip I stood near Viktoria, s to follow the conversation that often took place in both English and Russian

"Viktoria!"

We turned and saw Nikolai striding toward us He gave us-by which I ave her-a brilliant s in a sage shirt and dark green tie I eyed Viktoria, wondering if it had any effect on her Nope Her senuinely happy to see hiain, I wondered about her uys with hireeted me too Like the Belikovs, they seemed to think I was a per to Marina’s party?" asked Nikolai

I’d nearly forgotten That was the party he’d invited us to the first day I’d met him Viktoria had accepted then, but to my surprise, she now shook her head "We can’t We have family plans"

That was news tohad come up that I didn’t know about yet, but I doubted it I had a feeling she was lying, and being a loyal friend, I said nothing to contradict her It was hard watching Nikolai’s face fall, though

"Really? We’re going to ed "We’ll all see each other at school"

He didn’t seem pacified by that "Yeah, but-"

Nikolai’s eyes suddenly lifted fro behind us He frowned Viktoria and I both glanced back, and I felt hertoward roup They were dha unusual about theathered outside the church took on expressions similar to those of uys ca their way into our circle

"I thought you lish, and it tookto Nikolai I would never understand Russian nicknames