The Golden Lily

Thank you, Trey."

"Also," he added, "we want the sword back."

I made arrangements for him to pick me up at Adrian's, since I had a feeling Dimitri and Eddie would have a lot to say to me beforehand. In fact, I called them as soon as I was off the phone with Trey, to give them a heads-up. I also called Stanton to give her an update. It occurred to me I should have checked with her sooner, but I'd wanted a definitive answer from Trey first.

"I don't like the idea of you going alone," she said. "But it does seem unlikely they'd hurt you. They really do seem to stay away from humans - us in particular. And if there's a chance to get Karp out of there... well. That would save us a lot of fallout with the Moroi." Stanton's tone told me, however, that even if she thought I'd be safe, she wasn't so optimistic about Sonya. "Be careful, Miss Sage."

Adrian's apartment was filled with tension when I arrived. Dimitri, Eddie, and Angeline were clearly agitated, probably because they were being left out of the action. Adrian, surprisingly, looked upset too, though I couldn't figure out why. Jill watched him with concern, and they kept staring at each other, unseen messages undoubtedly passing to her through the bond. At last, he averted his gaze, like he was ending a conversation. Jill sighed and walked toward the others in the kitchen.

I started to speak to Adrian, but Eddie beckoned me forward. "We're debating on whether to give you a weapon or not," he said.

"Well, the answer is 'not,"' I said immediately. "Come on, they're blindfolding me. Do you think they won't search me for weapons too?"

"There must be a way," said Dimitri. Since we were in air conditioning, he wore the duster.

"I can't let you go in there defenseless."

"I'm not in danger," I said, feeling like I'd been repeating the same thing all day. "They might be crazy, but Trey says if they give their word, they'll stick to it."

"Sonya doesn't have those guarantees," Dimitri pointed out.

"No weapon is going to help me save her," I said. "Except for my reasoning. And I'm armed with that about as well as I can be."

The dhampirs still didn't seem happy. They went back to arguing amongst themselves, and I left them to find some water. Adrian called to me from the living room. "There's diet pop in there."

I opened the refrigerator. Sure enough, it was stocked with all kinds of pop. And, in fact, it had more food than I'd ever seen. Another benefit of Nathan Ivashkov's generosity. I grabbed a can of Diet Coke and joined Adrian on the couch.

"Thanks," I said, opening the can. "This is the next best thing you could have to gelato." He raised an eyebrow. "Gelato? Sounds like dessert to me, Sage."

"It is," I admitted. The mundane topic was comforting amidst all the tension. "It's kind of your fault for bringing it up yesterday. Now I can't stop thinking about it. I wanted some at dinner last night, and Brayden talked me out of it - which is probably why I'm even more obsessed with it. Ever had that happen? Once you can't have something, you want it that much more."

"Yes," he said bitterly. "It happens all the time."

"Why are you so down? You think I should have a weapon, too?" With Adrian, it was really hard to guess where his moods would go.

"No, I get your point, and I think you're right," he said. "Not that I like the idea of you going there at all."

"I have to help Sonya," I said.

He studied me and smiled. "I know you do. I wish I could come with you."

"Oh yeah? You going to protect me and carry me out of there like you threatened to do last night?" I teased.

"Hey, if that's what it takes. You and Sonya. I'll toss one of you ever each shoulder. Pretty manly, huh?"

"Very," I said, happy to see him joking again.

His amusement faded, and he became serious again. "Let me ask you something. Which is scarier: walking into a den of crazy, murdering humans or being with safe - though kind of wacky - vampires and half vampires? I know the hang-up you Alchemists have with us, but is the loyalty to your own race so strong that... I don't know... that the people themselves don't matter?"

It was a surprisingly deep question for Adrian. It also echoed my trip to the Alchemist bunker to see Keith. I was reminded of how Keith's father hadn't cared about his son's moral character so long as it meant Keith wasn't on good terms with vampires. I also thought back to the alley and how obstinate the Warriors were about hearing any truth but their own. And finally, I looked over at the dhampirs arguing in the kitchen, continuing to brainstorm covert ways of keeping Sonya and me safe, no matter the risk.

I turned back to Adrian. "I'd take the vampires. Loyalty to one's kind can only go so far." Something in Adrian's face transformed, but I hardly paid it any attention. I was too struck by the realization that the words I'd just uttered were akin to high treason in the Alchemists.

Eddie and Angeline left later to get us dinner, and I let them take my car, so long as Eddie drove. While they were gone, Dimitri tried to drill in some more self-defense techniques, but it was hard to learn very much in so short a time. I kept thinking of Wolfe warning us to avoid dangerous places. What would he say about me walking into a den of armed vampire hunters?

Eddie and Angeline were gone for a while and finally returned, angry at how long the restaurant had taken. "I didn't think we weren't going to be back in time," said Eddie. "I was afraid you wouldn't get food before your mission."

"I don't even know if I can eat," I admitted. Despite my earlier brave words, I was starting to grow nervous. "Oh, you can keep those in case you need the car." He'd walked over to my purse with the keys and dropped them in anyway. "Are you sure?"

"Positive."

He shrugged and then fished the keys out again. Adrian, to my surprise, watched him with narrowed eyes and seemed upset about something. I couldn't keep up with his moods today.

He stood up and walked over to Eddie. After a few moments, they moved even farther away and seemed to be having a whispered argument, one that involved a few glances at me.

Everyone else looked uncomfortable and suddenly jumped in with any conversation topics they could find. I could only stare back and forth, feeling like I had missed something important.

Trey called me at seven on the dot, saying he was waiting out front. I rose from my chair and picked up the sword, taking a deep breath. "Wish me luck."

"I'll walk you out," said Adrian.