Chapter Four

Natalie Dashkov was Victor's daughter and only heir. She had grown up alongside the Dragomirs and had become an unofficial cousin to us. She was exceptionally bright, well-spoken, and extremely persuasive. That girl could write the book on ways of getting what you want. Since Victor was acting Warden of St. Vlad's Valley it was his duty to stay behind with Lissa and me, leaving Natalie to act as his representative at official court meetings, a rather fitting role for her actually.

"Sounds like a blast," I replied sarcastically. "Sorry to miss it, but I have to start training today."

"Well, if you're so sorry then maybe you should take my place at the meeting and I'll take yours down at the camp."

I paused mid-bite into a large hunk of bread, wide-eyed at her response. She looked at me seriously for a moment before we both burst out laughing, the image of her in a silk gown surrounded by mud and men nearly sending me out of my seat. When my laughing finally subsided, I looked over to the stain glass window to see that it was nearly sundown. I snatched one last piece of bread from the table and stood to leave.

"Where are you off to this early? Training doesn't start for almost another hour," Lissa probed.

"I—I just want to get a head start. You know, make sure everything is in order," I reached for an excuse. Her eyes needled me in that way they did when she could tell I was hiding something. I stood at the end of the table and looked around the room, avoiding her gaze as I began backing away. "So, I'll see you at supper? Okay, gotta run!"

I whirled around and brushed out of the room, feeling her skeptical stare burning into my back. She was right, I didn't technically have to be down at the camp for another hour at least, but I was excited for the night to begin. For the first time in a long time, I didn't get that anxious feeling as the sun went down, I almost welcomed it. I had been charged with leading many trainings such as this one before, but not only was this my first one as the official Field Marshall, there was one particular recruit I was hoping to gain more insight on.

As I approached the training grounds I could see that some of the torches had already been lit. Even though Dhampirs had heightened senses and could see relatively well in the dark, we preferred to keep the grounds lit to avoid any accidents. We were wielding a variety of large, metal weapons after all. In the distance, I could see a familiar face prepping one of the fire pits. I considered sneaking up behind him and scaring the piss out of him, I did enjoy turning his face the same color as his bright red hair but decided against it while he was holding a lit torch above his head.

"Hey Mase," I called out to him. His freckled face snapped up and a huge grin formed as he strode over towards me.

"Well if it isn't big, bad Hathaway come to whip us all into shape," Mason's smile was contagious, and I found myself falling into an easy temperament with my old friend. "I can't wait to see what crazy plans you have for this bunch."

"Lucky for you, Ashford, you get to witness my greatness first hand," I scooped my thick ponytail over my shoulder. "From what I hear, you and Eddie will be working alongside me a few days a week."

"Yeah well when they asked for volunteers to switch out shifts from watching the wall to helping with the troops, how could we say no? The view down here is certainly better." He moved his hand around me, outlining my physique, and smirked suggestively, earning a jab in the shoulder from me.

"Damn Rose. Feisty this morning," he chuckled, rubbing his arm.

"Gotta be quicker than that if you want to keep up. Maybe I should volunteer you for the first sparring lesson so you can get your shot at a rematch."

"Against you?! I see you're already hellbent on making me look bad in front of the new troops then."

Mason, Eddie and I had all trained together in St. Vlad's Valley the majority of our lives. There was a time where I was consistently behind them, when my focus lied on things outside of perfecting my combat skills, but it had been years since he or Eddie had managed to beat me in a fight. A reputation I was quite proud of. There was a brief time, prior to becoming Guardian Ashford and Guardian Hathaway, that I considered more than a friendship with Mason. He was charming, handsome, and had a brilliant sense of humor, but as we grew older and I grew more serious about my career, things fizzled and we decided we were best as good friends. Other than Lissa, he and Eddie were my closest allies and I was pleased to hear that they would be joining me in this new venture.

I picked up one of the smaller torches on the ground and started to help him finish lighting the fires as we playfully chatted about nonsense. Slowly, the troops began to file in and we eventually parted to prepare for the upcoming formalities. Without meaning to, my eyes began roaming over each of the faces, subconsciously searching for the mysterious man from the night before.

Those deep, penetrating eyes from my dream found their way into my mind as I walked to the front of the grounds. I wasn't sure what was with me that night but for some reason, I couldn't shake the invading image. It was like that piercing gaze was haunting me—something I wasn't necessarily unfamiliar with.

I shook my head to regain my concentration and tucked my necklace safely into my tunic as I made my way up to the small platform where Eddie was waiting for me. Apparently, he would be conducting the introductions. When the crowd began to settle, Eddie started his speech. Despite having heard the same rhetoric a dozen times over I should've still been paying attention out of respect for Eddie, which made his annoyed look completely warranted when he had to nudge me after apparently introducing me to the crowd.

"Thank you, Guardian Castile," I righted myself and took a step forward. "I want to formally welcome you all to St. Vladimir's Valley. There will never be enough words to express our gratitude for your sacrifice and dedication to the Dragomir name. Although it is expected of Dhampirs in other regions, we regard each and every one of you with great honor for your service." I could see a few in the crowd roll their eyes at that statement, and I didn't blame them. I knew some kingdoms treated Dhampir with far less respect than they deserved and saw them as nothing more than fodder on the front lines against the Strigoi.

"I know many of you have seen your fair share of hardships over the years. Unfairly judged based on your race, mistreated because of your lineage, and even outcast for having a mind of your own," I made eye contact with a select few recruits that I knew had suffered similar fates. "You will come to find that we run things a little differently here. Respect is not given based on class, race, or gender. It is earned. I know this may not be ideal for those of you who feel you have already earned that respect based on your titles, but it only means you will be given another chance to prove you are worthy of holding that title of honor." A few of the new knights in the crowd cast sidelong glances towards each other, skeptical of what I was saying.

"Everyone here will go through the same training over the week, no matter what your experience. This may seem daunting to some of you, but it is the best way for us to get a grasp on everyone's strengths and weaknesses. This arrangement will only be temporary until we move you into more specialized groups. Feel free to take advantage of any areas that you excel in and show us what you are made of." Rhea's mantra softly played in the back of my head as I continued on.

"There is nothing more important to me than keeping the Dragomir line and the habitants of this kingdom safe, and in order to do so, I need to make sure each and every one of you are ready when the time comes to protect these lands. We are only as strong as our weakest link, so rather than cutting each other down to get to the top, I expect you to build each other up so we are all fighting as one invincible force. That's not to say that I don't admire a bit of friendly competition," I gave Eddie a quick wink and he tried his best to hide his smirk.

"Camp rules will be posted later this evening and I expect you all to treat these grounds like your home, not a barn or a brothel. You'll come to find I can be a great ally, or your worst enemy so I suggest not getting on my bad side." I took a dramatic pause and glared into the crowd to emphasize my point. "And with that, training will start immediately. Guardian Castile and Guardian Ashford will be breaking you off into groups where you will be provided with further instructions." I motioned my two friends over and they began getting the troops organized.

I hopped down from the platform and began walking around the area. A few of the men gave me a quick nod as I passed by and I returned them hurriedly. I tried my best to maintain a friendly demeanor, but as I came to the end of the group and my suspicions were confirmed, I couldn't help but be pissed. Belikov wasn't here.

Uh oh. Someone's in trouble... ;)