'I actually saw that too,' admitted Sydney.
His tone turned pleading. 'Come
I didn't blame him, really, but we needed him too much. I glanced at Sydney beseechingly, telling her that only she could get us through this.
She turned back to Ian. 'What's the deal with the guy in the picture? Is it . . . is it really horrible? Something secret?'
He shrugged. 'No. I just don't want to help them anymore. It's irrelevant.'
'Will you do it for me?' she asked sweetly. 'Please? It might help me get out of trouble.' Sydney was no master of flirting, but I think just the fact she came close to it astonished him. He hesitated for several moments, glanced at us and then back to her. She smiled at him.
Ian caved. 'I meant what I said. I don't know who he is. He was with a Moroi woman over in the St. Louis facility one day.'
'Wait,' I said, derailed. 'Moroi come to your places?'
'Sometimes,' said Sydney. 'Just like we came to yours. Some meetings happen in person. We don't usually hold your people prisoner, though.'
'I think this guy was like her bodyguard or something,' Ian said. 'She was the one there on business. He just followed and stayed quiet.'
'A Moroi bodyguard?'
'Not uncommon for those that can't get guardians,' said Mikhail. 'Abe Mazur is proof of that. He's got his own army.'
'I think of them more as a mafia.' My joke aside, I was getting confused. Despite the widespread disdain about learning to fight, sometimes Moroi did have to hire Moroi security because they just couldn't obtain a guardian. Someone like Daniella Ivashkov wouldn't have that problem. In fact, I was pretty sure she'd be entitled to two guardians if she stepped outside protective borders—and she'd made it clear she didn't think Moroi should fight. Why would she travel with Moroi protection when she could have better trained guardians? It made no sense. Still . . . if you'd killed a queen, you probably did all sorts of unorthodox things. They didn't have to make sense. 'Who was she?' I asked. 'The woman?'
'I didn't know her either,' said Ian. 'I just passed them while they were on their way to something. A meeting, maybe.'
'Do you remember what she looked like?' Something. We needed
'Sure,' he said. 'She's easy to remember.'
The ensuing silence irritated me. 'So?' I asked. 'What did she look like?'
He told me.
The description was not what I had expected.
THIRTY-TWO
SYDNEY AND HER FRIENDS weren't happy that we weren't going to take them with us.
'I would,' I told her, still reeling from what I'd learned from Ian. 'But getting us in and out has been hard enough! If we step outside with you, we'll all be busted. Besides, soon it won't matter. Once we tell everyone at Court what we know and clear my name, the guardians won't need you anymore.'
'It's not the guardians I'm worried about,' she replied. She used that blasé tone of hers, but I could see a glint of legitimate fear in her eyes—and I wondered who she was referring to. The Alchemists? Or someone else?
'Sydney,' I said hesitantly, despite knowing Mikhail and I needed to get out of there. 'What did Abe really do for you? There has to be more than just the transfer.'
Sydney gave me a small, sad smile. 'It doesn't matter, Rose. I'll deal with whatever comes. Just go now, okay? Go help your friends.'
I wanted to say more . . . to find out more. But Mikhail's expression told me he agreed with her, and so, with brief farewells, he and I left. When we got back to where the others were waiting in the parking lot, I saw the situation hadn't changed much. Dimitri was pacing, no doubt restless at being out of the action. Jill still stood near Sonya, as though seeking protection from the older woman, and Adrian stayed away from all of them, barely sparing a glance when Mikhail's car pulled up.
When we told the group what we'd learned, however,
'Impossible. I can't believe that.' He stamped out a cigarette. 'Your Alchemist pals are wrong.'
I could hardly believe it either, yet I had no reason to think Ian would lie. And honestly, if Adrian was having a hard time with this, there was no telling what he would have thought if we'd told him who our previous suspect was. I stared off into the night, trying to come to terms with who had murdered Tatiana and framed me. It was hard even for me to believe. Betrayal was harsh.
'The motives are there . . .' I said reluctantly. Once Ian had described whom he'd seen, a dozen reasons for the murder clicked into place. 'And they
'Ian's ID is hard evidence,' said Dimitri, as shocked as the rest of us. 'But there are a lot of other holes, a lot of pieces that don't fit into it.'
'Yeah.' One in particular had been bothering me. 'Like why
No one had an answer for that. 'We need to get back to Court,' Mikhail said at last. 'Or I'm going to be missed.'
I cast Jill what I hoped was an encouraging smile. 'And you've got to make your debut.'
'I don't know which is crazier,' said Adrian. 'The killer's identity or Jailbait being a Dragomir.' His words to me were cold, but the look he gave her was gentle. Crazy as the news was, Adrian hadn't had that hard of a time believing Jill's parentage. He was jaded enough to believe in Eric's infidelity, and those telltale eyes sealed the deal. I think hearing what Ian had told us was hurting Adrian more than he was letting on. Finding out the person responsible for his aunt's murder was someone he knew had to intensify the pain. Finding out about me and Dimitri couldn't help matters either.
Much to Mikhail's dismay, Sonya offered to stay behind while the rest of us went to Court. We couldn't bring both cars, and his only held five. She considered herself the least useful in this endeavor. With much hugging, kissing, and tears, she promised Mikhail they'd see each other again, once this mess was sorted out. I hoped she was right.
My charm would obscure my face enough to get me through the gate. But Jill was a trickier problem. Her kidnapping was hot Moroi news, and if she was recognized by any of the gate guardians, we would be stopped then and there. We were gambling that the guards would be too harried to notice her like they would Dimitri and me. That meant Dimitri took priority for disguising—requiring Adrian's help. Adrian wasn't quite as adept with illusion as Sonya was, but he understood enough of it to make Dimitri's appearance altered to the eyes of others. It was similar to how he'd used spirit during my jail escape. The question was whether or not Adrian would actually do it for us. He hadn't said a word to anyone about what he'd seen between me and Dimitri, but the others must have felt the sudden rise in tension.
'We have to help Lissa,' I told him, when he didn't respond to the request. 'Time's running out. Please. Please help us.' I wasn't above groveling, if that was what he needed.
Fortunately, it wasn't. Adrian took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a brief moment. I was certain he wished he had something stronger than cigarettes. At last, he nodded. 'Let's go.'
We left Sonya with the keys to the second car, and she stood there with shining eyes, watching as we drove off. Dimitri, Mikhail, and I spent most of the journey analyzing the our data collection. The woman Ian had described couldn't have done everything we'd been pinning on the murderer.
