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FOURTEEN TWO GUYS I'D NEVER MET before were squaring off against each other. They looked to be in their twenties, and neither noticed me. The one who'd bumped into me shoved the other one hard, forcing him to stagger back considerably. "You're afraid!" yelled the guy by me. He had on green swimming trunks, and his black hair was slicked back with water. "You're all afraid. You just want to hole up in your mansions and let the guardians do your dirty work. What are you going to do when they're all dead? Who'll protect you then?" The other guy wiped the blood off his face with the back of his hand. I suddenly recognized him—thanks to his blond highlights. He was the royal who'd yelled at Tasha about wanting to lead Moroi to battle. She'd called him Andrew. He tried to land a hit and failed; his technique was all wrong. "This is the safest way. Listen to that Strigoi-lover, and we'll all be dead. She's trying to kill our whole race off!" "She's trying to save us!" "She's trying to get us to use black magic!" The "Strigoi-lover" had to be Tasha. The non-royal guy was the first person outside of my little circle whom I'd ever heard speak in her favor. I wondered how many others out there shared his view. He punched Andrew again, and my base instincts—or maybe the punch—made me leap into action. I sprang forward and wedged myself between them. I was still dizzy and a bit unsteady. If they hadn't been standing so close, I probably would have fallen over. They both hesitated, clearly caught off guard. "Get out of here," snapped Andrew.
Being male and Moroi, they had greater height and weight than I, but I was probably stronger than either one alone. Hoping I could make the most of that, I grabbed each of them by the arm, pulled them toward me, and then shoved them away as hard as I could. They staggered, not having expected my strength. I staggered a little too. The non-royal glared and took a step toward me. I was counting on the fact that he'd be oldfashioned and not hit a girl. "What are you doing?" he exclaimed. Several people had gathered and were watching excitedly. I returned his glare. "I'm trying to stop you guys from being any more idiotic than you already are! You want to help? Stop fighting each other! Ripping each other's heads off isn't going to save the Moroi unless you're trying to thin stupidity out of the gene pool." I pointed at Andrew. "Tasha Ozera is not trying to kill everyone off. She's trying to get you to stop being a victim." I turned to the other guy. "And as for you, you've got a long ways to go if you think this is the way to get your point across. Magic—especially offensive magic—takes a lot of self-control, and so far, you aren't impressing me with yours. I have more than you do, and if you knew me at all, you'd know how crazy that is." The two guys stared at me, stunned. I was apparently more effective than a taser. Well, at least for several seconds I was. Because once the shock of my words wore off, they went at each other again. I got caught in the crossfire and shoved away, nearly falling in the process. Suddenly, from behind me, Mason came to my defense. He punched the first guy he could—the non-royal. The guy flew backward, falling into one of the pools with a splash. I yelped, remembering my earlier fear about skull-cracking, but a moment later, he found his feet and rubbed water out of his eyes. I grabbed Mason's arm, trying to hold him back, but he shrugged me off and went after Andrew. He shoved Andrew hard, pushing him into several Moroi—andrew's friends, I suspected—who seemed to be trying to break up the fight. The guy in the pool climbed out, fury written all over his face, and made moves toward Andrew. This time, both Mason and I blocked his way. He glared at all of us. "Don't," I warned him.
- Page 90 and 91: Christian were chatting on in their
- Page 92 and 93: I honestly couldn't believe we were
- Page 94 and 95: "Good." She opened her mouth, and I
- Page 96 and 97: "I'm really tired," I repeated. I c
- Page 98 and 99: TEN THE SKI TRIP COULDN'T HAVE come
- Page 100 and 101: Inside, all sorts of arrangements h
- Page 102 and 103: "Ah," he said triumphantly. "She fi
- Page 104 and 105: leather dress shoes he wore indicat
- Page 106 and 107: "And you think I'm trouble," I mutt
- Page 108 and 109: get a couple of guys to tell everyo
- Page 110 and 111: ELEVEN LISSA WAS UP AND GONE before
- Page 112 and 113: Even I wouldn't want her face burne
- Page 114 and 115: I looked between both their faces.
- Page 116 and 117: could look up and see the stars spi
- Page 118 and 119: Adrian leaned against the porch's r
- Page 120 and 121: TWELVE I WAS OUT OF BED in a flash.
- Page 122 and 123: My mother flipped through some pape
- Page 124 and 125: I moved in front of her and placed
- Page 126 and 127: was one of the ruling Moroi, and as
- Page 128 and 129: was pulled back into a ponytail, co
- Page 130 and 131: Tasha shrugged. "If that's what it
- Page 132 and 133: "I have my sources." Somehow, sayin
- Page 134 and 135: I remembered Adrian's arm was still
- Page 136 and 137: I looked at Mason questioningly. It
- Page 138 and 139: attle strategies. The fact that she
- Page 142 and 143: The guy clenched his fists and look
- Page 144 and 145: "My boyfriend," I said. "Sort of."
- Page 146 and 147: "Hey yourself, cousin," he returned
- Page 148 and 149: "It's okay," he said. "I have a goo
- Page 150 and 151: "I'm just telling you the truth." "
- Page 152 and 153: FIFTEEN I WAS TRYING TO PAINT my to
- Page 154 and 155: "I'm returning these." I hoisted th
- Page 156 and 157: The rest of us just sort of stared.
- Page 158 and 159: My anger and snarkiness dried up. T
- Page 160 and 161: "You can't keep doing this," she gr
- Page 162 and 163: He stopped walking. "We could go."
- Page 164 and 165: I was kissing Mason, but in my head
- Page 166 and 167: SIXTEEN LISSA FOUND ME LATER IN the
- Page 168 and 169: She eyed me. "How much do you know?
- Page 170 and 171: along with their blood, but they di
- Page 172 and 173: Intrigued gazes turned her way agai
- Page 174 and 175: He laughed. "Of course you are. I c
- Page 176 and 177: SEVENTEEN WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE
- Page 178 and 179: there, and several people had witne
- Page 180 and 181: spreading rumors about her? I'd had
- Page 182 and 183: EIGHTEEN THE HIGH HEELS WERE STARTI
- Page 184 and 185: Someone, say, like Mia. I wasn't th
- Page 186 and 187: the guardians hadn't done anything
- Page 188 and 189: to get to town fast, and I prayed C
Being male and Moroi, they had greater height and weight than I, but I was probably stronger<br />
than either one alone. Hoping I could make the most of that, I grabbed each of them by the arm,<br />
pulled them toward me, and then shoved them away as hard as I could. They staggered, not<br />
having expected my strength. I staggered a little too.<br />
The non-royal glared and took a step toward me. I was counting on the fact that he'd be oldfashioned<br />
and not hit a girl. "What are you doing?" he exclaimed. Several people had gathered<br />
and were watching excitedly.<br />
I returned his glare. "I'm trying to stop you guys from being any more idiotic than you already<br />
are! You want to help? Stop fighting each other! Ripping each other's heads off isn't going to<br />
save the Moroi unless you're trying to thin stupidity out of the gene pool." I pointed at Andrew.<br />
"Tasha Ozera is not trying to kill everyone off. She's trying to get you to stop being a victim." I<br />
turned to the other guy. "And as for you, you've got a long ways to go if you think this is the<br />
way to get your point across. Magic—especially offensive magic—takes a lot of self-control,<br />
and so far, you aren't impressing me with yours. I have more than you do, and if you knew me<br />
at all, you'd know how crazy that is."<br />
The two guys stared at me, stunned. I was apparently more effective than a taser. Well, at least<br />
for several seconds I was. Because once the shock of my words wore off, they went at each<br />
other again. I got caught in the crossfire and shoved away, nearly falling in the process.<br />
Suddenly, from behind me, Mason came to my defense. He punched the first guy he could—the<br />
non-royal.<br />
The guy flew backward, falling into one of the pools with a splash. I yelped, remembering my<br />
earlier fear about skull-cracking, but a moment later, he found his feet and rubbed water out of<br />
his eyes.<br />
I grabbed Mason's arm, trying to hold him back, but he shrugged me off and went after<br />
Andrew. He shoved Andrew hard, pushing him into several Moroi—andrew's friends, I<br />
suspected—who seemed to be trying to break up the fight. The guy in the pool climbed out,<br />
fury written all over his face, and made moves toward Andrew. This time, both Mason and I<br />
blocked his way. He glared at all of us.<br />
"Don't," I warned him.
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