Changed (The Hunters #1) (20 page)

“
I’ll see you later,” said
Rosa.

Rosa took her crutches and left the
gym. She wondered why Sergei wanted to talk to her. She hoped he
didn’t want to talk about the angel, because she didn’t have any
information yet. She walked up the stairs to his room, knocking,
and stepping into the room.

Sergei wasn’t there. That meant he
could only be in the library. She went one floor up and headed for
the library. Rosa walked through a dark corridor and saw the
library door was open. She went in without knocking.

The library was a large room with high
vaulted ceilings. It consisted only of windows that let sunlight
shine into the room. Thus, the room was brightly lit. Along the
wall, tall bookshelves stood crammed with books. The floor
consisted of red carpet that looked worn. On the left side was the
fireplace, which was always used in the winter.

Rosa loved the library. The
old-fashioned blend of wood was reassuring in itself, and she loved
the smell of the old books that filled the room. She came here
sometimes to think, or just to be alone.

In the
middle stood a large round table, which was now filled with people.
Sergei wasn
’
t
alone. Jelena, Sergei’s wife, and the leader of all hunter clans in
the whole world, Lord Constantine, were sitting at the
table.

Lord Constantine was a man in his
mid-fifties, but looked like forty. He had black hair and cold dark
eyes. They were so dark you couldn’t see his pupils. They were just
deep black holes. They threatened to engulf everything.

His pointed face and large muscular
body made him even more frightening. Like the others, he wore a
black, expensive suit. He was a mighty man, who led and ruled his
clan with an iron fist—the fact that he was there at all could not
be good.

Everyone at the table stared at
her.

Rosa didn’t feel comfortable. She was
standing with her sweaty T-Shirt and her disheveled hair. If she
had known that she would meet Lord Constantine, she would have
cleaned up first.

This is
certainly not a good impression,
Rosa
thought.

“
Master, you called me,”
she said politely.

Sergei nodded. “Yes, Rosa. We have to
discuss something.”

She took a deep breath and felt the
tension within her. What did they want to discuss with her? Rosa
looked over at Jelena. She was as old as Sergei was, with platinum
blonde hair and brown eyes.

Jelena was also a hunter,
but after she had married Sergei, she ended her career as a hunter.
Now she lived in the shadow of her husband, never interfering in
things of the hunter clan, and so Rosa was surprised to see her
there.

“
Come sit down, Rosa,”
Sergei said, pointing at the seat next to his wife.

Rosa thanked him and took her place on
the left side, next to Jelena. She smiled at Rosa.

Lord Constantine took over the
meeting.

“
Rosa,” he began. She
looked up at him, astonished. Rosa had never met him before, and it
surprised her that he petitioned her by name. They always
petitioned members of the hunter clan by “hunter” or “huntress.”
His voice was deep and scratchy, as if he smoked a pack of
cigarettes a day.

“
You are asking yourself
why are you here, aren’t you?” he asked, with a blank smile. He sat
at the end of the table, and Rosa turned her head to the left to
look at him. His black eyes watched her.

“
Yes, Lord Constantine,”
she replied, swallowing.

He smiled at her. Straight, white
teeth appeared. The sight of him smiling at her frightened Rosa
somehow. It was as if something was hidden behind his
smile.

“
I’ve heard a lot about
you, Rosa. Thou shalt be one of the best hunters in Boston, and in
the world,” he continued.

“
If they say so,” Rosa
said.

“
Have you passed your
exam?”

Rosa nodded. “Yes, Lord
Constantine.”

“
And did you kill your
first Nephilim already?”

“
No, Lord Constantine. Not
yet.”

The others were silent at the table.
Jelena put her hand on her knee. Sergei smiled at her.

“
I’ve heard that two
Nephilim are in my city. Is that right?” he asked, his gaze was a
little gloomy. Rosa did not miss that he put the emphasis on the
word “my.”

Rosa swallowed hard and nodded weakly.
“That’s right. They go to school with me.”

He now leaned forward, his eyes
burning in hers.

“
And why did you not kill
them instantly?” he asked slowly.

She looked to Sergei for help. He
smiled at her encouragingly. His eyes told her she should say what
she had told him. Rosa took a deep breath and looked into the eyes
of Constantine.

“
I think, Lord
Constantine, that they have a plan. They know that we rule Boston,
and I do not think they would just walk into the trap. I’m very
sure there is more behind it,” Rosa explained. She didn’t mention
that she already talked to Jason.

He nodded. “And have you found out
what their plan is yet?”

She bit her lip. “No, Lord
Constantine. Not yet, but I’m working on it.”

He nodded and leaned back. “Rosa, you
know that you do not have much time. I want to see results.” His
tone was harsh and his penetrating gaze made her
nervous.

“
I hope you will not let
me down, Rosa. I expect an answer from you in a short time.
Understand?”

She nodded. “Yes, Lord Constantine.”
He leaned back and folded his hands on the table.

“
Now let’s come to the
reason why you are here.” He looked back at Rosa.

“
You’ve certainly learned
that you are going on a trip to Vancouver with your class on
Friday,” he said.

“
Yes,” she said. She
wanted to ask Sergei why she was being sent into the city of
angels, anyway.

“
I want you to find one of
the four talismans that are there,” Lord Constantine
continued.

Rosa frowned. “The talisman? How do we
know they are there at all?”

For years, the hunters and archangels
were searching for the four talismans. As the story is told, there
are four talismans, having great powers, and were created by the
demon queen Lilith. Lilith started the loathing between the angels
and the hunters. After Lilith was banished from the mortal world,
she hid her talismans so nobody could find them. Since then, both
rulers had been searching for the talisman, without
success.

“
We have a clue where one
of the talismans may be, and we want to take this opportunity to
look for it.”

“
And why do I have to do
this?”

Lord Constantine smiled
that mysterious smile again. “Because you are the best hunter, and
have the gift of fight. You are the perfect hunter to enter the
city of angels, Rosa.”

Rosa didn’t like this idea. “Alone?”
she asked anxious.

He was still smiling. “Of course. You
do not need any support with your gift.”

She slid back and forth on her chair.
Alone in a city full of archangels and Nephilim? This idea gave
Rosa the creeps. She had never been alone with the Archangel or
Nephilim. Okay, she was with Jason, but he was only one, and he
beat her in fight. Furthermore, what would she do if Jason found
out that she was a hunter while they were in Vancouver? Of course,
he would betray her and she would be killed.

Okay,
Rosa. Don’t think about it. I’ll not get caught
.

Rosa looked at Lord Constantine. There
was one thing she still didn’t understand.

“
Why send the whole class
to Vancouver? I can go on my own to get the talisman.”

“
Excellent question,
Rosa,” he said and stood up. Rosa watched as he drew closer to her.
In less than a second, he was standing behind her. Rosa didn’t know
what she should do. She could feel him right behind her—this
powerful, menacing aura. Her heart began to beat faster. She wanted
to turn around, but Lord Constantine put his hands on her
shoulders, and prevented her. She felt his hands warm and heavy on
her shoulders. Her heart pounded against her chest.

Lord Constantine gave her a
fright.

She tried not to show it, as she
stared at the others with an expressionless face. Jelena squeezed
her knee.

Lord Constantine leaned forward so she
could feel his hot breath on her. It smelled like coffee and
cigarettes.

“
Rosa,” he whispered her
name threatening—she got goose bumps all over her entire
body.

“
I know that you have
saved the life of a Nephilim,” he said, so softly that only she
could hear it.

Rosa
froze. She didn
’
t
dare to breathe.
How can he know
that
?

“
And so
you have broken one of the most important hunter clan’s rules.”
Lord Constantine pressed his fingers into Rosa’s shoulders. Before
her eyes appeared the rule:
Never save
your enemy’s life. Kill it.

She had completely forgotten this
rule. Rosa gave herself an inner slap.

How could I forget the
rule?

“
And you know what that
means, right?” he whispered.

Rosa couldn’t breathe. Her body ached
from all the tension in her. She nodded slowly. It meant the death
penalty, because she had committed a betrayal.

“
You’re a good hunter, and
it would be a shame to lose you and your gift, so I forgive you.
But you will be punished anyway. I’ll let you know your
punishment.”

The pressure on Rosa’s shoulder became
stronger. It hurt a lot and she bit her lip.

“
But next time, if you
break the rule again, I will not be so generous. You will be
killed. Your gift cannot help a second time. I will kill you with
my own hands. I cannot stand for my hunters to betray me, breaking
my rules, Rosa.” She could hear the seriousness and the threat in
his voice. He let go of her shoulders.

“
And I expect results,” he
added and sat down. Rosa took a deep breath, but the tension did
not vanish.

“
Rosa, you can go now. And
I hope you hold onto my instructions,” she heard him say. She stood
up. Her legs felt like rubber. She was glad she had the
crutches.

“
Thank you, Lord
Constantine,” Rosa said, looking at him. He nodded and his eyes
flashed dangerously.

She said goodbye to Jelena and Sergei,
then she walked out of the room. Rosa walked as fast as she could
with her crutches outside. She stopped, standing beside a tree and
leaned against it.

How
could he know that she had saved Jason’s Life?
Who told him? And how will he punish me? And how could I have
forgotten this rule?

Rosa didn’t know the answers any of
these questions. She was tired and her leg hurt. She just wanted to
take a hot shower, and she wanted to talk, especially with Matt,
but she didn’t know if Matt would even talk to her. Rosa took her
crutches and walked to her car. She got in and drove
off.

Part 2

The Hunter

The pain woke her up. Her
back was on fire. Groaning, she sat up. Tears welled in her eyes,
rolling down her cheeks.

Her back hurt so
much!

When she straightened up,
she felt something soft under her.

She searched with her
hands, feeling around for anything.

A blanket!

They had really given her
a blanket.

She stroked the soft fur
of the blanket, rubbing her hand over it, and then laid down again.
She had not expected them to give her a blanket, but the light was
out and she was in complete darkness.

She pulled her knees up to
her chest, and wrapped her arms around her legs.