Changed (The Hunters #1) (41 page)

Tamara realized she had no chance. She
collapsed. Tears welled in her eyes.

She still could not believe Ren was
dead. Her first love was gone—dead, so easily.

“
You ask yourself surely
why all this is happening,” the man said. “We will explain
everything to you. Your mother will be with you.”

Tamara’s heart stopped beating. Her
mother? What did they want with her mother? She looked at him
questioningly, but he ignored her gaze.

“
Take her to the car,” he
ordered his men. He turned away, but then he stopped and faced
Tamara.

A smile appeared on his face. “I have
not even introduced myself. How rude. I am Sergei Petrova and I am
glad that I have found you, finally.”

Rosa stared at Jason in silence. She
was in a shitty situation. She knew she could no longer deny that
she was a hunter. It would be stupid for her to try.

But Rosa still was unwilling to admit
it. She bit her lower lip and looked away.

A hunter was obliged immediately to
kill those who had discovered the identity of the hunter, in order
to protect the hunter clan.

Rosa
would not kill Jason, before she knew what he wanted in Boston. In
addition, she
could not
kill him.

“
Ice Princess?” said
Jason, taking a step forward. “Don’t you want to
answer?”

“
Actually, I didn’t want
to tell you ever,” Rosa said at last, still not looking at
him.

“
I thought so.” Jason
exhaled deeply.

“
Why did you kill the
Nephilim?” he wanted to know

Now she looked at him. “Isn’t the
answer already obvious?”

He folded his arms across his chest.
“Just answer my question.”

“
And if not?”

He leaned forward menacingly. His
golden eyes flashed dangerously. “I will kill you.”

“
You only bluff,” Rosa
said, but she believed him.

“
For a hunter who is
caught, you have a pretty big mouth,” Jason said and took a step
back. “Aren’t you scared?”

She was scared! She just could not
show it.

Rosa looked at him directly. “No, I’m
not afraid,” she lied.

“
You’re lying,” he said.
His face was not so serious or dangerous. “This must be a pretty
stupid situation for you, isn’t it?”

Rosa’s eyes narrowed. “Are you making
fun of me?” She heard slight amusement in his voice.

Jason’s mouth twitched. “I’ve only
asked a question.”

“
Yeah, yeah.” Rosa didn’t
believe him. This was the perfect situation for Jason to make fun
of her. She would not argue with him, though. Her goal was to get
out of here and meet Ellen.

“
What time it is?” she
asked.

Jason looked at his watch. “Just
before two. Why?”

She ignored his question,
tugging at the ropes, scraping her skin. “Untie me,” Rosa
demanded.

Jason shook his head. “Not before we
talk.”

She glared at him with her healthy
eye. “I don’t want to talk with you. Untie me!”

Lord Constantine expected her to find
the talisman. She could not disappoint him again.

Jason bent down. His face was
expressionless.

“
Where are you going?” he
wanted to know.

“
Jason,” growled Rosa. She
had no time for his questions.

“
Ice Princess,” he replied
calmly.

Her face was only a few inches away
from his.

“
Jason,” she said with a
sudden calm. “I can list a hundred ways how I can kill you, and
that is with my hands tied. Will you please untie me
now?”

“
Why didn’t you just free
yourself, if you’re so good?” He arched an eyebrow
mockingly.

Rosa clicked her tongue. “I didn’t
want to shed blood.”

Jason laughed. “Since when is a
huntress interested in whether they shed blood or not?”

“
Just untie
me.”

For a few moments, they stared at one
another, each one waiting for the other to look away. Jason finally
broke eye contact. Sighing, he untied her hands.

When Rosa moved her hands, she moaned
in pain. Blood flowed over her wrists. She stood up.

“
Where am I?” she asked,
looking around the room. It consisted of a bed and a
closet.

Jason did not answer her, just stared
at her.

Again, she sighed. Jason wouldn’t
answer her, she was certain. She moved to the door. Hot pain shot
through her chest as she moved.

In this shape, Rosa would hardly find
the talisman. What would she do if she had to fight?

Without a last glance at Jason, she
left the room. Rosa felt Jason’s gaze on her back.

Don’t turn around, Rosa.
Don’t stop walking.

She walked slowly down the
stairs and stopped at the door. For the last time, she turned
around to see if Jason had followed her.

But he hadn’t.

Secretly, she had wished that he would
follow her, and tried to stop her.

What do you think, Rosa?
Of course, he didn’t follow you! Why should he? You haven’t even
thanked him for saving your life.

Rosa opened the door and stepped out
into the rain. With her head bowed, she walked through the streets.
Occasionally, cars drove by. The rain pattered on her face, making
her wounds burn.

Rosa saw a bus stop. Standing under
it, she pulled the map from her pocket and unfolded it. She had
seen a street sign that said she was on Gilford Street. On the map,
she searched for the street name. When she had found it, she ran
her finger over the map to Stanley Park. She wasn’t far away from
the park. She had to go to Nelson Street, straight
ahead.

Rosa folded the map neatly, and shoved
it in her pocket. She sighed before stepping back into the rain,
making her way to Beaver Lake.

After ten minutes of walking in the
rain, Rosa arrived. She was completely soaked, and panting heavily.
Her broken ribs hurt with every step. It was not a good idea to
search for the talisman in the shape she was in.

She was weak.

Get a
grip, Rosa! You are a hunter. Hunters fight even when they are
injured
.

But she was also a human. She shook
her head. She had to act like a fighter, not like a
human.

The rain increased with every minute
that passed. Rosa went through a small path between the trees. A
small shadow loomed in the distance.

Ellen.

Rosa automatically accelerated her
steps, but the closer she got to Ellen, the harder and slower her
steps became.

Her legs didn’t want to
carry her to Ellen, and to the task ahead. They wanted to go back,
leaving everything behind.

She had killed her first Nephilim, and
thus became a full member, but she could not bring herself to be
happy about it. The negative events in her life overpowered the
positive.

“
Ellen,” Rosa said
quietly, stopping behind her.

Ellen winced and turned around. She
blinked several times.

“
Rosa?” she asked,
surprised.

Rosa forced a half-hearted smile. “The
one and only.”

“
What happened to your
face?”

Instinctively, Rosa touched her face.
“I was mugged on the way.”

“
Oh God! Are you okay?”
Ellen looked at her with concern.

“
Yes, I’m fine. Thank
you.”

“
What are you doing here?”
Ellen asked. The concern made room for skepticism.

Rosa tilted her head slightly, waiting
for Ellen to understand it.

Then she understood.

Ellen’s eyes widened. “You
... you’re the hunter,” she gasped, putting her hand to her mouth.
Rosa nodded slowly.

“
Oh my God! I never
suspected. I have always known you were different, with your red
hair and the black clothes. I thought you were Goth, but I guess
I’ve been wrong,” Ellen babbled away without hesitation.

Rosa smiled. “You’re not the only one
who thinks I’m a Goth.”

Ellen nodded. “But I didn’t think you
were a huntress.” She looked at Rosa in amazement.

“
You know we have to keep
our identities secret,” Rosa said

“
But now you’ve told me,”
Ellen interjected.

“
That’s right. I’m
commanded to tell you that I’m in the hunter clan.” And that I had
killed Madison.

Ellen pushed her wet hair from her
face. “They had told me you wanted to tell me
something.”

How could she tell Ellen? How do you
tell somebody you’ve killed their best friend?

Rosa ran her hand through her wet
hair. Ellen looked at her expectantly.

She
gritted her teeth. “Ellen,” Rosa began carefully. “I’m a hunter and
we ... sometimes kill people, who aren’t human anymore.”
Oh, shit! What kind if a beginning was
this?

Rosa cleared her throat. “So, what I
mean is that I ...”

Yes, now
say it, Rosa
. Ellen looked at
her.

“
Damn,” Rosa cursed and
bit her lip.

She took a deep breath and said, “I
killed Madison.” The words came so fast from her mouth she didn’t
even understand them.

Apparently, though, Ellen
had understood them clearly, because her eyes widened as she
stepped back. Pure horror and shock were written on her
face.

“
You ... you’ve killed
M-Madison?” Ellen gasped the words, and laid her hand over her
mouth.

I hate Lord Constantine. I
hate him. I hate him.

Rosa couldn’t look at
Ellen, because she was too ashamed.

“
You monster!” Ellen
shouted. Rosa winced and when she looked at Ellen, Ellen’s eyes
flashed with anger. “You killed her! How could you?”

“
I had to do it!” Rosa
said desperately. “She was sucking the soul out of someone! I
couldn’t allow it!” She looked helplessly at Ellen, begging her to
understand.

Ellen shook her head. “You didn’t need
to kill her.” The look she gave Rosa was full of hatred. “You
really are a monster.”

Ellen’s
words hurt.
Killing a shadow being didn’t
make her a monster, right? The hunter clan had told her repeatedly
she did the right thing when she killed a shadow
creature.

Now, as Rosa was standing in front of
Ellen, she wasn’t sure anymore if she had really done the right
thing, or if the views of the hunter clan were right.

“
Let’s get it over with,”
said Ellen, and marched into the lake.

“
What are you doing?” Rose
asked, confused.

“
Guess what.” Ellen didn’t
look at her. “We’re getting the talisman.”

“
But why—”