The Change (Unbounded) (39 page)

I sighed. “Then if he’s really dead, he died for nothing.”

“He died helping you get free.”

I nodded, but my feelings for him were ambivalent. One moment I was furious at him, and the next I understood and almost agreed with his reasoning.

Chris’s voice came over the intercom. “Okay, everyone, we’ve been cleared to land. Please return your chairs into an upright position and put on your safety belts.”

“We’d better wake the kids.” I stood, waiting for Ava to move into the aisle so I could pass. “Where are Ritter and Marco?”

“In the cockpit. Apparently Chris is giving them a flying lesson.” Ava hesitated and I could tell there was more she wanted to say. I inclined my head expectantly.

“It’s only fair to warn you,” she said with the air of someone discharging an unpleasant duty. “Ritter doesn’t stick around much. He trains us and comes when we need him for a job, but besides that he keeps to himself. Sometimes he’ll disappear for months at a time. We keep training without him when he’s gone because we know when he gets back he’ll torture us with extra workouts if we don’t keep in shape.”

“Why don’t you say what you mean?” Surely we’d moved past the need for cryptic statements. “Why should Ritter’s habits mean anything to me?”

“I’ve sensed what you feel around him, Erin. I just want you to be careful. You’re vulnerable, especially after what happened to Tom.”

A burst of agony shot through me at the mention of Tom’s name. Ava blinked, and I knew she’d felt it. I clamped down on my emotions.

She placed a hand on my shoulder. “We are not like regular mortals. You are no longer the same. There are no casual relationships, no unplanned rolls in the hay, not when an act of intimacy may create life that you must own and take responsibility for. That changes everything.”

“The end of the sexual revolution,” I said dryly. “I knew there had to be a drawback to near immortality.” That and a bloodthirsty bunch of control freaks out to use me as a breeder in their plan to rule the world. “Thank you for the warning, Ava. Don’t worry. I’m not looking for anything from Ritter.”

“Good.”

She’d started into the aisle when my next words stopped her. “But you did say it yourself—he always comes back.”

Our eyes met, and she shook her head slowly. “Not worth it. Don’t go there.”

There were all kinds of memories and pain in her eyes. I knew she was right.

We woke the children and tightened their safety belts. I sat between them, while Ava buckled into the row behind us.

Chris’s voice came over the intercom. “Okay, we’re going to land in about one minute, but Ritter wanted me to tell you some good news. He says he’s picked up Stella’s transmitter. And Gaven’s, too.”

Ava closed her eyes, relief etched on her face.

“It could mean anything,” I said, remembering my own transmitter fiasco.

“Yes,” she agreed, “but this time let’s believe something’s going our way for a change.”

W
E SAT IN THE RENTAL
car in a grocery store parking lot near the airport, staring at the screen that showed Stella and Gaven’s tracking devices. They weren’t moving or answering their cell phones. The surviving Renegades in New York hadn’t heard from either of them, and we were all becoming worried.

“Our friends will be here soon, and we’ll learn what they’ve planned for the meeting,” Ava said. “Unfortunately, with Shaddock and most of the technopaths gone, we really need Stella. She’s the only one left who can put together a full copy of the program we were to trade.”

“What about the group from Italy?” I asked.

“Their technopath might be capable, if we can get Stella’s hard drive, but Halden doesn’t know her. He’ll be suspicious with so many strangers.”

“Let’s split up.” Ritter sat next to me in the back, the solid line of his arms touching mine as we leaned over the seat to study the dots that were Stella and Gaven. “You take Marco in case you need him.” He gestured with his chin to the monitor. “I’ll scout out this place and see what we’re up against. Erin can come with me.”

Ava didn’t hide her surprise. “Are you sure?”

“No,” he said, irritation seeping into his voice. “I still think she should have gone to the hotel with Chris, but since she’s here, I might need her to sense something from whoever is still at the scene. She’ll be safe enough because she’ll be waiting in the car.” His eyes narrowed as he made that last point.

Hopping between time zones had worn me down, and I was too tired to protest. That Ritter had glanced uncertainly in my direction as he spoke would have to be enough satisfaction for the moment.

“We’ll need to be better armed,” Ritter added.

“Tenika should have supplies. Look, there they are now.”

A sleek black sedan rolled into the parking lot, which at 2:00 AM local time was deserted. I experienced a tremor of fear when two heavily armed Unbounded came toward us, but Ava and Ritter didn’t seem concerned. The foremost was a tall, slender black woman with an array of tiny braids in her long hair. She wore faded jeans and a navy tank top. The woman looked somewhere in her late thirties, which would mean she was around four hundred years old, give or take a century. Her companion was a vaguely familiar Asian man with hair so short it must have been shaved recently. He was about my own age and only slightly taller. Dressed in black, he moved with the sinewy grace of an acrobat, strength masked in grace. Talented in combat, no doubt.

The man touched Ritter’s outstretched fist with his own and bowed. From Ritter’s expression I could tell he considered the man a respected ally, if not a friend. Ava and the woman shared a hug, and then Ava offered her fist to the man, who promptly kissed it. Ava smiled and leaned forward to touch her lips to his cheek. The woman ignored Ritter’s outstretched hand and planted a firm kiss on his mouth. At his lack of a response, she tapped the semiautomatic rifle he wore slung over his neck and laughed. “Still the same old Ritter, I see.” She spoke with a slight accent I couldn’t place.

“This is my granddaughter, Erin Radkey,” Ava said, her hand on my shoulder. “And Marco Collins, who works for us. Erin, Marco, this is Tenika Vasco and Li Yuan-Xin. We call him Yuan-Xin.” In my mind, she added,
Normally, he’d be called Li, but that’s too similar to his famous name. You might know him as Bruce. Yes, he is who you think he is. Both he and his son are Renegades. The shaved head and this lesser-known name help mask his identity.

My eyes widened. She couldn’t be talking about the martial arts icon who had died young before I’d been born. Maybe that explained the rumors that still surrounded his death. Yuan-Xin winked at me.

Tenika touched her closed fist to Marco’s, inclining her head. Then she offered her fist to me, and I returned the gesture. “It is good to meet you, Erin,” she said. “Ava has been waiting a long time for a descendant to Change. I’m sorry we meet under such terrible circumstances.”

“So am I.” I returned her nod and then touched fists with Yuan-Xin, feeling slightly relieved when he bowed but didn’t kiss my hand.

“How was the call to Halden?” Ava asked.

Tenika’s gaze shifted back to Ava. “He wanted time to think about moving the exchange, but I’m expecting a call from him any minute. We should go. Will you drive with us or follow in your car?”

“We’ll come with you. Erin and Ritter are tracking Stella in this car. They’ll need weapons, though.”

Tenika’s eyes roamed over me and Ritter. I tried to sense what she was feeling but received nothing. “Yuan-Xin, take Ritter and let him choose what they need.”

Yuan-Xin and Ritter crossed to the trunk of the sedan and returned within minutes, Ritter carrying several additional guns and full magazines. “We’ll check in as soon as we know anything,” he promised.

“We’ll do the same.” Ava glanced at me, as if she wanted to say something. Instead, she touched my arm, and a wave of well-wishes flooded my senses. I sent back the same to her and watched as she followed Tenika to the sedan.

“Let’s go,” Ritter said.

I watched Stella’s dot on the monitor grow larger as we approached her location. The GPS on the device gave us clear directions where to turn, so there was no navigation involved for me. I had plenty of time to study Ritter’s profile, lit periodically by passing cars. His hair had grown in the past week, now covering the mole on his right cheek. His face could have been carved in granite for all the expression he wore, and not a hint of emotion peeked through his mental shield.

Within twenty minutes we pulled in front of a ramshackle hotel. Ritter’s frown increased. “Stella would never be here of her own accord, and this isn’t the Emporium’s style.”

“You think Hunters took them?”

Ritter’s jaw tightened. “Probably.”

“You shouldn’t go in then. You’re in their files. They’ll recognize you.”

“I’ll be careful.” He was already checking the guns and shoving in magazines. He placed a handgun on my lap. “Try not to lose it like that last one I gave you.”

I made a face at him. “I think I should go in and talk to the guy at the desk. He might have useful information.”

Ritter’s hand fell still, and I knew he was considering my suggestion. If he was any kind of a leader, he’d see the value of using my talent, however untried.

“Okay,” he said finally. “But only the lobby. See what you can learn, and I’ll meet you back here in a few minutes. Meanwhile, I’m going to check the layout.”

“What if someone sees you?”

“No one will see me if I don’t want them to.”

I had to admire his confidence. On the other hand, I was already having second thoughts about my part. What if I did something to get us both killed? I shoved my uncertainties to the back of my mind because I owed it to Stella to try. If we didn’t free her, she was as good as dead in the hands of the Hunters.

Unless they were working for an Emporium operative, and then her fate could be even worse. The more I thought about that, the more worried I became. Why would the Hunters show up now? And here? It was just too coincidental. Yet if the Emporium was behind Stella’s capture, why wasn’t she already in their hands?

Maybe she was and this was a trap.

I fought down my panic. “Is there anything I can carry this gun in?”

His eyes roamed over the snug pantsuit that I’d now been wearing for far too long. Unidentifiable stains marred the smooth fabric, which sported tiny rips from the shattered glass when we’d made our escape. I probably smelled like I hadn’t taken a bath in a week.

“Take this.” He emptied the remains of his duffel onto the rear seat and handed it to me. “It’ll look natural going into a motel. Leave the zipper open enough for your hand, just in case.”

“Okay.” I took a deep breath and left the car.

My fear was so strong that I had to force myself to open the door to the motel lobby. My only comfort was that I really couldn’t see Stefan or Justine at such a dump. After years of wealthy living, they’d become accustomed to opulence. That meant they were probably far from this place—and from me.

The night clerk lifted bleary eyes and watched me walk toward the desk. The man had beautiful dark skin and hair as black as Ritter’s, though it was sleek and shiny and lay flat on his skull. He was a slight man, handsome, with striking, soulful eyes. If I had to guess, I’d say he was from India.

The lobby was tiny, so it didn’t take much time to reach him. “Yes,” he asked in heavily accented English. “You like a room?”

“I think so. But I’m looking for a friend of mine who might be here. She’s slender, long dark hair. She may be with a thin black man, and maybe some others.”

“Part Asian woman? Very beautiful?”

“That’s her.” I could see her face in his mind.

“She drove here in a van with maybe four men. Two of them left later in the vehicle. But she did not come inside, and I saw no black man. However, one man said you will come asking for the woman.”

“Me?”

“Yes.” His eyes traveled the length of my body. “He says you are thin and have very short blond hair. He wants me to call when you come. Shall I do this?”

I thought rapidly. If they were waiting for me, this was definitely a trap. I had to warn Ritter.

“I think I’ll—”

“There he is now.” The clerk’s eyes went to the door behind me.

I slipped my hand inside the duffel, fingers tightening on the handle of my gun.

“The lady you talk about is here,” the clerk called to the man.

“Oh good.” The voice was very young, very American.

I turned slowly and saw a stolid, sandy-haired man with a thick neck and a red face. A mortal, but strong enough to break me in two pieces. Or three. He wore tight blue jeans with cowboy boots and a blue and white snap shirt that reminded me of a rodeo costume. His hair was longish, but fell flat around his face as though in need of a good washing. Obviously there was no woman in his life.

“Are you Erin?” he asked.

The pounding of my heart increased as my eyes riveted on the pocket of his shirt. The tiny embroidered insignia of a man with a rifle. He was a Hunter.

My hand tightened on the gun.