Changed (The Hunters #1) (9 page)

“
Rosa,
they
’
re your
enemies, not mine.”

It shocked her to hear what Matt was
thinking. Rosa had thought that her enemies would be also his
enemies, but apparently, it was not that way.

“
You’re right, Matt, my
enemies aren’t yours. You can like them,” she said
dryly.

“
Are you offended?” he
asked, frowning.

She shook her head. “No, of course,
not.”

The mischievous smile appeared on his
face. “Good. I don’t want to let anything come between our
friendship.”

After school, Matt and Rosa made their
way home. They had said goodbye to Jason and Philip. Rosa took out
her car keys and opened her car. It was a black BMW 1
Series—another gift from the hunter clan.

“
Man, Rosa. I would like
be in the hunter clan, too. They pay for your house and give you a
car. This is so cool!” he said, while getting in the
car.

Rosa
smiled and climbed in the car. “Yes, it
’
d be cool if there wouldn’t be the
reward of killing the shadow creatures.”

“
Why don’t you leave the
hunter clan?” Matt wanted to know.

Rosa started the car and drove it out
of the parking lot. She said nothing for a while.

“
Rosa,” Matt said
slowly.

“
I cannot, Matt,” Rosa
replied as they passed a truck.

“
Just because your uncle
is the leader, doesn’t mean you have to be there.”

“
That has nothing to do
with this, Matt.”

He looked at her now. “What is the
matter then?”

Rosa focused on the road. “There are
things you don’t know, Matt.”

Matt threw his hands in the air. “Here
we go again! Why do you always close up when it comes to you? You
never really tell me anything about you. Actually, I don’t know
anything about you.”

She did not want to have this
conversation. Matt knew what had happened to her dad and that she
was a hunter, but that was all. Rosa didn’t tell him anything else,
and it would stay like that.

“
Matt,” she said quietly,
and gave him a sidelong glance. He frowned, which meant that he was
angry and worried.

“
You know something about
me. You know what I like to eat and drink. You know my favorite
color, and my taste in music; you know what I like and what I don’t
like. You know what had happened to my father. That is a lot about
me, Matt.”

“
Yes, I know, but I don’t
know anything about your family, beside your father. I just know
that you have an uncle and come from Russia. That is it. I don’t
know anything about your mother.”

“
There is nothing to know.
I did not know my mother because she disappeared before I had the
chance to meet her. My uncle raised and trained me. I don’t have
siblings. So are you happy now?” Rosa asked angrily.

She could feel Matt’s gaze on her.
Then she felt his warm hand on her arm.

“
Rosa, I’m sorry,” he said
softly. “I didn’t want to bother you.”

She sighed deeply. “It’s
okay.”

“
I know how it is to grow
up without parents.”

She looked at him. He looked at her
with so much sadness it nearly broke her heart. He had lost his
parents and saw them die. Ten years ago, a crazy serial killer made
the streets of the Boston unsafe. Rosa remembered those times.
People were afraid and did not dare to leave their houses at night.
The serial killer targeted families.

He had
creep into their houses at night and murder them brutally.
He
’d
tie up the
parents and the children and kill the parents before the children’s
eyes. Then he
’d
leave the children with the corpses of moms and dads as he
escaped out the back door.

He was the same serial
killer who had visited Matt’s family in the dead of night. He had
tied them up on a chair and began his perverse games. Matt had to
watch as the serial killer raped his mother first and then murdered
her. Then the serial killer sliced his father’s throat.

With his dead parents in the room,
Matt had been left tied up for several hours. Rosa found him when
she visited. She brought him to the hospital and never left his
side. She stayed with him through it all.

This event created such a bond between
them.

Matt got over the brutal death of his
parents, but there were days when the pictures caught him and
paralyzed him. On those days, he was not this happy, strong young
man; he was a weak and sad little child that longed for his
parents. Rosa was always there for him if he had such a day. She
comforted him and cared about him.

Matt lived with a foster family for
eight years. They had come to care about him, allowing him to feel
comfortable and happy with his life—but they never could fill the
hole that the death of his parents had left. Nevertheless, he was
happy to have them.

“
Matt, let’s talk about
something else,” Rosa tried to distract him.

“
Which college are you
going to now?” she asked, passing another truck.

“
Ah yes, I totally forgot
to tell you,” Matt said, smiling broadly.

“
What?”

“
Oxford has accepted me,”
he said proudly.

“
Really? This is so great,
Matt! Congratulations. I’m happy for you.” And she was, really. It
was his childhood dream to go to Oxford. He deserved it.

“
Wow, you’ll go to the
best university in Europe. You nerd,” Rosa said.

“
And you’ll kick the ass
of these creatures,” Matt replied.

Rosa threw him a glance. “That means
that you will go away, doesn’t it?”

Matt’s face darkened. “I didn’t think
about that,” he muttered.

They were never apart for more than a
week, but now it would be several years. Coach Michael was right. A
new life was coming.

“
I wish you wouldn’t go,”
Rosa said and sighed deeply.

“
Yes, me too,” Matt agreed
to her.

Rosa pulled in to Matt’s driveway.
“Well, here we are.” she said, looking at Matt. He frowned,
pressing his lips into a thin line.

“
Rosa, I hate you for
reminding me that I must leave you for Oxford,” he
grumbled.

Rosa took his hands. “Matt, please
don’t think like that. I am sorry I said it. It was stupid of me.
Please don’t feel bad. This is a unique opportunity for you. You
will use it and become an awesome doctor.”

After Matt had seen his parents die,
he had decided to become a doctor and help people, and now he had
the chance to make this dream come true at one of the best
universities.

Matt put his hand on Rosa’s cheek.
“You’re so incredible, Rosa. I am lucky to have you as my friend.
“

“
I know,” she
joked.

Matt leaned forward. His eyes fixed on
hers; she suddenly felt her heart begin to pound when Matt’s lips
came close to hers.

What is happening right
now?

Before Matt’s lips touched hers, she
flinched. She did not want to kiss Matt.

“
Matt, don’t. Please,”
Rosa said.

Matt looked at her disappointed and
hurt, but nodded.

“
Okay. I
am sorry. I don
’
t
want to push you. Thanks for the ride,” he said in a strained
voice.

Matt took his bag and got
out. He waved one last time at Rosa and then disappeared in the
house. Rosa pulled the car out of the driveway and drove toward the
academy.

The entire drive, she was thinking
about Matt. Thinking about how close he had come to kissing her.
She suspected Matt might be in love with her.

If she
was honest, she didn
’
t want him to be in love with her. Love would destroy their
friendship, and that was something she did not want. Rosa didn’t
want to put their friendship at risk.

That
wasn
’
t all,
though. Members of the hunter clan weren’t allowed to have
relationships with enemies, or people outside the clan. They were
obliged to marry another hunter and beget children for the hunter
clan.

The life of a hunter had been planned
since birth—even Rosa’s life.

For this reason, she did not look for
a boyfriend, because the relationship would not have a
future.

Sighing, Rosa parked her car in front
of the Academy. She threw the thought of Matt and the kiss and got
out of the car.

The academy was a large
building. The structure was made of stones and went up five stories
high. Three of these floors were dedicated for student housing. The
paved road was clean and wound its way to the front garden. Shaded
by large trees, many varieties of flowers grew from the ground. The
garden led to the front entrance where a giant, iron door reflected
Rosa’s image back to her in the afternoon sun.

Rosa walked on the paved path to the
door. It was a warm June day. The flowers were blooming, and the
birds were singing. She could hear the fountain, which stood in the
rear area of the garden.

She opened the iron door,
greeted by a soothing chill. The lobby was huge. Black marble tiles
covered the floor, as sunlight poured through the large windows
that stretched from floor to ceiling. Two large staircases led to
the first floor.

Nobody was in the lobby as it was
training time. The training classes for the Hunter clan were tough,
demanding, long, and painful. Rosa was glad to have everything
behind her. She walked up the stairs to the third floor, where her
uncle, the leader, had his room located.

She walked along the dark passage to
the end and then knocked at the door. After a small “come in”
echoed from the other side of the door, Rosa turned the knob and
went inside.

Her uncle was sitting in his usual
chair at a desk, deep in his paperwork. He turned around as Rosa
entered the room. As always, he wore a suit. He rose to his feet
and smiled when he saw Rosa, an action that was very rare for
him.

“
There’s my lovely niece,”
he said, and hugged her. He only treated her like this when they
were alone.

“
Hello, Uncle Sergei,” she
said, smiling.

He stepped out of her arms and looked
at her with his big black eyes.

“
Well, the injuries aren’t
that bad. How is your chest?” he asked as he went back to his
seat.

“
Pretty good,” Rosa
answered, and sat down on the chair next to his.

Sergei folded his arms across his
chest. “Well, Rosa. Why are you here?”

Rosa
took a deep breath. Sergei wouldn
’
t be happy about what she was going
to say.

“
Um ... Uncle Sergei. When
I came to school today, I saw two Nephilim,” she told him. His face
showed no emotion. “They are in my class.”