The Change (Unbounded)

by Teyla Branton

  “One day when I was thirty and thinking I would like to die, I found out I was pregnant again, and I began to hope.”

  Something in her expression told me that was a terrible thing.

  “I was careful not to anger him. I talked a lot about the son he’d have to carry on his name. I finally had the child— a beautiful little girl. I never knew I could love anyone so much. I did everything I could to keep her safe. I’d hide her at night when he’d come home, so he wouldn’t think about her. I’d make her stop crying before he could hear and become angry. But a man like that doesn’t need much provocation. One night he became upset because his pot roast had grown cold while he’d discussed a cow with the neighbor, and he beat us. My baby was dead at his first blow. For me it took much longer. I’d thought I’d known pain before, but I was wrong.

  “He left us both in the woods, but I wasn’t really dead. I could sense the life around me—in the earth, the air, the trees. I absorbed it all, pulled it all in. When I finally came to consciousness weeks later, I found the rotting corpse of my child lying next to me, and I knew it was time to make sure he’d never hurt another person again.”

  She paused, and I waited, wondering what she had done. I knew it had to be something horrible. I wanted it to be. Our eyes met with total understanding.

  “After I buried her, I staggered out of the woods and went to the house. Imagine his surprise when he saw me. I walked inside and started making a stew for dinner. I put herbs in it to make him sleep—probably enough to kill him—but to make sure, I burned down the house. It was while I watched it burn, that the man and woman came up to the house—Locke’s parents. They spoke to me with proper English accents, asking if I needed help. I was crazy with grief for my baby and told them what I had done. I hoped they would turn me in, and that I’d hang for my revenge. Stop the hurting.

  “Instead, they told me I was special and took me home. I didn’t believe them at first, but they were kind, and I needed to be cared for. I think I lost my mind for a time. Months. When the years went by and none of us aged, I finally understood what being Unbounded meant. That’s when I became an active part of the Renegades.”

  “That’s why you teach,” I said, softly so as not to break the bond that had sprung between us. “To enable women to defend themselves.”

  Her mouth curved in the slightest of smiles. “You understand.”

  “I do now.”

  “After a hundred years I found a mortal I trusted enough to marry. We had a child, your third great-grandmother. She was Unbounded like me, and one of her children was, too, but both of them eventually died at the hands of the Emporium, leaving my mortal granddaughter to carry on the bloodline.”

  So much loss. No wonder she was fixated on me. “What will happen to your studio here?”

  “I have an assistant who will continue on. Like in every other city we’ve been to.”

  “I’m glad.” I grabbed her hand. “Thank you for telling me. I’m sorry I’ve been such a pain.”

  She laughed. “You wouldn’t be my descendant if you weren’t tough.”

  “I don’t know about that. The last time I should have been tough, I ran away.”

  “You mean from law school, when that man you were dating refused to back up your claim that the professor had stolen your paper and published it under his own name.”

  I wasn’t surprised that she knew. “He betrayed me for a good grade and a recommendation. I regret every day that I wasn’t strong enough to fight back. That I let my hurt give me an excuse to quit.”

  “You learned an invaluable lesson, Erin. Some things you must fight for—even if you know there’s no way to win. Otherwise all you have left is regret. It’s a lesson you will never have to learn again.”

  We’d nearly finished our lemonade when the garage door swung open. Ava reached for her gun, and I went for one of the knives still strapped to my leg. I wished I hadn’t left my purse with my gun on the counter.

  “Relax,” Ritter said as he and Dimitri entered.

  Ritter wore a gun in a holster under his arm and had the usual machine gun slung over his army green T-shirt. He looked big and dark and dangerous—except for the potted plant he carried in both hands. As his eyes followed my hand to where it disappeared under my red dress, a smirk filled his face, and I knew he was recalling our workout this morning and my failed attempts with the knives. I eased the knife back into the sheath and smoothed down my dress.

  Ava stood to greet them. “I didn’t hear the car.”

  Dimitri smiled. “Must be the good company.”

  Ritter removed his machine gun and lowered it to the table before sitting down to the glass of lemonade Ava poured for him. His eyes didn’t leave me, and I could feel heat from him even across the table. Or was that coming from me?

  “Dimitri,” I said, coming to my feet. “How are you feeling?”

  “Better. Much better. Almost normal. Great stuff, that curequick, though it makes me jumpy afterwards.”

  “Tell me about it.” Maybe that’s what was wrong with me, an overdose of curequick. “I’ve wanted to thank you for the clothes,” I added, glancing down at the dress. “Everything fits well, and not a lot of men would think of accessories. The purses are very handy for my new gun.”

  He laughed. “You’re welcome. I have a lot of daughters and granddaughters, and I know what they like. It’s always a pleasure to dress a beautiful woman.”

  I smiled at the compliment, glad the feeling with the words didn’t set off the hormonal alarms I’d experienced with Ritter and Cort. “Thank you.”

  “I would have thought you’d find more pleasure in undressing a beautiful woman,” Ava said dryly. Her eyes flicked to mine as she added, “He is certainly an expert in the fairer sex.”

  “Except for one,” Dimitri said.

  Their gazes met and held for several long seconds before Ava stood and pocketed her gun. “I have to get to the warehouse.”

  “I’ll go with you.” Dimitri followed her to the door.

  “Guess you’re the babysitter now,” I said to Ritter when they were gone.

  “You don’t look much like a baby.” He leaned back in his chair and smiled up at me, which softened his expression. The light coming through the blinds lit his face well, and I noticed the slightest droop at the corner of his left eye. Not a wound that Unbounded genes would have fixed, but a feature programmed into his genetic makeup at birth. His black hair parted on the left side, the hair falling to the right, grazing a mole on his cheek, and already there was a shadow of growth on his face. “Red suits you,” he added.

  More heat, which this time might have reached my cheeks, but I kept my gaze steady as I poured myself more lemonade and sat across from him. “Thanks. That your plant?”

  He shrugged. “I like watching things grow.” He ran his finger slowly down the length of a leaf, still watching me. Almost, I felt the touch on my skin. “I wanted to tell you that you did well in training this morning.”

  “You’re a good teacher. Patient.”

  “Patient?” He arched a brow. “You don’t know me very well.”

  “Then you better get a new hobby. Plants take a long time to grow.”

  “Fortunately my main pastime doesn’t require patience.” No doubt he referred to killing Emporium Unbounded. His voice was harder now, but his eyes didn’t tell me anything about his feelings, as many people’s did. They were deep and dark and that was all. Yet that didn’t stop the compelling urge to move closer, to touch him as I had when he’d slept.

  “I thought I saw an Unbounded today,” I said, searching to break the spell. “Two actually. A man and a woman.”

  “Where?”

  “At a restaurant where Cort and I ate. My brother was there, too. They didn’t seem to notice us.”

  “It can’t be coincidence.” At last his eyes held emotion, a burning hatred, and I regretted my words.

  “That’s what I thought, but I was probably mistaken. Cort
didn’t think they were Unbounded. He didn’t recognize them.” Pressure was growing in my right temple and I brought my hand up to massage it.

  His head tilted to one side as he regarded me silently. “Was there anything specific about them that made you suspect they were Unbounded?”

  “Nothing I can pinpoint.”

  “Not the way they looked? Acted?”

  “The man was just sitting there, not even looking at us. She had her back to us, and I couldn’t see her face because she had so much hair. Not even when I walked by their table.”

  “Cort let you do that?”

  I narrowed my eyes. “He had no choice.” Now the pressure had spread to my other temple.

  “Okay, forget that. Why would you think they were Unbounded?”

  “I don’t know exactly. You and the others—you exude a kind of confidence. I can just tell you’re different. I felt it.”

  He stood, sweeping up his machine gun, his face becoming rigid. “Excuse me. I need to check in with my men.”

  I leapt to my feet. “What is it? What did I say?” I reached out to touch his arm, to slow his flight to the door, but he stepped away as though my fingers burned. The pressure in my temples built. Pain sparked from the center of the pressure, spreading across my skull and down the back of my neck. Brightness, and then I saw another flash of the headless dark-haired girl. She’d been wearing a blue dress. I bit my lip to prevent myself from crying out.

  More frightening thoughts whirled together in my mind, but only one rose to the surface: Ritter’s men were watching my parents and my brother and he wanted to check in with them.

  I stumbled after Ritter. “It’s my family, isn’t it? Do you think those Unbounded followed my brother to the restaurant and now that they’ve seen me my family is in danger?”

  “I won’t know anything until I check in with my men.”

  “Call them.”

  “I will. But I’m going over there, too, even if they answer. They might need backup.”

  Fear shuddered through me. “I’m going with you.”

  “No. You’re staying here.”

  “Maybe I can help.”

  He turned and put his hands on my shoulders, staring into my face. “You won’t be any help. Not yet. There’s a reason you aren’t any good at fighting, Erin. Believe me, we’d both know already if you had a talent for it.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “I can’t say anything more—Ava’ll have my head—but regardless, I’m not risking your life. You aren’t ready.”

  “It’s my family!” I yelled in his face. We glared at each other for several long seconds. More calmly I added, “If you leave me here, I’ll just follow you. Or go myself.”

  He was still for a moment, but any internal indecision was completely masked from me. I was going to have to practice that casual blankness for future use—if I lived through the night. At least the pressure in my head had vanished.

  “Okay,” he agreed finally. “But you do as I say. Obey every word.”

  “Sure,” I lied, knowing that when the time came I’d have to trust my own instincts. No way would I live with more regrets.

  “Bring your gun.”

  Inside the garage, he ushered me to a sturdy-looking Toyota Land Cruiser. “Call your family,” he said as he backed down the drive. “If they answer, tell them to be on the lookout.”

  “Okay.”

  He had his own phone out and was already dialing. No answer. He ended the call and pressed another number, scarcely glancing at the keypad as he sped down the street. “Report,” he barked at whoever answered. “Good. Stay alert. We have a possible Code E at primary.”

  On my phone, Jace didn’t answer. Neither did my mother or father. My breath came faster. My heartbeats thundered in my ears. For some reason I kept thinking of the dark-haired woman and all that blood.

  “Ava,” Ritter was saying into his phone. “Possible Code E at primary. Communication down. Backup to primary and secondary. Stat.” He paused. “She’s with me.”

  I was dialing Chris now. “Hello?”

  “It’s Blondie,” I said, hoping he’d remember the nickname, too. At seven years older, he’d left home long before I was in high school. “Look, don’t say anything. I need you to take Lorrie and the kids to a safe place. Get your gun and be careful.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “Please, Chris. Just do it. We’re coming to help.”

  “Okay.”

  I hung up. “Chris is all right,” I told Ritter.

  “My men there haven’t seen anything unusual, but there’s no answer from those at your parents’ house.”

  “It’s the Emporium, isn’t it?” My throat was closed with fear, and the words came with difficulty.

  Ritter’s face was tight as he stared at the road. “Probably. Tell me what the Unbounded at the restaurant looked like.”

  “The man had dark hair, going gray. He wore a gray suit, shirt open at the neck. His face was long, hard. Brown eyes, I think. No beard. Mid-fifties. He wore a big gold ring.”

  “Mid-fifties would put him at fifteen hundred years. Experienced. And the woman?”

  “Pale face. Lots of auburn hair, much darker than Laurence’s. More brown. I didn’t get a good look. She’s about my build, though.”

  “The hair could be a disguise. Maybe she was hiding from Cort.” He brought the Land Cruiser to a stop before the house in my neighborhood that sat directly behind my parents’ property. The streets were empty of children, and I knew it was dinnertime. Still, it was broad daylight. Who attacked in the daylight?

  People who believed they were above the law.

  “You stay here.” Ritter opened my purse and took out the handgun he’d given me earlier, fitting a silencer to the top. “Shoot anything that tries to get in.”

  “I can’t stay here. I’m too exposed. There’s a bunch of bushes in the back of my neighbor’s yard. That would be a better place to hide.”

  He nodded. Reaching inside his duffel, he pulled out a couple green shirts. “Put on one of these.” I chose the cleanest, pulling it on over my dress. The shirt was far too large, obscuring half the ruffled skirt of my red dress, but I knew that was the point.

  Ritter passed me an extra magazine for my gun, which I tucked into my bra.

  We kept to the line of bushes marking the side property line, running until we reached thicker shrubbery in the back. Together, we peered over the fence at the deceptively quiet house.

  He turned to me. “I’m going in. Don’t move from here. Got it?”

  “Got it.”

  “Good.” Still, he hesitated.

  We were standing close, almost touching. I started to step back, mistrusting the uncontrolled emotions that were bubbling up inside me, but he leaned into me, his powerful arms pulling me close enough that his machine gun jabbed into my chest. His lips came down on mine. Not a tentative kiss, but one that burst into full passion from the beginning touch. I could feel my response echoing through every nerve as my mouth opened to his. A rush of warmth, my skin tingling. His hands on my back trailed fire. We were both breathing hard when we pulled away.

  “What defense was that?” I challenged, my voice surprisingly steady despite the erratic pulsing of my veins.

  He shook his head. “No defense in the world for that. That’s the problem. But you never know when it might be your last chance.”

  He vaulted over the fence before I could reply. I sagged against the wood, trying to catch my breath. Trying to understand. Ritter both repulsed and attracted me, but for those few seconds, I’d lost myself in him. I hadn’t done that since college, not even with Tom. It scared me.

  I waited for the sound of bullets. I knew the Unbounded and those who worked for them had silencers, but if Jace had his army-issued handgun, or had managed to get to our father’s hunting rifle, the noise would echo throughout the entire neighborhood.

  Scooting behind the bushes, I found an old knot in the w
ood fence that I could see through. Ritter was scaling the back of my parents’ house, heading to the second floor on the opposite side from where my parents had their adjoined sitting room and bedroom. I wondered why he chose there.

  My heart tightened as gunfire burst like thunder through the silence of the neighborhood, spattering in rapid succession. Jace! I thought. More shots continued, slower now, but still coming one after the other.

  My mother’s scream pierced the air. Then everything fell silent.

  TEARS SLID DOWN MY CHEEKS. My pulse raced. I had to do something! I was practically immortal, yet here I hid while someone terrorized my family. What if Ritter couldn’t save them? What if he was killed or captured? I might not be as powerful as he was, but I had a gun and I knew how to shoot.

  I was standing before I realized it, kicking off my useless heels and climbing the neighbor’s tree. From there I stepped out onto the fence and jumped down into the safety of the bushes on our side of the fence.

  The yard was empty. Not even Max was out where he should be. I swallowed hard, but that did nothing for the lump of fear in my throat. I forced myself to run across the lawn to the flowerbed near the house. I was glad now that I’d neglected to trim the overgrown snowball bush. Ducking behind it, I took a deep breath, willing my nerves to be calm.

  Movement. I brought up my gun, hoping the silencer worked well enough not to alert anyone if I had to shoot. Carefully, I worked my way farther into the bushes. My foot hit something. I was about to step over it, when I saw what it was—a body. No, two bodies. Both lying at unnatural angles. One obviously had a broken neck; the other was missing half his face.

  I gasped, biting my lip to stop further reaction. I’d never seen the men before, but since they were dead and I hadn’t seen Ritter fire any shots outside, I bet they belonged to his mortal security team. Probably assigned to watch my family.

  “Come out,” said a voice I didn’t recognize.

  I didn’t move.

  “Shall I just shoot through the bushes?”

  Maybe that’s what I should do. But what if I shot one of Ritter’s men who could help my family? Slowly, I worked my way out, switching my gun to my left hand so I could keep it hidden until the last moment.