TWO

~Faye

My mother's Guards hardly acknowledge me as I knock on her door.

Without waiting for confirmation, I walk into the room, closing the door behind me firmly, so mother would hear me come in. What I hate most about her room is that I can smell the sickness, since she never opens a window to avoid getting a chill. She keeps her net curtains pulled around her bed, which do a brilliant job at keeping the sun out. Only a full lamp on her bedside table gives me sight, as the light illuminates her set of pills on the surface of the wood. 

She leans her head up off her pillow as I walk in. In this light, the milky sheen over her dark eyes is painfully obvious.

“Good morning, mother,” I say, not bothering to mention the note. How she had the strength to write that doesn't surprise me. The extent she goes to in order to ensure my role as Alpha is stuck to is frightening.

“You're late,” she notices, glancing at the small clock propped on her little table. 

I ignore that statement, moving to sit on the edge of the bed. It sinks under my weight - she likes it soft for her back. Luckily she's bathed already, and her servants had her bedsheets washed while she did so. My mother likes to keep herself groomed, even with death at her door. She keeps her hair pinned back out of her face, neat and tidy. The one flaw to this is her pale, swallow skin being revealed, her sunken eyes that have lost their passion

“I suppose I'm meeting the Huntsman today,” I grumble, running my hand against the ridges of her waffle-duvet cover. “The one I never asked for.”

“You're hopeless at asking for help, Faye,” Mother protests, hauling her frail body up to sitting position, leaning back against her headboard. I monitor her brittle arms, knowing that it's her leg that has been injured, but the rest of her body has suffered for it.

Suddenly, the door opens, and someone steps in. 

My eyes widen at the intruder. It's the man from earlier, the one who escorted me to this room. I thought he had walked away, and for a moment, that's all that confuses me. Then it dawns on me, why he is here, who he is...

He seems to notice my expression, those sultry eyes gleaming as he wanders in, hands tucked behind his back out of respect. I should have known. As an Alpha, I shouldn't have passed his lies off, and suspected my mother would put him up to something like that. Already, I can't stand his presence. 

“Ah, Faye, meet your new personal guard, Cal,” mother introduces, as the man comes to stand in front of the bed. I keep still in where I sit, my eyes twitching as I have to physically stop myself from narrowing my eyes on him. 

He focuses his gaze on mother. “Thank you for calling. It's an honour to serve an Alpha once again.”

My mouth almost falls open at that. Seriously? 

“My husband much appreciated you those few years okay. My, have you grown to be a rather handsome man,” mother compliments. Cal nods slowly, his expression not reacting to her admiration, likely hearing that often. I no longer have any kind words for him.

Casting my gaze down to the floor, I curse the Goddess under my breath. It would be just my luck to be paired with this man, who already had the audacity to lie to me. I decide to voice my protests to my mother. 

“In all due respect to Cal,” I say firmly, looking from the Huntsman to my mother, “But I can look after myself. I don't need someone on my heels at all times, I already have two Guards.”

“We have word that Alpha Kael has released a new faction of Silent’s, each trained and ready to kill you. Who knows when they will strike, so until then, you will have Cal with you at every waking hour possible. This is for your best interest. You cannot leave your Pack without an Alpha,” she says sternly, and I clench my jaw. 

I know she has a point. An infuriatingly good point that every fibre of my independence wants to disprove. Perhaps I could take down a few Silent's, but not an entire group of them.

“It would be my pleasure to protect you with my life, Alpha,” Cal says warmly. I ignore him. 

“And you're positive he's the right choice?” I question my mother, placing my hand on her calf under the blanket. “I mean, he's a Huntsman, a Bounty Hunter. He's meant to hunt and kill, not protect.”

Cal clears his threat, and I reluctantly drag my gaze back to him, as he says, “I trained as a Guard when I was sixteen, and was hired by your father as his personal guard when you were only a few years younger than me. Once I lost my job, I became a vigilante of sorts, before I took on a local job as a Huntsman for an Estate owner.”

I take a moment to drink that in. He's broken the law. He must have. When I glance at my mother for a reaction, she doesn't make one; she trusts this man. As the Alpha, I'm not used to having people admit their unlawful actions right to my face. 

I stand my ground, though. I don't punish, but I don't endorse bad actions.

“He starts work today, Faye. You can't possibly be against this. I promise things will go back to normal once we sort things out with Kael,” mother insists. Even as she says that, I know she is hesitant in assuring me of that promise. Relations with Kael are uneasy at the moment.

She takes a moment to sip her water, after she starts coughing wildly. I stand swiftly, knowing she's talked enough for today. 

“For now, I'll accept this,” I say, biting the edge of my lip. “Good day, mother.”

The moment Cal and I step outside, I begin questioning him. 

“Why lie about who you were to me? You came and watched me sing, which was rude, by the way, then, you disregarded my protests and refused to tell me your name. I was moments away from finding out who your were anyway, yet you decided lying to your Alpha's face was a better idea,” I say in one breath. 

His expression doesn't change, but he does seem thoughtful for a moment. “I knew you wouldn't tell me anything if you found out who I was. I wanted to get a better feel for who I would be protecting first.”

I release a long breath, deciding there's little merit to continue arguing about this.

“I'm still not sure how I feel about you yet,” I tell him honestly, giving him a sideways glance. “But I'm willing to give you a chance if you learn to respect me...Only for my mother, and because it's the responsible thing to do for my Pack."

“I already respect you immensely, Faye," he murmurs. "If you're going to trust anything, trust that."

“Well, you probably already know it's time for me to eat lunch now, considering you know my daily schedule,” I say flatly, and he nods affirmatively. 

“Of course,” he replies. “Shall we?”

***

Tonight, the rain has rolled in, accompanied by the livid growl of thunder.

Cal has set up right next to my room, a door separating us. He lectured me before I was able to close the door that I would call once, and he would hear, if I was in distress. I only nodded sardonically and closed the door on his face once he was done with his speech. I'm already anxious with the constraints put in place.

Once I've bathed and changed into my bed clothes, I slide into bed, considering my future with Cal as my personal guard. We have clashed already, although I hope eventually we will come to an understanding.

I sleep for awhile, but I wake around midnight. As per usual. 

The forest isn't an option tonight, considering the heaviness of the rainfall outside, and the fact that Cal lingers next door. The moment I open that window, he will hear. He's warned me he's a light sleeper, which I don't doubt, considering his past. 

Since my stomach is protesting about the small dinner I had, I'm going to wander down to the kitchen to grab a snack. This isn't uncommon for me, either.

I make it to the stairs before I stop. 

The landing gives me full access to look over at the front door. Guards spend most nights taking shifts to protect it each night. Tonight though, things are shockingly different, the front door wide open, rain from outside billowing in, gathering in a puddle on the floor.

Fine hairs on the back of my neck and on my arms stand right up. 

Slowly, I back up a few steps, before I scold myself. My Guards are nowhere, but I'm the Alpha. Naturally, I'm stronger than the average person. But a Silent, who trains against their Alpha as practice? Trying to be brave and sensible at the same time, I decide to move further down the landing to see through the door, but not get close. If I don't see anything, I'll wake Cal. 

My hand stays on the banister, sliding along it while I move. I can't tell if I'm trembling from the draft, of from the fear.

When I look through the threshold, I almost scream. 

Two of my Guards are lying dead on the ground outside, their blood entwining in the puddles by the entrance. Above them, is a shadow of a figure, their dark glove running across the blade of their knife, cleaning the blood away. It's a Silent, I can tell. 

I don't breathe, as I back up, before I turn and make my way quickly back to my room. My hand is still over my mouth, as hurry back, ready to wake Cal as soon as I'm in my room. Him and I both will fight this intruder. 

When I burst back into my room, I'm shocked into silence by another shadow on my bed. He wears dark clothing, a piece of cloth covering his nose and mouth, eyes hidden behind a mussed veil of dark hair. I can't tell if he's looking at me, as his finger comes up in front of his mouth. 

He's silencing me. A Silent is. 

My uneasy gaze finds the knife on his thigh, simply lying there as a heavy threat. The blade is straight cut and glints in the light of the moon which struggles to beam through my window. Another knife lies on his other leg. That one has a jagged blade, and is as dark as night. 

I'm dead.