2

~Faye

I quickly made my way back to my room to change. For whatever reason, mother hates it when I wear pants - apparently it's not formal enough. 

So I wear them around her out of unsung protest. 

She spends all her time in bed, so it's straight to  her room for me. It's not her fault she's ill, and we haven't yet found a cure just yet. It gives her a good reason to push me around though, since I have no heart to protest against my sickly mother, who everyone conspires will die soon. 

Her Guards hardly acknowledge me as I knock on her door. That man who was supposed to bring me here did a horrible job of doing so. He left me at my room and that was that. Oh well, I'm here now. 

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 gauzy curtains closed, 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. I see the moment of distress in her milky eyes as she notices my outfit choice. 

“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 to ensure I remain straight in my Alpha role can get rather ridiculous sometimes. 

“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 on her shoulder. She keeps her hair pinned back out of her face, neat and tidy. The one flaw to this, is her pale, swallow skin is revealed, her sunken eyes that have lost that brilliant green colour on complete show. 

“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, making sure she isn't about to stress them to the point where they break. 

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 my room...that liar. 

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. 

Casting my gaze down to the floor, I curse the Goddess internally. It would be just my luck to be paired with this man, this damned lying prick. 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.”

Mother sighed, seeing this coming, clearly. 

“We have had 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. This is for your best interest. You cannot leave your Pack without an Alpha,” she says sternly, and I clench my jaw. 

Damn, she has a point. An infuriatingly good point that every fiber of my Independence wants to disprove. 

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

“And you're positive he's the right choice?” I question my mother, planning 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 Guard when I was sixteen, and was hired by your father as his personal guard when you were only four 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 action right to my face. 

I stand my stance though. I don't punish, I don't endorse. 

“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. 

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 a feel for who I would be protecting first.”

That makes sense. I'm being proven wrong a lot today. 

“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 change if you're not too annoying.”

“I do have to be with you at all times, but I'm sure we can make some compromises.”

My mouth remains closed. I'm not about to mention to him how much he made that sound like some dysfunctional relationship. It's not as if I know very much about that. By the sounds of it, I'll be spending more time with this Huntsman than I will be with any other male. The idea of that has me a little nervous. 

“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?”

***

It was raining that night. 

Cal had 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. 

Once I had bathed and changed into my bed closed and slid into bed. Cal hasn't been the biggest nuisance so far, but the novelty will surely wear off. 

I slept for awhile, but I woke around midnight. As per usual. 

The forest isn't an option tonight, considering the heaviness of the rainfall outside. The moment I open that window, Cal 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. 

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 is wide open, rain from outside hitting the floor indoors. 

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 cold. 

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 back. Him and I both will fight this intruder. 

When I burst back into my room, I'm shocked into silence but another shadow on my bed. He wears dark closes, 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 my bed light that is always on. Another knife lies on his other leg. That one has a jagged blade, and is as dark as night. 

I'm dead.