Sebastian sighed as he assessed the damage to the roof of his stable. It had been in need of repairs for several years, but the heavy rain and sleet from the night before had taken out a whole section of the roof. A sheet would have to do for now, and he'd ask his neighbor if they could host his two steeds for the time being.

He looked at the two horses, as different as night and day. Orion, tall, strong with a thick mane and coat as dark as midnight. A warrior's horse. One that had ridden through battlefields, among the sounds of firing canons and shooting bullets. And then there was Daisy, much smaller than Orion, prone to fits of stubbornness, and entirely too fond of sugar cubes. And yet the two were entirely inseparable.

An apt analogy it seemed.

"My life would be easier if I could just make you into stew," he muttered as he saddled Daisy. She gave an annoyed snort and kicked her hind legs in protest. "You'll do me no good frozen, Daisy."

A few drops of ice-cold water fell on his head through the leaking roof and he sighed.

He'd have to send someone into town to get supplies, he didn't want to go himself yet, the townspeople were still wary of the outsider with his honey-hued skin and scars marring his face. Though now that he had perpetuated the tale of being a war veteran, he had found himself much more warmly greeted. Some of his neighbors had even come over to say hello and make his acquaintance, but the rest of the town needed more time to acclimate. To see that he was not a terrifying stranger, rather just a man trying to make his home in their isolated little town.

Rough, rapid barking jerked him from his assessment of the roof, and a second later the large bodies of two of his wolfhounds entered through the door. Their bodies were stiff with anger, they were barking to get his attention. Sebastian felt his heartbeat fasten, his body going into what he referred to as his battle state. He felt twitchy with restless energy, his blood pumping through his veins urging him to do something. His awareness of every sight and sound felt heightened and he felt like ten times the fool for leaving his guns back at the fucking cottage.

Oh, God. Please let her be safe.

As he approached his home, he noticed another horse tied near the well, grazing on the still-wet grass. He forced himself to take a deep breath. He had to remain calm and in control of the situation. He knew that there was a chance that someone from his old life might find him, he knew that the Widow's help could only extend so far, but he had hoped he'd have some more time to make arrangements.

He entered through the kitchen door, and his heart froze in his chest when he saw The Phantom sitting at the table in the kitchen, talking casually to a young woman.

"Who do we have here?" He asked her, striving for calmness as she beamed at him in greeting. The warmth of her smile did nothing to melt the icy shards of terror that were piercing his heart. "And where is Hades?"

His other two dogs trotted in, diligently putting themselves between The Phantom and the woman.

"Ah, this is Mr. Carlisle, a lawyer from Edinburgh. He's passing through town in order to meet with a client further east. His steed took a stumble in the mud down the road and he hurt himself- a small sprain nothing more, but we're waiting for the Physician to come by and check. Isn't it fortunate that I was on my walk with Mum and I found him! Mr. Carlisle, this is my husband- Sebastian. And as for Hades, he was barking up such a racket that I had to lock him upstairs!"

The Phantom's eyebrow went up in surprise, an expression that his sweet little wife caught, coming to his defense immediately.

"Sebastian served on The Continent, he is a veteran," she said in her typical sweet manner, but there was no mistaking the reproach there. She thought The Phantom was making a face at his scars and the color of his skin.

"Of course," The Phantom replied politely, his accent an excellent imitation of one heard in Edinburgh. "Edward Carlisle, a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Thank you for your valor and bravery, if it weren't for people like you, we'd all be speaking French right now. And my attempt at French is best left unheard."

Sebastian wanted to roll his eyes, The Phantom's French was good enough to fool a native. It was how he'd survived those weeks of capture in Belgium, in fact. As he stood up to offer Sebastian a handshake, he made sure to discreetly flash his pistol. Seb's grip tightened on The Phantom's hand to a painful degree.

He would never let The Phantom lay a finger on Sophie's head. He would never endanger her. Nor the life she carried.

"Must not be easy to travel such distances and leave your family behind." Seb mused casually, motioning for the other man to take a seat. "These are dangerous times. In the city, they have no care if one is a pauper or a lord, anything can happen to anyone."

"Strange times, you used to be able to trust strangers in the country, but it's getting to be as bad as London," The Phantom replied coolly, a threat for a threat. "Family is a precious thing indeed. Something to be guarded closely."

"Angel, do you suppose you could pop by to see Margret?" Seb mentioned their neighbor. "I think she's having trouble feeding the new babe. Her husband said as much when I ran into him."

A lie, but anything to get her out of The Phantom's clutches."

"Oh, you should have said so sooner! I'll go as soon as the tea is finished brewing. Could you see that mum takes her supper while I'm away? She's napping right now, but she didn't have anything for lunch."

"Of course," Seb obliged her with a kiss when she leaned in close, very aware of The Phantom's scrutiny. "I'll get the tea, why don't you go on ahead? I am sure Margret is beside herself."

It was still something Seb was becoming accustomed to, this urge to look prioritize someone other than himself, The Collective, or his mission. This urge to put himself in harm's way for the sake of another. And it wasn't just Sophie and his babe that grew in her womb-he even gave a fuck about his neighbor and her fucking baby. He'd actually stopped by to give them milk! Without Sophie having to prompt him to do it!

Only once Sophie was gone did he feel his body relax.

"It wasn't you," The Phantom said finally. "You've really been in Scotland this whole time. Fuck, you've got a wife. You've got a wife?"

"That personification of giggling is your wife." Judgement oozed from The Phantom's statement.

"And what about it?" Sebastian snapped, bristling, able to afford the emotion now that he felt more confident that The Phantom likely would not harm his family if he saw that Seb was not the man he sought. The Phantom cut him a disbelieving look. "It just....happened."

"The midwife and the assassin? She looks like a fucking fairy godmother from a children's tale, and you, a villain from a gothic novel. An unlikely pairing if there ever was one. Though, I suppose I know a thing or two about those," he sighed. "So if it wasn't you, why did you take the fall?"

"I'll make you a deal, Carlisle," Seb sat back, leaning against his chair. "I'll tell you everything you want to know......if you go back and tell everyone you killed me."

"I'll tell you a story," The Viper began after they had hashed out terms and he had fetched a bottle of whiskey. "And I'm sure you're smart enough to put the pieces together."

To say that Raphael had been baffled when he had arrived at the small cottage on a farm northeast of Fort William only to find the house occupied by a plump, sweet-looking woman and her elderly mother was an understatement. His bafflement only increased when he spoke with some locals and found out that she had recently wed a reclusive veteran. There were many things Rafe had expected to see when he had finally found The Viper, but this had not been it.

Rafe would have found the situation absolutely fucking hilarious- if it didn't mean he hadn't missed a vital piece of information along the way. He'd known that Alexandria hadn't fit in with the rest of the information. It was like assembling a jigsaw, the entire thing came together except for one piece that was the wrong shape for the final slot.

It meant that you'd put the puzzle together incorrectly, not that one ought to disregard the final piece.

Fuck.

He'd erred badly somewhere along the way. He was just as bad of a liability as he had accused his superior of being.

"There was once a man who had everything. A loving wife, who bore him two sons. A rising career within the War Office. More money than a man could spend in a lifetime. And then, it all went up in smoke. First, the man's younger son fell ill. He watched his son waste away day after day until the boy finally took his final breath. His wife fell into a deep melancholia, his other son grew into an angry young man who was mad at the world....And he threw himself into his work to escape the chasm of grief that awaited him at home at all times. He traveled the world, saw battles unimaginable, brought his country victory at several vital moments in the war. Unbeknown to him, his living son decided to take all that righteous anger and dedicate it to a cause- the army. England's salvation. The defense of his homeland."

"Oh, my God," Rafe whispered in horror. He was going to be sick.

"He refused his father's attempts to have him posted away from the frontlines, he was an honorable young man, you see, and thought himself a good soldier who didn't need Papa to watch over him. He wanted to forge his own path, rise in the ranks by his own merit. And he would have.....if his command hadn't been given to one Felix Benjamin."

Rafe downed his drink with a tremble in his hands.

Oh, God. Oh, God.

"You're lying," Rafe spat, reaching for his pistol. He withdrew it, pointing it at his opponent who looked unfazed.

It couldn't be true. It couldn't be. The Viper had to be lying. He had to be.

"And then, Alexandria happened. And the boy's father was devastated. But it wasn't over for him just yet. He didn't even have a day to contend with that loss when he found himself burying his wife. She'd taken his pistol after her learning about her son and had blown her brains out in their bedroom."

Rafe dropped the pistol and began to run his hand through his hair. It felt as though his entire world was unraveling.

You can't trust The Collective.

And who was the very core of The Collective?

Fuck.

The pieces were rearranging themselves, and Rafe could not stomach the picture they were making.

"So, the man decided that he was going to destroy Felix. Make sure he died in the most humiliating way possible. Only he couldn't, because Felix Benjamin was guarded by two men who superseded even this man of incredible influence. The man had only two things left in his life: his career and his organization. Going after Benjamin risked everything. His only reasons for living anymore. And so he waited. Bided his time. Lo and behold, an opportunity for revenge at last. He would set up Benjamin to be ambushed by the French. Have him killed in battle, at the hands of the enemy. He comes away clean, Benjamin's incompetency becomes news for anyone significant enough in the army. He would get rid of the man who killed his son and destroy his legacy in one fell swoop. What did it matter if he had to sacrifice a pawn to achieve that? Napoleon was desperate, the French on their last legs, Benjamin's death would not have swayed that outcome."

"Thomas was meant to be captured. My God," Rafe said in a hoarse voice. "He was meant to break under their torture and give The French the information about the attack we had planned on their unit. My God."

"But then you went in and rescued him before he could give them what they needed. And so, Benjamin still walks among us."

"It can't be. It can't. He's been helping me every step of the way. If he wanted suspicion away from him why wouldn't he jump at the opportunity to put the blame on you? Why would you take the fall for him? Why would he let you go?"

"If he blamed me from the get-go, without any proof, wouldn't that have roused your suspicions? If he took you for your word, wouldn't that have made you look at him more closely? The answer to the rest of your questions is the same, I suppose. We all like to think we are without weakness or humanity, but it's not true. You are fallible, as am I. Loyalty and love are things we are capable of still, as much as we like to think otherwise. I took the fall for him because I owe that man everything. I care for him, for what he has done for me. And he sent The Widow to me knowing that she would set me free."

"Then why are you betraying him now, after all you've done to keep his secret?"

"Because even he does not compare to my wife. My first and only loyalty is to her from now on. I don't care who I have to kill or betray to keep her safe. I would make any sacrifice, commit any evil to keep that smile on her face. I cannot risk someone from my old living finding me, and so you need to convince them all that I am dead. And I warn you now, Phantom, that if any harm comes to her because of you, I will hunt you down and make you watch as I end your woman's life."

"I'd like to see you fucking try," Rafe snarled, leaping to his feet, hoping that The Viper would give him a reason to plant him a facer. Rafe might feel marginally better if he could hit something.

"I was better than you when I had nothing to live for," The Viper replied with condescension. "You don't want to try me now that I have something to fight for."

And with that, Rafe knew in his very bones that The Viper was not trying to fool him. The Major was responsible for what had happened to Thomas. And what had happened to him. The pieces had all fallen into place.

And he had left his family alone, with most of The Major's men guarding them.

He needed to get back to Carlisle. Now.