Sara had always loved the forest, it was like a second home the first being her cottage of course. She could hear the crunch of the leaves underneath her feet, the tweeting of the birds as they flapped their wings, the wind whistling among the trees. Though the weather was rather hot, she could still smell the humid air.

The tall trees branched up high above her to form a sort of canopy blocking the harsh rays of the sun.

Cece followed quietly behind her, her soft paws gently stepping on the fallen brown leaves. She was surprisingly calm for a cat who had not fed since the night before, Sara noticed some berries growing on a small bush, she bent and plucked out some sharing between herself and Cece who didn't waste anytime to eat them.

The snapping of a twig caught her attention, she raised her head up from the bushes and the sight she saw pleased her immensely, it seemed they were going to have a feast that night if she succeeded in killing it.

The deer grazed on a patch of grass oblivious to her presence. She quickly slid the bow off her neck then took an arrow from her bag, quietly with her eyes still on the deer, she placed the arrow on the bow and drew, aiming for the neck.

A loud hiss from Cece got her startled, making her lower her bow, the cat kept clawing at the ground. Sara sighed and turned to the deer but it was no longer there, it seemed it was also startled by her hiss. "Damn it Cece, seriously!" The cat meowed looking her in a way that would have been an eye roll if she were human. You sassy little thing.

She cursed inwardly, she had never caught a deer, it either got spooked or something momentarily distracted her, is this your doing almighty god of the forest.

"I guess we're going to have rabbits again." She said to Cece looking around for any rabbits or squirrels.

Sara eventually caught a rabbit after a while, the little thing had tried in vain to wiggle out of her hands before she stabbed it killing it instantly. She felt bad for the little thing but she had to eat.

Sara held the rabbit on the legs and started the walk back to her home, her cat followed faithfully behind her. Beads of sweat lined her forehead and her arms were weary, she envisioned bathing in the lake behind her cottage, she couldn't wait to get home. She wondered if Alexander listened to her and left, but knowing him that was unlikely, his visit meant something, something she wasn't sure she wanted to get involved with.

****
The wooden steps leading to her cottage were old and rickety, the walls were cracked and the doors were barely hanging on to its hinges, the chimney was not better looking. She smiled, her cottage was in a bad condition but it was home.

She opened the door and entered, Cece chose to lay on the steps, she did odd things at times. She wasn't surprised to see Alexander there, he was really predictable.

"I was sure I made it clear I wanted you to leave." He was seated calmly like he had been waiting for her, something was bothering him, something that made him visit.

"Well I couldn't just leave you alone, I wanted to spend some time with you." He smiled but she didn't think it was a real smile, she knew him well, more than she liked.

"Cut the crap and leave." She dropped the dead rabbit on the table along with her bag and weapons. Her heart skipped a beat at his words but she knew it was hopeless.

"I see you caught a rabbit." He pointed to the dead animal. When she didn't answer him, he sighed and stood up. "The brotherhood sent me to get you."

She raised an eyebrow, when was the last time she heard that name, oh right, the day they tossed her and her pleas aside because of some stupid non-existent rule. When it came to the brotherhood nothing was ever good.

"I'm not interested in the brotherhood." She replied nonchalantly.

"Sara please, just hear me out." There was a desperation in his voice she couldn't understand, what was so serious that they had to send him all the way here?

"I'll give you two minutes, no more." It wouldn't hurt to hear what he had to say.

Alexander visibly relaxed, he folded his hands behind his back, his mere presence commanded authority, she was only able to punch him because of the element of surprise in her favour. "Ummm... How to put this. There has been multiple killings in Silva and the culprit is unknown." What the hell?

"For the past three months a total of fifteen people have been killed, their bodies dumped at the town square." He continued stiffly.

"That is unfortunate, surely the guild can take care of that." The brotherhood had the largest spy network across Silva and other neighbouring kingdoms, finding a murder culprit shouldn't be so difficult right? What the hell is going on in Silva.

"It's more complicated than that, the thing is all the victims had their hearts removed but then what made things more odd was..their lips were stitched shut." He sighed heavily, she could see it put a huge burden on him.

Sara had never heard anything like this and she had heard a lot of crazy things in her life, murder was a common thing, there was always a deranged person who found joy in killing people, but this was another level. Why remove their hearts and stitch their lips? She wondered if-

"Don't you think it's time for the brotherhood to come out in the open and work with the royal family?" The brotherhood was well known but no one knew its members, it was for their safety. But then if there was a sick killer on the loose, it was necessary for them to work together.

Alexander flinched at the mention of the royal family, "Sara, we suspect a member of the royal family is the killer." Sara was shocked, how dare they blame a member of the royal family? Yes, the royal family of Silva had flaws but they were not killers. Did they also suspect her? Was that what Alexander meant by getting her?

"We have a reason for suspecting your family, Sara." He continued hastily seeing the look of outrage on her face.

"What exactly could be the reason for your outrageous claim?" She asked taking a seat at the rear end of the table. She decided to ignore him calling them her family, technically they were but it didn't matter anyway.

"I can't tell you that, not until you agree to come with me back to Silva. We need your help." Alexander came close to her holding her hands in his.

"What would I do that the other members can't? This makes no sense."

"You have easy access to the royal family and the palace." He said seriously, she knew where he was headed with that.

Alexander was right though, since they suspected the royal family, she was the only one connected to the brotherhood that had access to the royal household. Ha, of course they would only call her because she was their last option. She was curious though, what exactly made the guild suspect the royal family of Silva for the murders?

Her curiosity didn't matter though, she wasn't going back to Silva but she decided to play along with Alexander for now. "What about you, if my memory serves me right, you are a member of the royal guard." She said trying to deflect. Cece had come in to the room, Sara picked her up stroking her fur softly.

"Yes but not a ward of the king and second cousin to the princes. You are still a princess and Silva is still your kingdom, they are your people and they live in constant fear everyday not knowing who will be the next target." She withdrew her hands from his and chuckled softly. Her kingdom? Her people?

"So if I understand you, the brotherhood wants me to leave the peacefulness of my cottage, come back to Silva and play princess while trying to solve a murder case." She stood up with Cece in her hands.

"Well, if you put it li-"

"No, I'm sorry but I won't do it. Tell the brotherhood to find someone else, I am not going back to Silva." She paused seeing the disappointment in his face but she didn't care, maybe she would have if she had something to protect but she didn't. "I suggest you leave before nightfall, it gets rather dark and scary here, even for a guard." She said giving him a small smile, she had entertained him long enough.

"What if I tell you, your mother is connected to the killings."

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Duh duh duh

Cliffhanger... Alexander dropped a huge one there, that guy.

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