Rook's eye's cracked open with a grunt, his pulse quickened slightly, expecting someone to jump upon him, trying to plunge a blade through him, and unsurprisingly no one did as such, eventually his heart rate subsided he decided to rise from the odd smelling cushions he slept on and prepare for the day ahead. By the level of light that streamed in from the filthy and dusty windows, it had to be… fuck it, who cares what time it was, or so Rook thought, it was early enough for peggies to be prowling about, and it was most certainly early enough that Clark, Tammy and the rest up and about, trying their best to stay alive. He wanted to know how the Whitetails and Rookists were faring, he needed an update, he wanted to call Pratt and find out what had transpired in his absence via his walkie, but to do that, he wanted privacy, he didn't want Clark's boisterous voice disturbing the exiled Seed, so he intended to take it outside.
With another grunt Rook began to drag his feet towards the undisturbed door to the outside world, not before looking down at Faith's sleeping form that still rested on the same ratty cushions, her complexion had just about cleared, it was hard to tell she had spent her night screaming and crying, Rook understood why she was in such a state, she was covered in the blood of someone she killed, but he couldn't help but suspect there was more to that, Faith wasn't that weak, she had countless miles on her soul, murder wouldn't break her like that, he made it a point to get to the bottom of it, it pulled upon his heart strings to she her in such an abhorrent state, and a change of clothes would be an excellent idea, the blood that was splattered upon her last night had dried and hardened into a thick dark red hue, it almost looked like she was wearing a red shirt there was so much blood on her, but he'd just have to deal with that when she woke up, just like every other problem he had.
As he opened the door to the camper, he was hit with a stiff cool breeze, and as he stepped down into the tall grass, he could feel the cold, cold dew that coated each blade, these were the signs of a large temperature drop, it wouldn't be long until autumn came now, that would have greatly worried Rook as he was unsure just how long he had been in this borderline hellscape, fighting countless faceless foes, but as of right now, that concerned him not, instead he unholstered his beat-up walkie and tired to hail his allies far, far away.
"Hey Pratt, you there? come in" Rook ordered.
Silence then engulfed Rook for a few moments, which infuriated Rook slightly as he knew Pratt wasn't doing anything important, he was much to spineless to keep pace with the Whitetails, but after a few moments Pratt finally picked up.
"Oh uh, hey Ben, uh, what's up, you finished doing your thing yet, when are you coming back?" Pratt's voice came, as nervous as ever.
"I'm not going to be back for a while, I'm calling to find out how's it looking on your guy's side of things" Rook asked.
"Oh, oh, ok!" Pratt replied, there was a lit in his voice as if he were perking up.
"We, we, we came across some of your friends out here, one eh uh, Hurk and Sharky, I told them of Jacob's plan and they ran off somewhere to inform her Aunt so she could tell a bunch of other people, they said she'll go back to the valley to let everyone know what's going" Pratt informed Rook.
"And how's recruitment in the mountains?" Rook asked, silently pumped that he was going to the Holland Valley resistance was going to be joining the fight relatively soon, so long Adelaide didn't get distracted.
"We got tons of people coming out of the woodwork lookin' to join up, news is spreading of Jacob's firebombing" Pratt added, his still as nervous as ever.
"Holy shit, no way, your joking, right? There's no way there are that many willing or even living people still in our region" Rook nearly chuckled before getting serious again.
Pratt was then silent for a few beats.
Why would I lie to you Ben? We're friends, aren't we?" Pratt asked.
"I don't really remember you being terribly courteous back at the station, you always kind have been kind of a prick" Rook retorted curtly.
Again, Pratt was silent for a few beats.
"Who knows, maybe by the time this is all over you and me can… hash out our problems with one another, I mean… I know we'll have more once we're finished" Pratt
"What's that supposed to mean?" Rook said rudely, he really didn't like the implications of that statement
For a third time, Pratt went silent for a few beats.
"Hey sorry I gotta let you go… a bunch of new recruits just rolled in… I gotta help train them… yeah" Pratt said intermittently as if deciphering a near unreadable text.
"Hey, wait, hold on a second!" Rook quickly cried, not wanting Pratt to leave, he wanted more information, he wanted to know what Tammy was doing? what was Clark doing?
But it was to late, Pratt was gone, leaving Rook alone in the cold new day, making him sigh in frustration once again, he was getting real sick and tired of this bullshit, just once he wished things went entirely his way, just once. He rolled his jaw around, trying to put together a game plan, having Hurk and Sharky on board was a double edged sword, they were quite adept with the tools they worked with, far more then anyone else, but at the same time, it was Sharky and Hurk, they were a the most accident prone pair he had ever met, how would they mesh with the Rookists and Whitetails? No matter the situation, it would be very dangerous.
"Ben, is everything ok?" Faith's voice came from behind.
His breath catching in his throat and rage dissipating, he turned back to the camper to see that Faith was leaning against the camper's open door frame, sleepy-eyed and slouching.
"What's going on?" she asked, rubbing a single eye.
"Nothing… just… I'm just checking in on my friends" Rook tried to say calmly.
"It's very cold out here" Faith shivered, after softly examining Rook.
"Your right, let's head back inside for now" Rook nodded before moving to return inside with the woman.
As both man and woman entered the camper, closing the door behind them, Rook felt a chill go down his back, it was almost as cold in her then it was out there. and despite the small space within the small camper, Faith, who's arms were still wrapped tightly around herself, turned around and looked up at the Junior Deputy that hovered over her, trying to make do with the space they were afforded.
"I don't really remember much of last night, but I do remember you staying next to me to keep us warm… it is quite cold even inside… if it's alright with you… do you think we could resume that to stay warm..?" Faith asked embarrassed, a splash of red streaking her cheeks as she couldn't help but look away from him as she asked.
"Uh yeah, sure, I don't see why not" Rook said nervously, feeling some heat spread across his face, she was right they needed warmth and he wasn't going to start a fire, the smoke would draw unwanted attention.
As faith awkwardly nodded in agreement, still not meeting his gaze, Rook staggered around the small woman and positioned himself back at the couch bench before laying back down on the couch, his back sinking into the worn cushions and staring up at the wilted roof, it wasn't long until the golden streaks that was Faith's hair entered his view as she carefully crawled on top of him and rotated so she could practically lay on top of him, also looking up to the roof with him, him nearly spooning her as he wrapping his arms around her waist.
They both lay there for a few minutes, both unsure what to say while in such a compromising position, both to shy to speak, after everything they had endure this past month, intimacy seemed foreign.
"This is nice" Faith finally spoke up, her voice softer than before.
Rook only a hum of agreement in response, he felt a little distracted, her hair was draped across his face, despite the blood and sweat that coated her, she still smelled quite nice, her hair smelled like strawberries, that and the ever present light musk of Bliss, he wasn't sure which scent it was, but it made him feel funny.
"Am I hurting you at all?" Faith asked nervously.
"Naah I'm all good, I'm tougher than you think" Rook replied gently, getting comfortable with the weight being pressed upon him.
"Indeed, you are" Faith responded with a small smile on her face.
And then they fell into a silence again, this time it was a comfortable one, for some reason both seemed more relaxed, more comfortable with each other.
"So, do you want to talk about it?" Rook finally asked, upon doing so, he could feel her heart rate pick up.
"Talk about what?" Faith replied, snuggling into the large heat source that was Rook.
He could tell she was trying to avoid the subject, he didn't blame her, but this wasn't the way to dealing with trauma, her freak out would happen again, in even more serious scenarios.
"You know" Rook said quietly, pressing the issue.
"I… I…" faith began to mutter, trying her best to find the right words as her eyes fell down cast, or as much as they could while laying down.
"It's ok… I won't hurt you" Rook said just as gently, slowly removing a hand from her waist and placed it atop her hand.
"I… I made mistake after mistake in a life before this one, and it led to a large mistake that resulted in someone dying, it didn't matter if he was a decent man or not, my actions, my poor choice got another killed, and now… my inaction almost got you killed and got blood on my hands, I put down someone who trusted in me and my family's judgment and leadership" Faith said, as she spoke, he could feel her begin to shake slightly as her voice quavered.
"What you did was what you had to do, if not for you, I'd be dead, and then you would have been killed… ok killing sucks, even if they tried to kill you first, but you did it to save a life, and that's what I want you to focus on, I want you to try to focus on the good you do more then the bad, when I kill, I think about I'm removing a threat innocent civilians won't have to bloody their hands with, and the threat can't hurt them" Rook offered.
"But I don't know how too, I can't just shirk off the bad and focus on the good, I can't ignore the responsibility of my actions" Faith retorted.
"To be honest, neither can I" Rook sighed.
"I came here to arrest Joseph and that's it, no bloodshed, no fighting, just a quick in and out, and when things went wrong, I had to fight, even then I tried to be nonlethal, but my unwillingness to go for the kill just got people hurt, I feel the weight of everyone I lost, every friend, every ally, even the peggies cut me, regardless of their beliefs, they are still mothers, father's, brother's, sister's, son's and daughter's, they are people, and I'm murdering them, as much as I don't want to, I have to do it, and when this is all over, I will try to find atonement for my sins, and I can only hope I get forgiveness eventually" Rook spoke, his voice sound raw and cut, like uncooked meat.
"How do you do it? how do you keep marching forward undauntingly, trying your best as bodies fall from both sides of this terrible war?" Faith asked, tilting her head up slightly, trying to look at the man she laid upon.
"If I stand by and do nothing, everyone will die, I need to try to mitigate it even if it's by one life, that's why I'm pushing so hard to stop Jacob's firebombing, I'll do whatever it takes, even if it means being the bad guy" Rook swallowed, feeling his chest shake within.
"I don't think you're a bad guy" Faith nearly whispered as she moved again, tucking her head under his chin.
"It doesn't matter if I'm the bad guy or not, I have to keep everyone safe, no one else will" Rook said assuredly.
"I just… don't know what to do anymore" Faith sighed dejectedly.
"There is so much cruelty going on up here, far more then I believed, Jacob is tearing the Mountains and it's people apart, and the Father is doing nothing about it, John was not a good man, I know that, and I ashamedly looked away from it believing the Father was helping him, John came from many broken homes, but Jacob, Jacob was a decent man, highly decorated and welcomed by all those who had seen overseas conflict, I felt safe around him, and now… I don't feel safe anywhere" She went on
"I know this won't mean much now, but don't worry if you don't know what to do, you'll figure it out, if you can go through what you have and still come out all smiles and love, you'll do just fine" Rook offered.
Faith did not respond this time, she was merely silent for a few moments before a light giggle escaped her.
"Your optimism is oddly refreshing, everyone I worked with is doom and gloom all the time, everyone feared the end of the world as if it were coming the next day" she replied.
"That's because Joseph fear mongered everyone who could hear his voice, he got them at their weakest and made them do whatever he wanted, this was his grand plan" Rook theorized.
"If you're indeed telling the truth, what could the Father possibly gain from all this slaughter and hardship?" Faith asked.
"Who knows" Rook shrugged.
"Money, the power to make the masses do anything he says, maybe he's just a sociopath, or maybe he just wants to martyr himself and leave his mark on the world, this is arguably one of the worst things to happen on American soil, what he has done will be in the history books, that's for sure" he offered in conjecture.
"If he is to be as Jacob or you imply then I don't know if I can continue to go on, he gave me everything I have, even my very life, I don't know if I can handle the man I worship is a complete lie" Faith said, her voice wavering.
But then she cleared her throat and shook her head, she could feel the tears come on once more, but she did her best to fight it back, she had cried enough already, especially in front of Ben, she couldn't bare for him to think she useless too. With an unsteadily built conviction, she wanted to push forward and rise as Faith instead of falling and cowering in weakness as Rachael once again.
"But what I do know is that I believe I'm in need of a bath, I'm lousy with blood, sweat and other such filth" Faith said, clearing her voice and trying to sound confident.
"Well… how do you want to do that, I mean, it's not like there's a bath house around here, this camper doesn't have one" Rook asked warily.
"Surely there is a lake or a pond around here, the great lake in the Henbane stretches out into rivers that run all over the county, becoming ponds every now and again" Faith explained.
"But I mean, your fine with bathing in the middle of nowhere, during a state of emergency" Rook said, just as wary as before.
"Benjamin, I would really like to wash myself, I must get this blood and grime off me" Faith replied in a more serious tone, she was dead set on her goals.
"Well alright, if that's what you wanna do, I can't really say no" Rook offered.
"I would like to get it over with sooner then later" Faith said with a grunt she rose off of Rook and stood up.
She wandered over to the small closest built into the camper's wall and began rummaging around until she found pants and a shirt more to her liking, she found jeans and a simple shirt that fit her better then the cultist garments that were fit for a man, sure they were just as tattered and aged as her previous clothes, but there was not blood, sweat or other suspicious fluids staining them, meaning they were usable in Faith's current situation. She carefully folded them up and tucked them under her arm before signalling to her friend she was ready to disembark.
Rook wasn't exactly sure where a lake was, or any rivers for that matter, he wasn't as adept in navigation like he was in the Holland Valley, but he was sure a big lake was around here, and after a little wandering, a few concerned comments from Faith and a whole lot of walking, Rook finally found what he was looking, it was a little lake with trees encircled it, no roads or signs of life could be seen through the dense population of trees, it was probably as safe as it was going to get all things considered.
"My, this is quite lovely actually" Faith said, admiring the view before her.
"Yeah uh, I hope this is good enough, I don't really see anything that would make this place unsafe" Rook stated, focusing on safety rather then beauty.
"Oh, this will do just fine" faith smiled, eyeing the long river that connected to the lake.
"Alright, you uh, go do what you need to" Rook replied.
"Of course, so if you would be so kind Benjamin, would you kindly advert your eyes so the lady can undress" Faith asked nervously as she glanced over at Rook who still watched her.
"Oh uh, right, of course, sorry" Rook said quickly as he just as quickly turned around, facing away from the woman.
Almost as soon he turned away, he could begin to hear the rustling of clothes which made him blush slightly, he didn't know how to react to an attractive young woman undressing completely right behind him.
Then something changed in the corner of his vision, reflex made him look at it, down and the right, practically at next to his feet, it was Faith's leather jacket and pants were neatly folded and place next to him, her boots nearby, the bloodied yellow shirt nowhere to be seen, next to them was the clothes she intended to change into. Seeing her clothes made his heart rate spike, he was not prepared for this for some reason, just like the cuddling for warmth, this whole notion felt very alien to him. And then he could hear the disruption of water, a nonverbal signal she had entered the water, and then after a few more moments, Faith spoke up.
"If you would like to turn around, it is safe to do so" her voice came from the distance.
With a deep breath, Rook turned around, despite a part of him telling him not too as he honestly didn't know what to expect, but when he did, he saw Faith, meters deep so that only her head stuck out of the water, her floating, soaked hair separating and spreading out along the ripples her movements made, like a golden spider web, thankfully the water was much to murky for anyone to see below the water line.
"The water is quite cold" Faith called with slightly chattering teeth.
"Ok you do what you gotta, I'll keep an eye out for anything suspicious" Rook said quickly, turning around again, he did not wish to stare at the naked girl bathing.
To keep his mind off what was happening behind him, he scanned the his horizon for anything bad looking, but he could see was tree after tree after tree, the mountains towering over them, he used this time to consider his options for the millionth time again, trying to weigh his odds in trying to save Jess and stop the Seeds, he still didn't know how to deal with Faith, but right now, he didn't want to think about her, or what her hands were doing, it was Jacob he should be focusing on, he was the offender and key to getting to Joseph, the things he could reveal if he could get the Veteran, then, his thoughts were interrupted by the feeling of two wet objects press against his upper back and dampening his back, both objects side by side, then Faith's arms appeared around his sides, wrapping around his waist, pulling him back slightly.
"Come with me" Faith said delicately into his ear, her warm, wispy breath making the hairs on his neck stand up.
But Rook couldn't offer his reply he was too locked in shock as he understood what was happening, Faith was naked and hugging him from behind.
"Uhhhhhhhh… you good?" Rook guffawed uneasily, the sudden implications of this situation almost bowling him over.
"You also need a bath, you smell worse than I and I fear your smell could give us away" she suggested.
In a way she did have a point, and besides, he didn't remember the last time he actually washed himself.
"Come on Ben, we're both adults here, nothing neither of us had never seen before" Faith said calmly.
"I think I should stand guard, you know, for the angry cultists" Rook nodded.
"Look around, we're nowhere near a road and there's nothing out here, if anything we'd see an animal before another living person" Faith pointed out, her voice not breaking from the soft warm aura it carried.
"Come on, join me, it will be fine" she said, in a much softer tone then before, it came out slow like a gently whine.
Rook wasn't sure why, maybe it was the sudden resurgence of forgotten feelings, the way Faith spoke, maybe she was just that good at convincing people, but he for some reason decided to join her in the lake.
"Alright, alright, just uh, give me a minute" Rook said uneasily as he stepped forward, breaking free from her grasp so he could place placing down his weapons, kicking off his shoes and socks, then pulling off his shirt, tossing all in a little pile next to Faith's neatly folded clothes, instead of taking off his pant's he only rolled up his pant legs as high as they could go before accepting what was happening. He turned around and slowly walked into the cold water, staring intently at Faith's face.
"Your coming in with your pants on?" Faith noting, tilting her head to the side.
"Yeah, I ain't leaving us defenseless, not out here" Rook nodded, turning to show her the handgun the was forever tucked into his waistline.
"Oh, I see, that's good, then" Faith nodded, agreeing somewhat.
"Well let's get on with it, we should finish before we are spotted" she said before extending a hand towards Rook, hoping he would take it, and sure enough slowly, he reached his hand out too and took her hand in his and guided him gently into the water, pulling him in until the water level was at their navels, the water was cold, making Rook tense and wince as his body met the frigid waters, the night air and cooled the waters.
Once they were properly in, and they let go of each other, she took a step closer, examining every bump, scar and blemish upon Rook skin, he was marred with all three, as evident he had spent weeks fighting, and most of all, the word WRATH stretched across his pectorals, as much as she didn't want to stare at it, she did, even in death, John's work still persisted, the ink work looked very rushed, very forced, like John was trying to hurt him, she couldn't help put bring her hand up a gently traced the edge of the W with a pained look on her face.
"John's wrong, you're not an angry man, you're a kind, sweet man" Faith expressed, not pulling her hand away.
Again, Rook's hand came up and gently squeezed the hand that caressed him.
"I appreciate your words, but I could think of a lot of friends who would argue your point" Rook replied gently.
"If that's true then they're not really your friends now, are they?" Faith almost pouted as she wiped her hand across his hideous tattoo as if she were wiping a way a layer of dust before staring at it more, hurt in her eyes.
As she closely examined his chest, Rook tried his damnedest not to stare at hers, instead he stared just above them, visually boring a hole into her clavicle, his eyes drifting up to her slender, delicate neck, her soft jaw, her rosy red cheeks, her button nose, her big blue eyes, her long graceful eyelashes, her radiant hair, it wasn't until now he realized just how gorgeous she was, she could be in movies if she tried, she was flawless.
"You ok in there?" Faith's asked, leaning in slightly, giggling softly, noticing his intense, captivated staring.
"Uh yeah, sorry about that, I didn't mean to stare, I'm just, trying to stare if you know what I mean" Rook replied sheepishly.
Again, Faith giggled slightly.
"It's quite alright, I understand, the Father wishes for me to have… unwaveringly chastity, it could be… rather infuriating" she said, forcing a smile.
"But all that aside, come, allow me to wash you, I'll quickly lower you under the water so it will cleanse you of your filth" she offered, holding out a hand to him again.
"Um… ok, how do you want to go about it?" Rook asked, unsure.
"Just lean back and relax, I'll take care of you" Faith said sweetly.
"Um, ok" Rook replied again reluctantly as he crossed his arms across his chest in the shape of an X like how a vampire sleeping in a coffin that he'd seen in cartoons as a child. It felt natural for some reason.
Then Faith came up to his side and placed one of her cold hands against his back while the other touched where his forearms met on his chest, before lightly pulling him back and down, Rook could feel slowly fall back, he didn't let her take the entirety of his weight as there was no way she could support him, right before he went under, he took a deep breath in, Faith held him submerged for a total of fifteen seconds before pulling him back up, it felt longer then that to him but he didn't complain.
"And there we go" Faith smiled as Rook came back up and caught his breath.
"You look like a new man now" she beamed.
"Yeah, I don't really feel different, I do feel clean though" Rook shrugged.
But that was a lie, he did feel different, for some reason his body felt hot, he felt hot, his head felt light and breathing felt funny, was he really this uncomfortable being this close to a naked woman?
"Do you need me to do the same for you" Rook offered, trying to push the uncomfortable feelings down.
"It's quite alright, I did what I needed to before you came in" Faith giggled.
"So now what?" Rook asked.
"Let's get out of here, hm?" Faith suggested, still smiling.
"Ok" Rook answered quickly and curtly, agreeing wholeheartedly.
Then he turned and began walking to shore, Faith moderately behind him, when he finally broke the shoreline and fully emerged from the water, his legs felt weird, like it was hard to walk, he didn't hear Faith make any comments are her difficulties so it must be just him.
"I feel colder come out then I did, going in" Faith chuckled from behind.
"Yeah… me too" Rook nodded, rubbing his bare arms for warmth.
With nothing to dry themselves off in, they just went straight to get changed, the water seeping into their clothes, thankfully the clothes were thick enough to keep them relatively warm regardless of moisture. Fully clothed again, he turned around and sure enough, Faith was already changed into her new clothes and approaching him.
"Let's get going" Faith said as she looped her arm through his so they could walk side by side, almost pressed against each other, Rook wasn't sure why she would do such a thing, he wasn't entirely comfortable with it and preferred to walk unhindered.
"Don't make such a fuss ok, just let it happen" she said quietly.
And just like that, Rook's doubts were gone, he didn't seem to have a problem with what she was doing anymore, he even let her set the pace and direction, from where she was taking them, he could only assume it was back to the camper.
The walk was near silent aside from a few comments and observations from Faith, all the while Rook was very wary of their surroundings, a limp hand resting on his firearm, he expected someone to jump out and attack like he did with every other waking moment of his later few weeks, but Faith must have picked up on it and told him to relax, there was nothing to fear, and sure enough he did, something about her voice made him always at ease, it was most likely why Joseph made seduce so many into their ranks, not only that but his legs, head and the rest of him still felt a little funny the whole way back, it was like he wanted to lay down and take a nap, but he didn't seem to mind it all, Faith kept him plenty distracted, giving him color commentary on their surrounds and little tidbits of her life, eventually they made it back to the camper, Faith quickly ushering him inside, Rook who still didn't fight back, calmly went inside, once Faith entered behind and closed the door, she continued dispensing orders.
"Sit there" Faith said, pointing the edge of couch the once slept on.
"You got it" Rook shrugged as he sauntered over to the couch and promptly sat down.
The weird feelings he had continued to manifest within him, making him all the more tired, his body must be working hard and burning itself out maintaining everything, with a tired yawn, he leaned back in the old cushions.
As soon as he did, Faith sat down too, sitting on his lap and resting her head on his chest, allowing her to hear his heartbeat, she then picked up his hand and rested it on her lap, her hands resting on his.
"Just relax, ok?" Faith almost whispered, quelling Rook's uncomfortable feelings about this situation, his heart rate slowing to normal.
Rook didn't say anything as he relaxed, he was too distracted by her words and heavenly smelling hair, it made him feel funny, she had that effect on him more then usual.
"Tell me about yourself" she asked wantingly.
"I was born in-" Rook began before Faith cut him off, wanting him to fast forward, getting to the more recent past, about his struggles against Eden's Gate.
"I'm scared, I'm terrified I'm going to get everyone killed, I don't know which choices that will keep everyone safe, I'm just some guy going up against countless indoctrinated and a decorated veteran with a looming fire bombing, and I need to save Jess before something horrible really happens to her" Rook said again in his blank tone, but his emotions kicked in halfway through, fear racked him, Faith could feel him shaking beneath her, this affected him greatly, just as much as she cared for the Father and his cause.
"And what about your friend, Jessica?" Faith asked.
"I really like Jess but I'm unsure of what she want's, she's really hard to read, a kiss or two didn't really seem to lower the barriers" Rook explained.
It wasn't until then something clicked in Rook's head; Why was he telling her all this? This wasn't something he'd normally do, so why now?
"Follow your heart, do what you feel is right, and she will come to you" Faith replied.
"Or perhaps, if you fear rejection or your heart being broken, then maybe you don't have to tell her how you feel" she said.
"What do you mean?" Rook muttered blankly.
"I don't know about her, but I know that I wouldn't reject you, I think you're a great man, the way you are now, it's ok if she doesn't see that, I do" Faith whispered, raising her head so she uttered into his ear.
"I want to save Jess" Rook said again, sounding more assertive this time.
"Regardless of your choice, I want you, I need you to stop Jacob, non lethally if you can, but if you truly cannot stop him by conventional means, and he intends to wipe out the entire county, then do what you must" Faith instructed.
"I… I…" Rook merely stuttered, he wanted to agree with her yet again, but it burned him inside to think of a world where he didn't kill Jacob and only subdued him, cuffed him and thrown in a cage just like he had done to countless.
"Benjamin, I need to not kill my brother if at all possible, I need him alive" Faith said more assertively into his ear.
As much as he wanted to argue but something about her words got to him, he felt he had to agree with her, it felt like the right thing to do.
"OK, I will keep him alive if possible" Rook said blankly, nodding slightly.
"Good, glad to hear it" Faith smiled, lowering her head to apply a soft, quick kiss on his jaw, a thing Rook almost didn't feel or comment upon.
"But speaking of your loved ones, how are your friends in the Henbane River?" Faith asked as she began to play with his fingers.
"Sheriff Whitehorse is most likely trying to shoulder the weight of everything going on from the prison, but he had a stroke last year and doesn't have any of his meds so who knows how he is these days" Rook droned.
"That is quite unfortunate to hear, I hope he is alright, but is he really doing it by himself? The stress would indeed be to much for someone of his caliber" Faith questioned.
"He has some friends helping, a Grace Armstrong, a Mister Minkler and a Tracey are trying their best put their to disorganized, Tracey and Minkler argue to much, their pulling in three different directions" Rook explained.
"T-Tracey?!" Faith gasped, sitting up in surprise, the top of her head almost harshly colliding with the underside of Rook's jaw.
"Yes, Tracey Lader mid twenties female of a darker persuasion, bitter and has a attitude to rival Jess" Rook spoke.
"No, that's impossible" Faith said quietly, looking away from Rook and bringing a hand to her mouth in astonishment.
"I talked to her a few times, she was pretty rough around the edges, but after I gained her trust doing a bunch of stuff to help the resistance, she softened up to me, she told me things" Rook said as he blankly stared forward.
"And what did she tell you?" Faith questioned, leaning in closer, eager to hear what he had to say.
"She had a friend… one she had seen so much with, they were a part of Eden's Gate for a time until it got to intense for her, she ran away but her friend stayed behind and became fully indoctrinated" Rook hummed.
"You're not wrong" Faith sighed, looking downwards.
Then she looked back up at the Junior Deputy she sat upon.
"H-how is she" she asked.
"Pretty lively last I saw her, Mister Minkler always has a tough time wrangler her, he usually sides with the sheriff if it's not too dangerous" Rook supposed.
"Do you think she would have it in her heart to forgive m-her friend if she made a genuine attempt to mend the gap
"Maybe" Rook offered.
"She never has been the friendly sort, always swearing, picking fights… so intense" he said.
Hearing his words, Faith couldn't help but giggle at the description of her old friend, it was quite good to her.
"That's quite the apt summery of young Miss Lader, you know, I was always a sucker from romance movies, I would try to get Tracey to come with me to the theater to see one when one came out but she hated the stuff, she was more interested in some action, laser shooter movie, she would go on and on about it, bloody dragons, or something or other" Faith smiled at the old memories.
"D-Do you think when Jacob is dealt with, can you get her to meet me, and perhaps be an unbiased mediator if things get unruly?" Faith asked tentatively.
Rook did not give a straightforward answer, giving um's and uh's as he still blankly stared ahead.
Seeing as she wouldn't get an answer this way, she altered her response.
"I need you to get Tracey to meet with me and act as our middleman while we talk" Faith said again.
"Of course, sure" Rook shrugged in response.
Again, Faith looked up at the Rook staring into his glassy blue eyes.
"Did you know when I was a little girl, I dreamt of a day someone would come and rescue me from the problems I drowned in, sure I found that in the Father, but after everything I've seen and endured, I feel like for a second time I found that someone who will pull me from my woes, I don't feel like my every mistake will weigh me down little by little, I think I found someone who will save me" Faith grinned, leaning back into Rook's chest.
"That's nice to hear" Rook nodded, smiling lightly.
"Glad you agree" Faith responded with a giggle, a light blush spreading across her cheeks.
"Since you've been such a good boy, I do believe you deserve a reward, I think it's time you got some shut eye" She offered.
Again, Rook beset her with ums and uhs.
"Shhhhh, it's ok, just lean back and relax, everything is ok, take a break you earned it" Faith whispered into his ear.
"Just tilt you head back and close your eyes" The woman instructed as she gently raised her hand to tilt his head back.
And with Faith's command, his eyes began to feel heavy as his body began to slow before shutting down completely, a soft snoring coming from him.
She waited a few moments until it was clear he wasn't going to wake up fore a while, then she carefully pulled it from his belt and looked down with it as it rested in her small hands, she knew what to do with it, she had seen Rook do it enough times already. After a little bit of fiddling, she pressed the talk button.
"Jacob, Jacob are you there, we need to talk" Faith demanded.
There was a silence for a time, but eventually he answered.
"There is nothing to talk about, Rachael" Jacob returned his voice a mix and uninterest and scorn.
"But that's where your wrong, I have the deputy" she said.
"If you think I'll trade him for you return into the family, you are sorely mistaken" Jacob sighed, having no interest in what she was saying.
"Once again, dear brother, you are wrong, I'm not giving you a trade, I'm giving you a warning" Faith countered.
"You will stop this, all this, you will remove your men from my assigned region, let me rule once more, and never bother me again unless it is necessary, you will stop this supposed bombing of the country, you you will return to faithfully serving our brother, or... Or I will have the Deputy come after you, he will come and arrest you and if you put up too much of a resistance... He will kill you" She threatened.
"Looks like you finally sharpened your teeth out there, huh?" Jacob asked with a single dry chuckle.
"But what makes you think the Deputy can even stop me, regardless of how far along I am in my plans" Jacob asked.
"You and I are very aware of what he is capable of, he won't rest until he stops you" Faith replied.
"And let's say he does, let's say he gets me out of the picture and all that, then what? Who do you think he will turn all his hate on?" Jacob asked coyly.
"I... Benjamin is more then just some attack dog, I can talk to him, he can be reasoned with, everything will be ok" Faith said warily.
"He's not some grumpy toddler, he's the judge that will guide us through the new world, he's also John's killer in case you have already forgotten that" Jacob spat.
"So now here's my warning; you will surrender yourself and the Deputy to me and I won't just have you killed the second I get my hands on you again" he growled.
"I'm not giving you Benjamin, nor will I surrender to you, I will not allow you to corrode the Father's dream, you will be stopped" Faith cried authoritatively.
With another single dry chuckle, Jacob couldn't help but find her resolve interesting.
"Then I guess you really are an enemy of Joseph's cause, threatening one of his family members is highly treasonous and so is waylaying my plans" Jacob said.
"You're the traitor, you're the one going against the Father, destroying the whole county is a horrible, horrible thing, you're a monster!" Faith retorted.
"And the pot calls the kettle black, is it really that easy for you to condemn me even though you have countless bliss driven zombies, that's a fate worse then death you know, to be a prisoner with your own body, your no better then me, we will go to the same circle of hell" Jacob sighed.
"I don't care, I'm still going to do what I think is right, and if it's stopping you then so be it, I won't let you win, surrender now and you will live!" Faith cried again.
"If this is the route your truly wish to take then please, try your best, I implore you, I want to see how far you've come" Jacob challenged.
"What are you going to do about it?" Faith asked.
"Oh, you will find out soon enough, I am getting closer and closer to finishing my work, everyone is coming together, and everything is about to fall into place" Jacob replied.
"Now if you will excuse me, I have work to do, trust me, we will see each other soon enough" Jacob said before the walkie clicked off.
With Jacob's voice gone, it left her alone with the sleeping Junior Deputy and Judge, his words left a sensation within her, not one of fear of guilt, but one of rebellion, she truly did not like her supposed brother, he was a plague the built up silently and unknowingly, Jacob was a monster that needed to be stopped, but she wasn't going to be able to do it alone, she would need the sleeping man next to her.
