"Well, quite a sight for sore eyes." Jacob chuckled faintly, walking up to her with a grin, "How has life been treating you?" He looked at her while glancing over at the young man beside her.
"Life has been going quite well for me." She smiled softly, "How has it been going for you?"
"Quite grand." He rubbed the back of his head looking aside, not knowing how to feel with the unfamiliar lad standing beside Rose, "So... if you don't mind me asking... who's this?" He held out his hand in the young man's direction, discomfort beginning to enter.
"Oh... um... this is my son, Samuel." Her face suddenly turning red, not exactly knowing how to feel, "Samuel, this is Sir Jacob Frye."
"It's a pleasure to meet you." Jacob chuckled awkwardly, holding out his hand to shake Samuel's.
"Quite." A smile slid across his face, his hand meeting Jacob's.
Jacob jolted a little once linking hands, "M-My apologies, a breeze just hit the back of my neck." He briskly removed his hand, placing it on the back of his neck to disguise his actual reason.
Samuel gave him a look of slight confusion before shrugging his shoulders with a faint smile, "No need to apologize, Sir Frye."
"Oh, please, call me Jacob, young man." He laughed faintly, "Anyone close to Rose is close to me." Jacob mentally hit his forehead, feeling stupid by his use of words.
"O-Oh, alright... Jacob." Samuel smiled, looking away by the cause of discomfort.
"If you don't mind me asking such an odd question, young man. How old are you?" He tilted his head slightly, praying he was younger or older than eighteen.
"Eighteen." A second after, Jacob froze, trying not to expose his feel of shock as he glanced over at Rose.
"R-Rose... if you don't mind me requesting, but may we speak alone for a moment?" Jacob looked over, holding out his hand.
"A-Alright..." She wanted to look away, but once Jacob looked into her eyes, she felt as though she was locked away, unable to look away, "Samuel, do you mind returning to the pub? I'll return shortly."
"Of course, mother." He gave a small nod with a grin, looking at Jacob before turning, heading towards the direction of Rose's bar.
Once he was out of sight, Jacob spoke up, his voice cracked while his feel of discomfort increased, "I thought you told me you were no longer carrying a child!" He spoke with a worried voice, "Why did you lie to me?!"
"Jacob..." She bit her bottom lip, "Look... my apologies, but I... He is the only memory of our time together eighteen years ago. And to be honest, I couldn't bring myself to one; keep you away from the one you truly love and two; get rid of a living being that was inside of me." She was finally able to break free from his stare, "I'm sorry, but I couldn't... I couldn't bring myself to holding you back nor ridding this child."
"Does... does he know?" He questioned hesitantly.
She shook her head, a faint grin appearing on her face, "No... I just told him his father was an Englishman who passed not long after the birth..." A faint sigh left her lips.
"Rose... why didn't you..." Jacob sighed lightly, looking down, not knowing how to feel.
"I didn't want you to live a lie... I didn't want you to suffer the way I did..." Her faint grin slowly vanished as she tried to look up at him, "My apologies, Jacob... but I couldn't... I just couldn't."
"Rose... I truly appreciate your understanding, but there was no need for you to hide such an important matter." He looked at her with concerned eyes, "Why did you do such a ridiculous move?! Why did you lie to me?! I loved you!" Jacob hid a gasp.
Rose's eyes widened by his words, "I..." A deep sigh escaped as she looked back down, "I don't exactly know how to feel now..." She chuckled lightly, "It looked as though you didn't. It looked as though you still loved Evie and I couldn't bring myself to take away that chance you had."
"Rose..." Jacob lifted her head gently by the chin, trying to think of what to say at such a matter, "You should have told me. I would have never been happier than to hear you were bearing my child." He looked deeply into her eyes, a look of sorrow exposing.
"Heh... what a fool I was then." She laughed lightly.
They looked into each other's eyes, feeling as though time froze. Just the simple touch and the familiar stare, something inside them reminded what their connection was like before Evie returned. Jacob gave a look of slight disappointment and depression while Rose gave a faint sigh, looking aside.
"What a fool we both were..." He chuckled faintly, shaking his head slowly.
Without a thought given, Jacob turned her head gently to face him, their faces inching closer and closer to each other to where neither even noticed. Before they knew it, their lips finally-
"Bloody hell!" Evie shouted out, rising out of bed swiftly.
The older lass placed her hand on her chest, gripping it tightly out of terror. Her heart was racing, her face was pale, sweat dripped down from her forehead, disguising a few tears. She buried her face in her hands, groaning.
"God, that looked so real..." She mumbled to herself. "I pray that was really just a dream..."
About four weeks have passed by and Evie has not heard a single thing from Jacob. He hasn't returned yet and she didn't receive any letters for updates. She began to worry a bit because it was rare of him to take this long on his missions. The older twin kept wondering to herself on what has been keeping him away for some time. Then the thing that was kept in the back of her mind was something she thought she erased completely. The history he had with Rose led her to deep concerns, slight jealousy that she obviously denied, and a bit of irritation just by the thought.
"He is a faithful man. He would never..." She tried to continuously tell herself he would never do anything that idiotic and untrustworthy, but doubt kept knocking on her door.
Evie didn't want to show any weakness in her trust, but her thoughts punctured her chest several times with the thought of Jacob reconnecting with Rose. A part of her didn't want to go because she knew she had to stay with Cecily to keep her away from danger, but another part of her kept tugging her to go.
"He would never... never see her again, nor will he ever do... do such an idiotic move like last-oh dear God..." Evie's heart raced as she froze just by the memory of what he did years ago. Without hesitation, she began to pack her things, rushing, by the thought of him meeting Rose and repeating the past.
Once she was fully packed, she walked to her daughter's room, trying to keep herself composed enough to tell her she's going to be gone for a bit and that she wants her to stay home. She inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly before knocking.
"Cecily, darling? May I speak with you for a minute?" She knocked lightly, hoping her words were going through her door.
"Yes, mother? What is it?" Cecily said aloud.
Evie opened the door, feeling the air was heavy on her by the feel of guilt rising, "Sorry to have bothered you from your studies, love, but I just wanted to inform you, I'm leaving for a bit."
"I assume to London?" She questioned, sitting on her bed, still looking down at her book.
"How do you-"
"I overheard you two talking about something terrible is happening in London and that he planned on going alone. Why is that, mother?" She continued to ask, still not looking up, "It's quite rare of you and father to do things like these alone."
"What things is it you speak of, darling?" Evie asked, her muscles beginning to tense up.
"Your missions." She finally looked up, "I never expected to hear you two still assist on things such as this, but it does not surprise me. Nothing compared to you working separately, let alone doing risky and important tasks alone."
Evie chuckled lightly, shaking her head with a faint smile, "Quite a quick one you are, love. Did not expect my daughter to notice what her parents do." She looked up with a smile.
"I did learn from the best after all, mother." Cecily smirked, "Anyway, you-"
"I'm sorry, Cecily, but no." Evie cut her short, knowing what she was going to request immediately.
"But why, mother? You know I'm at the right age to do things like this. Why will you nor father let me take part in things like this? Why am I having to stay away from things I have been aiming for ever since I was six?" She set her book down and stood up, striding towards Evie, "You and father know as much as I do that I want to be part of the brotherhood." Cecily looked down, depression filling the air, "You two may have left it, but I want to be a part of it. I want our bloodline to continue being a part of the brotherhood. You know in your veins that you two may have left it, but it stays within us whether we leave it, or embrace it. So please, mother... please let me join you. I want to find father, too." Cecily gave a look of sorrow as she pleaded.
"Cecily..." Evie looked at her, examining her features, seeing Cecily resemble Jacobs look of plead, "I... I'm truly and deeply sorry, darling, but this one... this is a mission you cannot join. I would love and appreciate your assistance, but with my experience in London... the things your father and I dealt with before moving here is something we barely made it through." Evie lied, making herself feel even worse.
"Mother..." She breathed out a faint whine, "But..." Cecily looked down, her eyes falling shut tightly, "Fine, mother... fine..." She looked up at her mother with slight annoyance, but mainly sadness, "Go... find... find father quickly. Please. I miss him as much as you do."
Evie nodded, her heart aching, yet a feel of relief recovering her.
"Promise me you two will return safely and promise me you will find him hastily." She smiled faintly.
"I promise, love. I promise." Evie hugged her, closing her eyes with a feel of pain and disbelief.
"Thank you... now go. Hurry." Cecily released herself from her mother's embrace.
Evie nodded faintly, kissing Cecily's forehead before turning swiftly, grabbing her bag and heading out.
"London, hm...?" Cecily spoke quietly, "I've always wanted to go to my parent's hometown." She pondered the idea of going. Her morals held her back, but her curiosity and concerns pushed her forward. "Time to go on a little adventure. Finally!" She laughed faintly, beginning to pack some clothes, soon following after her mother from afar. "Let the fun begin." She squealed inwardly, looking forward to her first mission.
Once Evie entered the train, she headed straight to the loo to change into her old assassin attire. When she placed it on, she was surprised it still fit her perfectly. She sighed lightly with relief as she headed to the closest room. Once she sat down, she stared out into the window, pondering on what to do once she arrives. As she did, she drifted in and out of slumber, leading herself to memories of the past she has spent with Jacob.
Eighteen Years Ago...
1873
Winter
"Why exactly Florence?" Jacob asked, looking around, feeling like a sore thumb.
"When I was in India, I was stuck all alone in my chambers." She exposed a look of sadness, "I wandered around the house until I came across a library he happened to have had."
"Well, he did look like a book worm, after all, so that should've been obvious." He chuckled faintly, "Though so are you, so... I guess I can see why you two..." He looked aside, sighing faintly.
The look of sadness turned into a faint grin with a nod, understanding why he's given such a look, trying to wash away the feel by continuing her story, "I was lonely, yes, but with what I've read. The history of all of the assassins before us captured me completely to where I couldn't put a single book down." Her smile began to slowly grow, "But the one that caught my eye the most was this man who went by the name Ezio."
"Ezio Auditore da Firenze?" Jacob asked, curious.
"Precisely." Evie stopped in her tracks, "Father has told me many stories of the brotherhood. Almost all of the assassins before us from several different nations, but all he's told me were the basics..." A sigh escaped as she looked down, dejected, "I loved the stories he told me, but from what I read in the books, they exposed so much more..."
"If they did then why-"
"The main reason I've chosen here is because of this." Evie held out a book with the name Ezio Auditore front and center of the book.
"And this happens to be...?" Jacob, dumbfounded, about to grab the book until she pulled it back in to open it.
"This happens to be the original journal from Ezio himself-"
"What is it with you and journals? Must you always stick your nose in others personal business, love?" He laughed.
"This is history, Jacob!" Evie looked up with squinted eyes, looking offended.
"Well, mine happened not to be." He folded his arms over his chest, a smirk crossing his face as he cocked his head to the side, "Not yet at least."
Evie's face turned red, leading her to hang her head in shame. A groan escaped, followed with a sigh. A small laugh left her lips as she looked up at him with a faint grin and an apologetic look.
"I'm sorry..." She mumbled.
"I'm sorry, what was that, oh, sister of mine?" Jacob walked up, pretending he didn't hear her clearly, "I couldn't quite hear you. Mind repeating that?"
Evie gave him the stink eye before giving a look of defeat, standing up straight, clearing her throat, "I'm deeply sorry, brother..." She spoke softly with a crooked grin.
Jacob smiled, wrapping his arms around her, "No matter, love." He whispered, "If you didn't, I think we'd never be here like this." He looked at her with gentle eyes, lifting her head by the chin with the tips of his fingers, leaning in for a kiss.
"Jacob..." She breathed out, awaiting his kiss.
"Ahem!" The twins froze, "My deepest apologies for interrupting such a touching moment like this, Mr. and Mrs. Frye, but I'm here to assist you with what you've come to study."
"And you are...?" Jacob clenched his teeth, exposing a forced grin.
"S-Sorry br- darling for not informing you, but this is someone I befriended through letters when I stayed in India." Evie chuckled awkwardly.
"And why exactly am I given this information quite this late?" Jacob gave Evie a serious look, glancing over at the unfamiliar man before them.
"I see your wife actually has not informed you about our encounter years back or is it that she forgot?" The man questioned, his brow raising.
"I beg your pardon?" Jacob looked at the stranger before looking at Evie, bewildered, "Evie, can you please clarify what exactly is going on here and who this man happens to be? I'm beginning to get quite irritated by his type of hints and the secrecy you appear to continue."
"My apologies, Jacob." Evie chuckled sparsely, "This is an old friend of mine."
"An old friend?" Jacob's eyes widened, concern beginning to cross him, "How far back exactly?"
"Old friend, hm?" The man glanced over at Evie.
"Evie..." Jacob spoke sternly, getting a bit agitated by the mans words.
Evie fell silent for several seconds before looking away, hiding her look of guilt, "Do you happen to recall the missions I was sent on once we turned eighteen?" She avoided his gaze, "The ones I happened to have gone on on my own most times?"
"Yes..." Jacob was hesitant to know.
"Well..." Evie thought carefully on how to explain, "My father assigned him to assist me on some of them since it was new to me."
"You know it's not necessary to try to hide the marital status you happen to be having with your brother. After all, you do remember, nothing is true, but all is permitted, correct?" The man looked at both of them with a straight face, leading their faces to turn completely crimson.
"R-Right..." Evie looked down, her hands shielding her blush as she covered her eyes, soon looking back up at them both.
"How does he know?" Jacob whispered, his face still scarlet by the feel of both, irritation and embarrassment.
"Well, this is quite troublesome, isn't it such?" The man chuckled, amused by their embarrassment, "Let me just point a few simple things out, alright?" He looked at both of them with a crooked grin, "I recall Evie talking about you several times." He leaned in to whisper into Jacob's ear, "Most of which were complaints." The man chuckled faintly, "But nonetheless, she kept saying how important you are to her. I was curious on who you were and why you're so important to her and your father seemed to have informed me you are her twin brother." He looked at Evie before looking back at Jacob, "I questioned Evie on who you are to her and she didn't state you as her brother... she stated you more as a very precious person to her."
"S-She did...?" Jacob asked, his face turning a shade even darker.
"Alright, enough of this!" Evie silenced the man, trying to end the painful ineptitude, "Let's get to the point of why we're here!"
"Ah, of course, my apologies, Mrs. Frye." He cleared his throat, holding out his hand to Jacob, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Frye. My name's Marcello Auditore, fifth generation of the Auditore bloodline."
"I beg your pardon...?" Jacob's jaw dropped, looking stunned, "D-Do you mind repeating that? I don't believe I heard you correctly..."
"Is your brother deaf...?" Marcello looked over at Evie.
"Brother...?" Evie waved her hand in front of his face, hoping to grab his attention.
"M-My apologies..." Jacob shook his head, clearing both his mind and throat, "I just never expected to see someone blood related to Ezio Auditore." He laughed faintly, rubbing the back of his neck.
"You've heard of him?" Evie asked, a bit surprised he knows about Ezio.
"Honestly, no. Not at all." He smirked, looking over at Evie, exposing a look of fooled you, "I may have read up on some assassins, but I've read more on their techniques and types of weapons. I've never really put thought into studying other assassins bloodline, let alone our own." He chuckled faintly.
Within a couple seconds, Evie glared in his direction, leaving him to freeze. He gulped, an eyebrow raising, wondering why she's glaring at him. The thing that made him tense up quickly though was her sudden smile. Without a single warning, she swiftly turned him and kicked the back of his knees, leading him to stumble forward and ended with tugging his ear.
"Ah, Christ! What the bloody hell, Evie?!" He groaned, following her hand so the pain would lessen.
"Still have your childish side, eh, dear brother?" Evie questioned, looking at him with a sly grin.
"Is it wrong of me to?" A brow rose as he gave a crooked grin, "After all, you did appear to find fondness of it, did you not?" He smirked. Without any hesitation, Jacob pulled her by the collar of her shirt, leading her to fall forward. Once she fell to the floor, Jacob turned her over onto her back, hovering over her like he did ever since they were kids. "I could have sworn you learned from your mistakes, darling sister, but it appears you haven't, have you?" He smirked, standing up, holding out his hand to help her up.
"Oh, shut up..." She groaned faintly, feeling pathetic by her brothers counter attack, soon accepting his help up.
Jacob's smirk never left as he went in for a quick kiss once she stood up, "Childish as always, eh, Sir Frye?" Marcello spoke up after the kiss.
"Ah, yes... I happen to have forgotten our guest." Jacob groaned lowly, a bit of annoyance beginning to linger.
"Well, let's go then, we mustn't dally." Evie went ahead, hiding her crimson colored cheeks.
"After you, Sir Frye." Jacob sighed deeply, rolling his eyes as he followed behind Evie with a groan of displeasure by Marcello's presence.
Present Time...
Hours Later...
"Home sweet home..." Evie breathed in the air she missed so much, "I can't believe I'm back after being away for over eighteen years..." She closed her eyes with a grin, "Now where could my husband be?" She opened her eyes, beginning to use her eagle vision, hoping to see his footsteps, but luck was not on her side quite yet, "Please tell me he's not with her..." Evie sighed deeply, starting to head towards the first place she did not want to head to.
Evie used her grappling hook to head straight up to the roof that was nearby so she can free run, hoping to see Jacob along the way. She didn't see any sight of him, soon ending up in front of the pub. The older twin breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly, preparing herself to face the woman she thought she would never have to see again in her life.
"I trust this man... I trust him." Evie kept whispering to herself.
In the back of her mind, she questioned herself, If I trust him, why would I be here searching for him?
"I'm just deeply worried, is all." She responded, with a worrisome chuckle. "I trust him..."
Nineteen Years Ago...
"I, Jacob Frye, take thee, Evelyn... Moore, to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I pledge thee my faith to you." Jacob thought quick.
Evie understood the reasoning of his lie of her last name, but she didn't expect it to cause a small twinge. The elder twin wished he would have used another last name, instead of the woman he had a history with. A history they both wanted to sadly bury. Rose was a wonderful woman, Evie knew, but something about her made the lass just want to pretend Rose never existed. She knew it was wrong. Evie knew it was a hurtful and selfish thing, but she just couldn't bear the memory, so she buried the memories as deep as she could so she could focus on the happy future she knew she was going to spend the rest of her life with, and that being, Jacob Frye.
"And I, Evelyn... Moore, take thee, Jacob Frye, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I pledge thee my faith to you." Her smile started off weak by the name she repeated, but then turned into a genuine one as she knew she was finally going to be married to the love of her life.
"By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you, man and wife. You may now kiss the bride." Marcello gave a soft grin, "May the Creed guide you both to a happy future."
Present Time...
A small grin ran across Evie's face as she began to remember their wedding day, but her smile faded instantly when her feet stopped right in front of Rose's pub. She gulped hard, hoping and praying he wouldn't be in there. Once she entered she saw what she didn't want to see. Jacob sitting at the bar, chatting with Rose with a smile plastered on his face.
Jacob felt a sense of uneasiness, leading him to look in the direction, "Evie!" Jacob's eyes widened, an awkward smile crossed his face as he held up his glass towards her direction.
"Jacob..." Evie growled, slight irritation beginning to stir.
"If it isn't my lovely wi-sister!" Jacob wistfully stopped himself from stating her as his wife, "One moment, lass." Jacob cackled uncomfortably, pulling out a necklace chain from his pocket as he took off the ring from his ring finger as hastily as possible.
Evie felt offended when she saw him remove his ring. She marched up to him and whispered harshly at him with a growl. "You know she already knows." Evie hinted, sneaking a point at the ring.
"Yes, but still, for safety matters, we mustn't show any marital between you and I." Jacob spoke lowly, placing his ring on a chain, "Plus, Abberline's going to arrive soon, so we can't expose we're..."
"I get it..." Evie sighed deeply, feeling a bit miffed, but understood their situation.
"Welcome back, Mrs.-Ms. Frye." Rose smiled awkwardly as she corrected herself, getting the hint Jacob gave, "Would you like a drink just like your hus- your brother here?"
Evie groaned, "No thank you, Ms. Moore..." She responded, trying to be polite.
"Okay." Her smile turned soft, "I'm glad to finally see you here with Jacob. It's been years, has it not?"
"Yes... quite..." Evie replied, "Jacob, what has taken you so long? Cecily and I have been worried sick!" She hissed as she looked over at Jacob.
"I understand, love. I have tried to find time to write, but the situation has just been a bit dire. I'm so close I can just taste it!" Jacob whispered, "Please understand, darling. This is like Jack the Ripper all over again."
Evie groaned, "Fine, love... fine." She sighed deeply, "Give me a shot of whiskey." She requested.
"Right away." Rose was a bit surprised by the sudden change, but responded instantly, "Samuel? Mind serving Ms. Frye a shot of our finest Whiskey?" Rose spoke toward a tall looking man that was facing away, counting the bottles that were on the shelves.
Once he turned with a smile to respond to Rose, Evie froze with a look of shock.
"Oh, dear Lord..." Evie groaned, massaging her forehead, as she awaited for her drink.