Anne knew that she should get up to look after the servants and start the day´s work. The housekeeper might be just a cover, but a good cover required maintaining. On the other hand, she enjoyed watching Omar sleep too much. He snored softly, a small smile on his face. Anne could hardly believe that this man belonged to her now. Assassins didn´t marry among each other. Not only because few of them were women, but mostly because the men preferred their domestic life to be peaceful. A stark contrast to their hidden identities. Omar was different. He hadn´t just chosen a woman, he had chosen a partner. He… The knock on the door interrupted Anne´s pleasant reveries. "Mr. Khaled." Newton banged against the door. "Mr. Khaled, get up! This is… quite extraordinary, really!" Omar was awake instantly. "I will join you presently." There was no hint of sleep in his voice. Anne stayed quiet. Newton wasn´t the kind of man to get all Puritan about his housekeeper sharing a bed with his aide, but you never knew. Omar waited until Newton was out of earshot. "Well then, Miss McGregor. Off to work." He pulled her close and kissed her hard. "If you start something now, I won´t let you leave this room for at least an hour." Anne warned him playfully. Omar laughed. She hadn´t heard that laugh in a long time. "Tonight, then." His voice was full of promise. Anne wanted nothing more than to push him back on the bed and start the night early. Had it ever been like that for her parents? Impossible. Both got dressed quickly. Anne checked her reflection in the mirror over the washing table. That will have to do.
The next hours were a frenzy. Downstairs, they were greeted by a distraught Rose. Her father, Sir Nigel Galloway, had been imprisoned for counterfeiting on the authority of the Warden of the Mint. Newton denied knowing anything about it. Fearing that somebody was usurping his authority, they rushed to the Tower to rectify that. Only, it wasn´t a misunderstanding. Under the influence of the sinister William Chaloner, Newton´s superior and former assassin Lowndes had turned against Newton and stripped him of his post. Worse, Newton was now suspected of being the mastermind behind a countrywide counterfeiting scheme and imprisoned. The evidence against him was impressive, Anne had to admit. False coin in a secret compartment of his laboratory. Omar was more hurt than Anne had expected. He had admired Newton and his research for years, but it was more than that. He had come to consider Newton as a friend. Now, Omar, Rose and Anne were reconvened in Newton´s drawing room to discuss their next steps. "He fooled you. He fooled all of us." Rose´s tone seemed to Anne needlessly harsh. Omar shook his head. "That doesn´t make any sense. Newton…" "What about this doesn´t make sense? Mr. Chaloner explained it all perfectly well." Omar walked to the window, his back was turned towards them. "It doesn´t make sense." he repeated more calmly. Omar hid his sadness masterfully beneath his silky voice, but Anne recognized the way he tensed his shoulders. "I need to talk to him. Maybe he…" Omar didn´t finish the sentence. He wasn´t in the habit of voicing foolish hopes. Anne joined him and laid a hand on his arm to reassure him. "We will. If there is more to the matter, we will get to the bottom of it." Omar relaxed slightly. "Annie…" he began. "What if there is more to it? We have to assume that the Templars tortured every last secret out of Father James. They might come for us again. For Rose." "I can hear you, you know." Rose commented sardonically. She sat on the sofa, arms crossed defiantly. Anne thought for a moment. "Go and talk to him." she finally said. "We will hold the fort. Right, Rose? We can take every Templar who tries his luck." Omar understood what she meant. I will protect her. He pressed her hand. "Thank you. I will be back before you know it." And with that, he was gone.
Anne watched him leave with an uneasy feeling in her stomach. She turned towards Rose. The young woman was watching her with a mixture of contempt and curiosity. Anne almost wished for an attack of the Templars to avoid that particular conversation. But there was no way around it. Silently, she loaded three pistols and laid them on the small table. If the Templars chose to come for them now, they wouldn´t find them defenceless. The, Anne opened the liquor cabinet, took out a bottle of expensive looking Port, filled two glasses and handed Rose one. Rose snorted unladylike. "What´s this for?" Anne sat down next to her on the sofa and clinked her glass against Rose´s. "I don´t know about you, but I need one now." Both women emptied their glasses in silence. "Omar told you, I suspect." Rose finally began. Anne shook her head. "He hinted. Omar is very discreet. Whatever happened between you, he will never share it with anyone." "Well, then I will tell you." Rose clutched the empty glass in her hands. "I kissed him. I offered myself to him. All he said was I am sorry. And I knew it was because of you." The bitterness in her voice hurt Anne more than she had expected, even though she couldn´t deny that a small part inside her was gratified. "I am sorry to have caused you pain. I… I am not sure if I make matters better or worse by telling you, but Omar cares for you as well. More than I am comfortable with." Rose cocked her head. "What would you have done if he had chosen me? Would we still be sitting here, drinking?" Anne understood the hint and refilled their glasses. What would she have done? She took another sip to fortify herself. "No. I would have wished you well and left. For Paris. Or Istanbul. Maybe I would have gone home." "You would have run?"Rose asked incredulously. Anne gave her a sad smile. "Eventually, yes. I don´t think that I could stomach seeing Omar happy with somebody… anybody else." Rose´s eyes narrowed. "I am not going to run." she declared. Anne nodded. "Good." Truth be told, things would be easier with Rose out of the picture. But it wasn´t right. Something had shifted when Rose came into her life. Anne couldn´t put a finger on it, but she felt it clearly. They were bound together; Omar, Rose and herself. Anne chuckled softly. She was beginning to sound like her grandmother. Rose frowned. "You want to have me here, despite everything? Why?" Anne had to frame her answer in a manner that sounded less like… Anne wasn´t entirely sure what it sounded like. "Because you are one of us now. If you preferred a different teacher, we can find you one. But we don´t abandon each other." Anne knew how hypocritical she must sound, especially since she had just confessed that she would have done exactly that. "And…" that was closer to the truth "and because I believe that we could have been friends, under different circumstances. Or hopefully will be, at some point." Rose stayed silent for some time. "Friends…" she repeated softly. Anne could see that the young woman grew more restless and uncomfortable. Finally, Rose looked at her. "What did you do before all this?" She made a sweeping gesture that encompassed the loaded pistols on the table. Anne was glad about the change of topic. It might be better to avoid the mention of Omar for the time being. Anne turned the empty glass in her hands, her eyes firmly on the ground. "My parents owned… own… I don´t know… an alehouse in Edinburgh. It was a sordid, miserable place. I was the youngest of four children." She swallowed hard. "We never got along, my father and me. I had too much from my mother´s side in me, he said. Something that some women in our family have. It passed my mother by, but my grandmother had it." Anne felt Rose´s eyes on her. "My father wasn´t a pious man, but that scared him. In hindsight I think he was scared of us, granny and me. The older I got, the worse it became. When I was about eleven or twelve, the Brotherhood stumbled across me and recruited me." "What made Omar take an interest in you?" It was an odd question. But then, the whole situation was odd. Maybe Rose wanted her to keep talking to prolong the bonding moment. Anne chose to believe that. "Omar was the one who found me. I am not sure if he actually thought that I could be useful or if he just took pity on me, but he persuaded the Brotherhood to accept me." "And you have been loyal to him ever since." There was it again, the disdainful expression on Rose´s face. Anne sighed. "You say it as if it´s something to be ashamed of. When you have been with us for a while, you will see that´s the only thing that matters in the end. Omar had my back more times than I can count. He was always there to protect me, advise me, comfort me. I wouldn´t be here if it wasn´t for him." A noise from downstairs startled Anne. She lifted a finger to signal Rose to listen. Footsteps. Muffled voices. Fuck. The Templars were here already. You idiot. You stupid, stupid idiot. Anne had been so engrossed in her conversation with Rose that she had neglected to keep watch. Anne took one of the pistols and handed Rose the other. She looked out of the window and saw two men stationed on the street, looking right at them. Anne swore. Escape was impossible. The women positioned themselves in the middle of the room. "Stay behind me." Anne murmured. To her surprise, Rose nodded. She must be very scared, then. Anne trained the pistol on the door. She was quick enough to shoot the first thug, who burst into the room, and to kill the second with her dagger. However, they were too many. In a matter of seconds, Anne and Rose found themselves backed into a corner. Had Anne been alone, she would have thrown herself into the fight, fully knowing that it might lead to her death. Rose was still standing frozen, her pistol limp in her hand. The fight yesterday must have traumatized her more than Anne had thought. She couldn´t just leave Rose to the mercy of the Templars. To Anne´s surprise, the men didn´t slaughter them on the spot. Instead, they waited a couple of moments longer for the arrival of their leader. James Prisby entered the room as if he owned the entire street. "It is a pleasure to meet you again, Miss Housemaid." His tone was mocking, his wolf eyes cold. "Housekeeper." Anne fumed. She was furious with herself for allowing those bastards to sneak up on them. Prisby shook his head. "I have to confess that I am disappointed with you, woman. This was easier than expected. What kind of Assassin lets herself be surprised like that? Clearly, your lover is the more capable one." Suddenly, Anne was very scared. "What have you done to Omar?" she hissed. Prisby shrugged. "Nothing yet. But don´t worry. We will have him soon. Well done, Miss Galloway. You are truly an asset to our venture." Before Anne could turn around and demand answers, Rose struck her hard with the handle of her pistol. Anne fell to the ground unconsciously.