Chapter 4:2

1774, August 5th/1775, April 17th

Alex didn't reply in at least two months from when I sent him my letter and the little scrap of muddied paper I received from the messenger, was almost as good as nothing.

Can't explain much but I thank you for your letter, it will come much in handy. I'm sorry that I haven't updated you in a while but things are getting heated up in New York. I guess we have rounded up about two thirds of all the good men here and we're continuing to recruit in all the cities. The French gave us their support but we have officially not yet gotten any help. In secret, they're freezing their business with the Brits and supplying us with food and arms. Again I thank you for your letter; if I'm to be honest, I never thought you would do such a thing for us. And to answer your question: yes, I'd very much like to accompany you. We haven't met in a while and it would be great to see you again. But things are much hectic for the moment and I fear that I cannot meet you in at least six months since I've been assigned into a higher rank here at the city hall and am unable to leave this position. I'm also sorry for being so busy nowadays that I can't even write you a letter, but I've been followed twice now when I tried to send you my answer and I guess it'll be hard in the future as well.

Yours sincerely – Alex

I immediately sent him another letter, confused by some parts of his note. What was it that I had written that seemed to be beneficial to him? As far as I knew, I had written about how I missed him and that I wanted to see him again, together with the opportunity to spend some time with me. I knew that he was busy fighting and gathering men for an army worthy enough to stand against the British troops, but I also knew that he was starting to grow as a political figure. It was not only his friendliness that attracted the attention of both men and women, but his honesty and genuine devotion to the cause for the greater good. Alex was loyal and an excellent talker, but no soldier. He was a true politician and he had the support of many. But deep inside I felt like he was wrong. War or revolution would never be the solution of any problem.

I searched for Mr. Kenway to inform him of these new circumstances and told him that Alex would accompany me but that he was unavailable presently due to his sick parents and that he was forced to handle the store on his own. My teacher brought me with news of his own, that Mr. Pitcairn had travelled back to England for private business and would not come back until April next year. As I asked Mr. Kenway why he hadn't told me this earlier – Mr. Pitcairn must have used a ship and the best vessels were to be found in Boston or New York – since I could've found him and given him the letter. The answer was simple: Mr. Pitcairn had not informed anyone about his sudden departure leaving us all with questions. But I was pleased with the disappearance of Mr. Pitcairn since it was good for Alex. Eight months would surely suffice for him to get a good foundation as a "real" politician in New York as well as open up a window for another excuse if that would be needed.

The months flew by faster than I realized and I celebrated my birthday without Alex, for the first time since we became friends. Autumn was cold and rainy – exactly how I wanted it to be – and winter was harsh and relentless, but the spring was much warmer than it had been in years. I took it as a good sign when I awaited Alex at the harbor, late evening, April 17th 1775. It had been at least a year since we met and through our letters, I had slowly begun to realize how much my friend had changed.

"Mel!"

I saw him running towards me with a wide grin. He had grown much longer than I remembered him and was perhaps about six feet tall, with a lean and somewhat muscular body.

"Have you been working out?" I asked teasingly and punched his arm. He performed a grimace of pain and pretended to be fatally damaged.

"For a girl, you really know how to hit someone," he replied then dropped the act, smiling again. "But as mentioned: as a girl—"

I hit him again and rolled with my eyes as he grimaced with real pain.

"You wimp."

"You barbarian."

We stared at each other but soon burst out in laughter. I closed in on the steps between us and gave him a big hug.

"God, you should know how much I've missed you," I mumbled and tried to keep myself from crying like a fool. "I shouldn't let you leave me again, idiot."

He chuckled and embraced me as well.

"I'm sorry," he replied and then backed off. "What's with you all of a sudden? Getting a heart, Rawling?"

"You wish."

Alex smiled and patted me on the head.

"What are you doing? Hey!"

"I've always wanted to do this on you, you crazy roof-climber. Your aunt is way too liberal with rules," he answered and I gave him another punch. "Ouch!"

"Keep your feet on the ground," I said and crossed my arms. "Just because you're starting to become a celebrity doesn't mean that you can do whatever you want."

"I'm much aware of that, thank you Miss Rawling."

"You said something? Oh, do you want me to strike you again?"

"Mercy! Have at mercy!"

I shook my head and sighed but he just laughed at me, sending me into giggles as well. He was just so happy and I couldn't believe that I had been able to make time pass without him. Alex always made me smile, even though if I was at my worst. It was amazing that I could say that he was my best friend and I would never replace him, not for all the gold and ships in the whole world. Not even for the Templars or my master, Mr. Haytham Kenway.

We visited a nearby tavern to dine and filled in the other on details. A couple of suspicious eyes were thrown at us as we went to sit at an empty table, but my well-filled purse silenced them.

Alex's parents had divorced and his mother had moved back to Boston with another man. This was good news for me since Alex would be able to stay here whenever he wanted to and for unlimited of time, but I did of course feel bad for my friend's sake. He didn't seem so upset about it, surprisingly enough, and with another beer running down his throat, he told me that both of them had been cheating on each other and continued on with new partners. I on the other hand, told him about the mysterious assassin – Connor, though I didn't say his name – and Alex agreed that the man was either crazy or desperate. I did not tell him about what Mr. Kenway had planned for George Washington and neither did he tell me any details about the rebels. He knew that I didn't agree with what he was doing and whenever we would discuss it, we would argue and get angry.

"So when are we off to…?" He paused and finished his drink. "Where are we going, by the way?"

I rested against the backseat and crossed my legs.

"Lexington," I replied. "Mr. Pitcairn will be waiting for us there."

Alex put down his keg and yawned

"I'm so tired. Can't we go tomorrow?"

I shook my head and rose from the chair, gesturing for him to follow.

"Nope," I said and we exited the tavern, much to Alex's disapproval. "I've already paid for borrowing two horses starting this day." Or well, Mr. Kenway paid.

"Alright."

I led the way to the stables and met with the owner. After exchanging some pleasantries, me and Alex got our horses and hurried away towards Lexington. The night quickly approached and my eyelids grew heavy, but I urged us into an even faster pace. We rode in silence but that didn't bother me at all, since I had a moment to think. Why had Mr. Kenway wanted me to bring Alex? He seemed very urgent about the matter and quite frankly, he's not a man who shows random acts of kindness… There must've been more to the table, something he chose not to tell me. But what could that be?

We reached our goal by midnight and I decided that it was too late to search for Mr. Pitcairn. Alex found a seemingly good inn and we rented room for the night, as well as a place for our horses.

"It's so empty here."

I nodded and sank down on the bed.

"It must be the rebellion," I answered and looked around. "I heard that Mr. Pitcairn was sent to deal with them."

"I knew his name sounded familiar," Alex said and his tone was cold. Our eyes met and I saw how worried he was for his… comrades. "I-I… I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" I asked, concerned if he would just leave me. Is his passion for "freedom" greater than our friendship?

His grave expression was instantly replaced with a smug smile.

"You wonder if I'm off to my fellow rebel-friends," he replied with an edge of irony. When I didn't protest, his smile widened. "Nay, I must fulfill my certain needs."

Aha, toilet, I realized and blushed. "Sure then."

"Don't stay up."

I scoffed and opened my mouth to answer, when he disappeared away. My fatigue was seeping into every part of my body and I decided that it really was time to sleep. I took off my shoes and changed my clothes into something clean. As soon as I had sneaked into the bed and found a comfortable position to lie in, I realized how thirsty I was and decided to search Alex's backpack. It would be just like him to carry some water with him. But when I scavenged his bag, aiming to find a hipflask, I found an envelope that looked awfully alike the letter addressed to Mr. Pitcairn. Only, that letter was supposed to be in my backpack and unopened.

"What are you doing?"

I couldn't stop myself from screaming in pure fright.

"Why do you sneak up on someone like that?" I yelled and felt my cheeks heating. "How long have you been standing there?"

"I just came back…" His eyes traced down my body and locked on the note I was holding in my right hand. "What's that you have there?"

"Nothing," I answered quickly and shoved it down my back pocket. "Just some trash, I found it on the floor—"

"Let me see it."

I shook my head and yawned, stretching my arms towards the ceiling.

"It's fine, it had nothing on it," I said with the most bored voice I could muster. "Alex, it's just an ordinary piece of paper."

"Still, let me check it out," he said and approached me. "Maybe it's mine."

"I doubt that."

He smiled and took another step, gesturing me to hand it over.

"Come one, I just want to see it. One quick glance."

"No, Alex, it's alright. I may be stupider than you but I have mastered the art of reading."

"I'm more worried about your sight, Rawling."

I glared at him and backed until I met the cold of the wall. Let's see if he can take it away from me now.

"Melissa, show me."

"Alex, don't be such a pervert."

He sighed and rolled with his eyes but waited another moment for me to regret my decision. I stayed still and he sighed again.

"I guess I'll have to do this the hard way," he said and smiled wickedly.

"Har—"

Alex closed the distance between us, faster than I could react, and placed his mouth onto mine.