A/N: WARNING: Some content may be disturbing to some people. I will mark the disturbing scene with **. If you want to skip it, look for the other ** marking the end.


Marrying the Monster

Chapter 8: Mercenary


Rey sighed softly as the hours bled together. She'd spent the whole day in her room after that run with Trudgen. She'd felt a lot better once she talked with him, but after Luke's letter... she wasn't so sure anymore. She supposed she should have resigned herself long ago to just accept her new home here in the north, but Poe promised her that he'd make an out of her.

But did she want an out still? Kylo wasn't the monster she'd originally thought he was, and they seemed to be getting along well enough. Still, he irked her at times, but she truly did enjoy being around him. And she was working very hard to get the Knights on her side. If she hadn't already resolved in her heart to stay, why was she working so hard to assert herself over Hux and Phasma? Was it really just survival, or was it that she wanted to be here? It was all so confusing for her. She didn't know what she wanted.

She heard a knock at the door, but couldn't bring herself to answer. Rose called from the other side and Rey only sighed in return. She didn't want to be around anyone right now. Rose opened the door quietly and peeked inside to see Rey curled up on the bench as she had been for hours already. "Rey? Is everything ok?" Rey remained silent and didn't answer her. All she did was hold tight to the abomination of a goodbye letter in her hand. Rose's eyes flicked down to the letter and frowned for a moment, trying to understand why she was so upset. "Rey?" she called gently. Rey turned her sight over to her finally. "Would you like me to draw you a bath?"

Rey shrugged and set her chin on her knee. "I suppose I should take one," she said with a small sad smile.

Rose's brows pulled together as she became even more concerned for her friend. "Should I call Master R-"

"No," Rey said quickly. Rose flinched at her tone, making Rey clear her throat and shake her head. "No... I have nothing worth discussing with him. I'll be fine, Rose."

Rose hesitantly nodded. "If you insist... but just know that if you ever need to talk, you can confide in me. Whatever you say to me doesn't leave us."

Rey nodded quietly and smiled at her. "Thank you."

Rose nodded as she departed the room, leaving Rey alone again. Her eyes went down to the letter in her hand and she glared at it. Should she even write a reply at this point? They'd be here tomorrow anyway, so whatever she had to say, she could simply say to his face. If she saw him. If Luke wanted to be found, he'd allow himself to be, but if he didn't... that was a different story. She groaned in irritation as she stood from the bench and stretched. She supposed she'd take Luke's advice and make herself at home here. There wasn't anything in the south left for her anyway. Sure, she had Poe and Finn, but at the end of the day, they were loyal to Luke; not her.

She looked over at the closet and pressed her lips into a thin line. Tomorrow, she'd be married to the Duke of Destruction. She wondered why they called him that. She hadn't seen any destructive qualities so far, but then again, it had only been three days. At least she thought it had only been three. Who knew anymore. Everything ran together. And she didn't really care to keep track anymore.

Would she truly be happy here? Did her happiness even matter? What if she was just an end to justify the means? What if he was just playing her part and she was just expected to play hers? Was all of this truly just a formality? Or was there hope that she could grow to love him? She supposed he had some level of trust in her if he told her to take responsibilities from Hux, but he didn't really open up unless prompted. Should they have another breakfast together to be more open? Her hand went to her head as all these questions continued to flood through her mind. At this rate, she'd give herself a headache.

A knock at the door roused her from her thoughts, thankfully. She opened the door to reveal, not Rose, but Vicrul. She flinched for a moment, but stared at him curiously. "Vicrul? What-"

"Ren wishes to see you in the garden. I've come to escort you." His tone was emotionless, level, but there was some malice to it. A malice she couldn't quite grasp. Was that just the way he spoke? Or was there something more sinister going on?

"I was about to take a bath...? Can this wait until I'm done?" she asked at Vicrul's unyielding form.

"You wish to say that you're making Kylo Ren wait for you?" he asked condescendingly, his head tilted just a hair, which brought more menacing vibes with it. Rey shrank back a hair before shaking her head. "Good. Follow," he said as he turned on his heel unceremoniously and trudged down the hall quietly. He walked a lot quieter than Trudgen, she noticed. Truth be told, this was the Knight that unsettled her a lot. She wouldn't want to be caught in a dark alley with this guy, especially not if she was on the wrong side of the Knights.

Biting back the last of her apprehension, she hesitantly followed after him, keeping quiet as they walked through the house. He made no move to speak as Trudgen had, but she couldn't really fault him for that. She noticed him rolling his shoulders as they got closer to the back entrance of the castle. She felt an uneasy fear settling in her stomach as he opened the door and walked outside. He stood by the door, allowing her to walk ahead of him. As she descended the stairs, she felt her breathing hitch, though she didn't know why. The fear was palpable at this point. Her heart felt like it was going to beat right out of her chest if she didn't calm herself down. She closed her eyes for a moment and let out a deep breath, quivering just slightly in the beginning.

When she opened her eyes, she saw the fountain she'd come to appreciate even more. Kylo's parents. She was curious about them. What were they like? How did Kylo grow up before Luke ruined everything? "Do you make it a habit of making enemies wherever you go?"

She jumped at the sudden voice behind her. She'd expected him to stay silent, but when he spoke, it struck a new cord of fear within her. "I don't know what you mean."

Vicrul let out a small scoff. "It seems you've managed to piss off the wrong people, Lady Rey." She turned her attention to him then, wondering what he was getting at. "It seems Hux and Phasma detest you. I wonder what it is you did to get under his skin so badly." At this point, Vicrul's voice had become such an irritant to her nerves that she wished he'd stop speaking. He'd taken on a dangerously low and level purr when he spoke, like a predator circling their prey and lulling them into a false sense of security.

"Does anyone really have to do anything to get under his skin?" Rey countered as she turned to face him, not allowing him to be behind her anymore. Something wasn't right with this meeting. Why were they out here at the darkest time of night? The moon was gone, hidden behind the clouds. They were under the cover of darkness, which didn't sit right with Rey for some reason. Vicrul nodded his head in silence, as if yielding to her words and wordlessly telling her she had a point. "In any case, Hux and Phasma don't want me here, which is evident by their lack of hospitality."

"Oh, that's an understatement," he said with a bit of dangerous playfulness in his tone. She got the feeling he was playing a game of cat and mouse with her, and she wasn't the cat. "Do you know what the Knights of Ren do?" he asked as he started to pace side to side in front of her.

"They serve Kylo Ren in whatever capacity he needs," she said simply, but with a hint of a question in the statement.

"Yes... and no." Rey looked at him curiously, fighting the feeling to run. After she quickly assessed the situation, she realized she wouldn't be able to fight him off, nor would she be able to outrun him. Trudgen quickly caught up with her so she was confident that Vicrul could as well. "You see, the Knights are mercenaries."

"Mercenaries?" she parroted, getting that deep sinking feeling in her gut back again. She didn't like where this was going.

"Yes. We take on jobs, or targets, to the highest payer. We can work as a team..." He stopped pacing then, his sight directly on her as if a monster had just narrowed its eyes at her, preparing to attack in the next millisecond. "Or independently."

"And if there's a conflict of interest?" she asked as she took a step backwards toward the fountain.

"Oh, there's rarely a conflict of interest, Lady Rey. Especially not when there's credits involved. You see, the decision is simple: whoever pays the most, gets what they want."

"What about loyalty? Do you have no loyalty to each other or to Kylo?" she asked, her brows pulling together as every fiber of her being screamed at her to run if she wanted to live.

Vicrul faced her then, whole body turned in her direction. "Loyalty..." He snickered. "That's such an... arbitrary word. Humans can be loyal to anything. Their pet, their deity, their spouse... their income. But at the end of the day, loyalty can be bought. That's the point of assassins. We don't give away loyalty. We sell it to the highest bidder. But it never stays in one place for very long. We can sell it over and over and over again," he said as he took steps towards her.

"What is your point, Vicrul?" she asked, standing tall, despite every nerve ending wanting to buckle at the immense fear.

"My point, Lady Rey, is that you've pissed off the wrong person and they want you dead."

Rey wasn't entirely surprised. She knew she struck a nerve with Hux and Phasma today, but she didn't expect them to have her killed. Especially not by one of Kylo's Knights. "And if I were to pay you more? What then?"

Vicrul let out a sinister laugh then. "Ah, you see, that's the beauty of targets. Everyone always thinks they have more money than the one that wants them dead. I assure you, Lady Rey, you don't have more money than my employer."

"I don't think you realize that I will be Duchess tomorrow. I could pay you more than your employer," she countered, glaring at him.

"Ah, but that's tomorrow. And... this is tonight. So, in effect, you can't afford me," he said as he lunged at her, grabbing her by the neck. She gasped as her hands went to his, trying to claw his hand away with every bit of strength she could muster. "Don't take this personally, my Lady. It's just a job to me," he said as he backed her up against the fountain. "I will make it quick, but you have to help me. Take two breaths. That's all it will take," he said as he shoved her head under the water and held her there. She tried to get her footing, but she lost it when he tipped her backwards so violently.

This man was a rock! He wouldn't budge! She stared up from under the water, desperately trying to get him off of her as she splashed and screamed under water, releasing bubbles and muted noise. She felt her head pounding and swimming as the lack of oxygen got to her. His words repeated in her head. "Two breaths. That's all it will take." She pressed her lips into a thin line as her energy started to wear out. She kept her grip tight against his hand, glaring up at him from under the water. As her consciousness started to fade, her vision became blurrier, darkness closing in from all sides until there was only a small dot encompassing Vicrul's masked face. Was this how she died?

Her eyes fluttered closed and her hand released Vicrul's as the last of her energy went out of her body. She desperately clung to the last bit of consciousness, knowing that if she let go, her life would end. She barely made out muffled sounds and thuds before Vicrul's hand was snatched off her throat.

X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X

A sudden knock came at his door, though he didn't know why. He glanced up at the clock on the wall and realized he'd missed dinner. He rubbed his temples in irritation, beckoning whoever knocked to come in. When he saw Rose, his brows pulled together curiously. "What is it?"

"M-master Ren, I know you're busy, but... Lady Rey has gone missing. None of the Knights have seen her."

"How long?" he asked as he stood from his seat. Anxiety shot through him as he wished he could just read Rose's mind and get the information he wanted right then and there, rather than waiting for her to stutter it out. "When was the last time you saw her?"

"I-I went to her room and offered to draw her a bath. When I came back, she was gone."

Kylo held his chin in thought. "Alert the Knights. Search the grounds. She can't have gone far."

"Master... she didn't look happy." Kylo paused as he looked at Rose. She wouldn't... "When I saw her, she seemed to have received some troubling news she didn't wish to speak of. But I know there's something wrong with her," she said as tears came to her eyes. "Master, she was sad, but she wouldn't kill herself. Something's happened, I just know it!"

Kylo nodded quietly. A few moments ticked by as he processed what to do. "Have the Knights look for any signs of struggle, any forced entry, any broken glass. If anything is off, I want to know about it." He started for the door, past Rose.

"And what of you, Master?"

He looked over his shoulder. "I'll check the garden," he said as he fastened his cloak and darted off down the hallway. He made it to the end of the hall to be met with Trudgen. "Out of-"

"Sir, Vicrul and Hux are missing," Trudgen said as he readied his weapon.

Kylo's face distorted to one of anger and vengeance. "Find them," he hissed.

"Sir, Lady Rey and Hux had a disagreement this morning," Trudgen said as he watched Kylo falter. "It appears Hux is pissed off that Lady Rey didn't accept what he said quietly. Could Hux have-"

"Find them. When you do, bring him to me immediately," he hissed, barely contained anger threatening to fly out at any given moment like a ticking time bomb that was pulsing with the urge to explode. Trudgen nodded as he took off to the side of the castle. Kylo barely registered Trudgen relaying information to the other Knights and footsteps scattering about the castle and out the doors. Kylo slammed the door open to the backyard and saw Vicrul standing at the fountain. His eyes widened when he realized that there were legs beneath him and a head being forced under the water. The form he was holding was lifeless. "VICRUL!" Kylo thundered as his boots mimicked his voice, taking off in Vicrul's direction. No sooner had he uttered the word was Kylo's hand on Vicrul's shoulder, wrenching him off of Rey's body. "What are you doing!?" he hissed, his anger finally seeping out as he hoisted Vicrul in the air by his shirt. "What have you done!?"

"I completed a job, Ren," he said simply. "As all mercenaries are hired to do."

Kylo stilled for a moment, realizing exactly what transpired. The disagreement with Hux, Vicrul missing and ultimately taking on a hired assassination... Hux hired Vicrul to kill Rey. Kylo clenched his teeth as he threw a well placed punch to Vicrul's temple, sending his body to the ground with a grunt. Kylo snatched Rey's body out of the water and laid her on the ground. He hovered his ear above her mouth, listening for any signs of breath. When he heard none, he pressed his ear to her chest. There was a faint heartbeat, but he didn't have long. He cursed under his breath as he set out to lifting her chin and pressing on her chest a few times to try to force the water out of her lungs. He pinched her nose and breathed into her mouth, then went back to pressing on her chest. After a few moments of this, Rey coughed, water spilling from her mouth as she gasped for air. "Rey!" Kylo called, touching her face to get her to focus on him. Her eyes tried to focus on his form, but everything was blurry. "Rey, are you all right?"

Rey weakly nodded as another round of coughing tore through her. She sat up, Ren's hand on her back, gently rubbing it. "V-Vic...rul..." she choked out.

Kylo shook his head and embraced her tightly. "It's fine. I'll handle it." She nodded against his shoulder and allowed herself to take in his warmth as she shivered. He pulled away and wrapped his cloak around her. He let out a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry," he said soft enough so only she heard him. She raised her green eyes up at him curiously. "I'm sorry you had to endure that, but I promise I will handle it and it will not happen again."

"Kylo... what are you-"

"Kylo!" Trudgen called as he and the rest of the Knights, save Vicrul, rushed toward them. Trudgen stopped and threw Hux on the ground in front of the leader. "We found him trying to escape out of the east gate. What do you want us to do with him?"

"I vote we dismember him and feed him to the wild animals in the forest," Ap'lek volunteered.

"No, we should let him run." Everyone turned to look at Kuruk then. "And then hunt him like the dog he is."

"What if we tie him up and beat him within an inch of his life?" Cardo suggested.

"We could disembowel him and make him run until he collapses," Ushar said with a snicker.

"Enough," Kylo hissed. "Throw Hux and Vicrul in the dungeon. I'll deal with them later," he said as he helped Rey up to her feet. Trudgen nodded as he picked Hux up by his obnoxious red hair. The man grunted in pain as he glared at Kylo. Kylo leaned close to Hux, his eyes dark with the promised ill intent he would inflict on him later. "I promise that what I have in store for you will not be pleasant," he hissed dangerously, like a viper sizing up his prey before devouring him whole. Hux's eyes widened a fraction, knowing full well the Knight meant every word of it.

Ren escorted Rey toward the castle. Noticing she was still unsteady on her feet, he lifted her into his arms and carried her quietly. The audacity of the weasel. Rey was right to have a sneaking suspicion about him. Kylo knew Hux was in it for himself, too, but until now, he never really had any reason to correct him. That is... until he touched what wasn't his. Kylo's eyes narrowed dangerously as he trudged through the halls. As he ascended the stairs, he saw Rose pacing in front of Rey's room nervously. "Rose," he called.

She saw them and ran to them quickly. "Master Ren, Lady Rey," she said as tears started to fall down her cheeks. "I'm so glad you're ok."

Rey offered a small tired smile at her and nodded weakly. "I'm fine, Rose," she whispered.

Rose frowned as she looked up at Ren, nodding her thanks. "I'll have some dinner brought up for you both. Some soup should do the trick," she said as she curtsied and disappeared.

Kylo looked down at the woman in his arms and noticed bruising coming up on her neck. This wouldn't do. If they got married tomorrow, everyone in attendance would think he did this to her. He sighed softly as he made his way to his chambers, kicking the door open quietly. He closed it with his back and walked over to the bed, gently setting Rey down on it. She curled up in a ball, grabbing at the cloak as if she couldn't get warm enough, shivering quietly. He walked to his closet and grabbed a black shirt he hoped would fit her. He walked back and offered it to her. "You should change into this," he said as he set it aside. He walked over to the balcony and kept his back to her. "Hurry so you don't catch a cold."

Rey hesitantly sat up and got out of her wet clothes, the fabric hitting the ground with a slosh. She didn't realize how soaked she was until she looked down at the sopping wet articles. She slipped on his shirt and it hit her just how much bigger he was than her. She curled into herself, knees to her chest as she rubbed her arms, trying to get warm. "Thank you," she said softly.

Ren nodded as he walked over to her and lifted the blanket for her to get under it. She blushed, but got under them anyway. He took a seat next to her above the covers and sighed as she continued to rub her arms. He watched her hesitantly touch her neck, wincing as she did. "Wait here. I have something that will help with the bruising." She did as she was told, not really having any thoughts as to what happened. All she could think about was that she should have run when her body told her to. She felt tears coming to her eyes just as he sat back down on the bed. He turned his body to face her then before grabbing a candle and lighting it with a match and handing it to her. "I need you to hold this and try to stay still. It will sting," he said as she took the candle holder from him.

He gently directed her chin up so he could examine the bruising. It definitely looked like fingers, he noted. He bit his finger and pulled the glove off of his hand, setting it aside on the bed. He opened a container and got some ointment on his fingers before gently rubbing it along her bruise. She sucked in a painful breath, but remained still, to his amazement. Any other woman would have flinched and whined by now. But not her. He admired her strength. He continued to coat the bruised area with the ointment, dipping his fingers back in the bowl occasionally. When he was finished, he inspected the wound again and took the candle from her.

He walked over to his closet again to retrieve more supplies, her eyes following him in the dark. He was so caring towards her. Or maybe he was just playing his part. After all, how unsightly it would be if the woman he was marrying showed up to her own wedding with bruises on her neck in the shape of fingers. Surely, people would talk badly of him and the Knights. She couldn't have that. Especially not since they were the north's protectors. He came back to the bed and she took the candle again as he unwrapped some bandages. He glanced up at her and she pulled her hair up off of her neck and tilted her chin. He delicately and carefully wrapped the bandages around her neck to keep the ointment from rubbing off in her sleep. When she was done, he tucked the bandage in on the side, rather than tying it. "The bruises should be mostly gone tomorrow."

He went to get up again, but she grabbed his hand, causing him to remain seated and look at her. "Thank you," she said as tears fell from her eyes.

He didn't know what possessed him, but he reached forward to gently wipe away her tears, which only seemed to make more fall. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight, causing him to stiffen in her grasp. His eyes were wide, unsure of how to react to this affection. He hesitantly wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him, into his lap as she laid her head on his shoulder and cried quietly. She was such a strong woman, but he could tell she was in pain. Whether it was emotional or physical, he didn't know, but pain was pain. He cradled her against him and shushed her softly as she clutched his shirt, seeking any anchor she could to tell her she was alive and that she was safe. "I promise you it won't happen again," he whispered into her hair.

She sniffled softly and nodded against him. Today had been rough. The meeting with Hux and Phasma apparently warranted an assassination attempt. How many more times with the Knights turn on her? She wondered if Vicrul really was so emotionless and greedy, or if he was just justifying himself to her. Either way, she was scared of him now and she didn't want to be around him unless absolutely necessary. None of the other Knights were that heartless, that menacing, that... bloodthirsty. Was this why they had such a reputation? Were they all really like that, but more guarded? And if Kylo was a part of them, was he... the same way? Her grip on his shirt tightened a fraction at that thought. What if she'd gotten herself into something that would kill her? It almost did tonight! What if Kylo was the one that would do her in ultimately?

"What are you thinking?" he asked as he gently rubbed her back.

She blushed at his question, though she didn't know why. It was such an intimate question. One that she doubted she'd ever hear him ask. Why was it on his mind to ask such a thing? Did he actually care, or was he just playing a part? She hesitantly shook her head. "When Vicrul came... he said you wanted to meet me in the garden," she said softly, her voice hoarse from the trauma on her neck. Kylo remained silent even though fury was slowly consuming him. "I went, but all the while, I felt this... overwhelming fear in the pit of my stomach," she said, voice quivering as she remembered the feeling so vividly. "I had no reason to be scared, but I was. And it progressively got worse the closer we got to the garden."

Kylo frowned. Vicrul had used his force power to manipulate her emotions. It was blatantly obvious, but how would she react if she found out? And why was she so sensitive to it? He remained silent as she sorted through her feelings. "When we made it to the fountain... he said that... loyalty went to the highest bidder. That he wasn't loyal to anyone or anything exclusively. All he cared about was... who could pay more..."

"That's how mercenaries are," he sighed. "That's how we're trained to be."

"I don't think he wanted to kill me, Ren," she said softly. "Even though he scared me so terribly... I don't think he wanted to." Kylo hesitated for a moment. How could she say that? Vicrul was the most sadistic out of all of them. "Does Hux have anything against the Knights? Anything to blackmail them with?"

Kylo thought long and hard about that. "No. But Vicrul wasn't truthful to you when he said loyalty went to the highest bidder." Rey looked up at him curiously. "While mercenaries do lend their services to the highest payer, the Knights of Ren are loyal to each other, Vicrul included." He paused for a moment, thinking about Vicrul's intentions. He was an intelligent man, no doubt about it, but why would he say that?

"Maybe he was hinting that Hux was misusing funds?" Rey offered, earning a pensive look from Kylo. "How long did you say Hux had been working for you?"

"Quite a while..."

"So... what if the reason he didn't want me taking over the finances... was because he didn't want me to see, and ultimately tell you, where the money was going? Could he be embezzling money?"

"Quite possibly..."

"That would explain why he said there's no way I could have more money than his employer," Rey said as she sat up in his lap. "He was telling me that Hux had more money than you."

"And with that money, Hux was planning to take over the Knights." Rey nodded. Kylo cursed under his breath. "It will be dealt with soon," he said as he set Rey back onto the bed and stood up. "Stay here and eat dinner."

"Where are you going?"

Kylo paused with his back to her. "Don't ask what you don't want to know," he said as he walked to the door and left the room.