The Stalker's Silhouette

In the blink of an eye, I was surrounded by all the men who were hiding in the trees before and one of them holding a dagger to my throat. The strength he is using to hold the dagger tells me that he will be easy to defeat for me but I can't act on impulse.

One of the hand holds a dagger to my throat while the other hand holds my arm. The grip on my arm tightened as I felt the breath of the man on my neck.

"No, there isn't any wolf but who are you?", he whispers into my ear.

So, he is a fellow, that's great. I looked around at the men surrounding me and by their appearance it was clear that the injured man inside belonged to one of the powerful families. Only those from the powerful families wear black clothing along with a family emblem on it and each of these men has an emblem that kind of feels familiar to me.

I think I should tell them about their injured fellow, "It seems you are the fellows of the injured man."

"Brother...", the only word that came out of his mouth in a shivering low voice showed a mix of emotions.

So, he is his brother.

His grip on my arm tightens even more and back to his rone he asks, "Where is he?"

I pointed towards the cave, "He is inside but be careful he has a lot of injuries and some fractures."

Among the men in front of me one stepped forward probably the man behind me signaled him as I couldn't see his face.

"Go and check inside the cave. See if she is telling the truth", the man behind me gave him a command. One thing is sure he is the one leading all these men.

The man returns after a few minutes with a joyful face as he reports back, "Sir, is in there alive and she was right he is seriously injured."

"Let's go in", the man behind me tells the other in a happy tone but takes me along with the dagger still to my throat.

As we entered the cave, all the men surrounded the wounded one in joy. The man behind me happily calls out, "Brother I thought I might lost you."

In return the injured man lying on the ground stares at me in the same old way with his cold eyes, "Simon, this is how you treat my savior?"

It turns out that stare wasn't meant for me, but the man behind me, whom he called Simon.

The next second I knew Simon had withdrawn the dagger and knelt in front of me, "I apologize. Please, forgive my rudeness, I was just being cautious, and thanks a lot for saving my brother's life."

I saw some tears of fear in his eyes, the fear of losing a beloved one and it was unbelievable that someone who was holding a dagger to my throat so bravely is now so weak. Somehow I understood that feeling. His hands which held a dagger to my throat a while ago were now shaking. Rubbing my arm that he held tightly earlier and was a bit painful now I smiled at him, "You should better get up from the ground and take your brother to the hospital for proper treatment, his life is not entirely safe yet. I will forgive you if you are successful in taking your brother to hospital in time."

He stands up with the vigor of a brave warrior, "I promise you, I will complete the mission."

" Oh no", I rushed towards the injured man as I noticed his eyes closed.

I checked his pulse and breath which were a bit faint, "Please, take him fast he has lost a lot of blood but keep one thing in mind his left side is fractured so be careful."

The brief joy of the men turned into worry for their injured leader. In a few minutes, more men came with a stretcher on which they laid him with my assistance. They were all busy taking him out. Now it seems I had to go back as they will take care of the rest.

Without their notice, I slipped out of the crowd of the men and went away. It's better if I don't stay any longer or else if Master finds out that I helped someone from one of the big families then the family can be in trouble because of me.

Looking at the beautiful forest in my surroundings, I took a deep breath in the fresh forest air. The sun was rising and its rays made the green life of the forest shine brighter. Some birds were flying around singing and the sound of woodpeckers doing their job could be heard clearly. "Now back to my vacation in this beautiful nature", with joy I continued walking towards the direction of the cottage.

On my way back, I felt someone following me. The leaves around me started to fall in an unusual manner and the birds were no more seen as if flown away sensing something. More than ordinary silence filled the air, a silence before a disaster. Even the sounds of my steps were audible though I am a light-footed person.

I tried my best to escape the stalker but no matter how hard I try, I am still being followed but if that's the case I have to face the stalker. Changing my route I went in the opposite direction of the cottage along with the stalker.

The stalker was getting closer as I was able to hear the steps, now I had to be prepared. The moment the sound of steps was the closest, I turned around but found no one except the trees in the surroundings. The person had gotten some great skills, and with my senses sharp I looked around.

I saw a silhouette moving among the trees at a fast pace. I fixed my eyes at the movements and then the movements came to a halt. I stood still in place and found the target behind a tree ahead but it can be a trap. Even though a movement is visible behind the tree and leaves are falling maybe the person is trying to distract me.

Sounds of steps from a distance were audible, it seemed some number of people were coming this way. The target behind the tree disappeared as well. Who can be this unknown enemy? Don't tell me they are the comrades of the injured man as I slipped out.

Covering my face with a handkerchief from my pocket, I climbed up one of the trees using my martial arts skills. In a moment, the place down there was filled with a group of men. They were all looking around for their target but wait they are not the ones from the injured man fellows. They are from a different family, probably some small gang as they don't have emblems.

It seems it's time for Maya to rest and a showtime for Matilda but I can't kill them without finding out the reason for them to chase me. Though I shouldn't be saying this as I have uncountable enemies, who are desperate to kill me but at least I have the right to know about my enemy.

So, a total of thirteen in number. It shouldn't be a problem, here comes Matilda. Jumping down from the tree, I stood there as they began to surround me.

"Who the hell are you? And why are you all chasing me?", I asked out loud staring at each of them.

One of them laughed out loud, "Oh my god, I am scared someone save me this little kitty might kill me. Hahahaha.....!"

Disgusting! Such people disgust me a lot but it's more fun killing such arrogant people. Laugh all you want after I rip out your throat I will see how you laugh.

Slowly approaching me he continues with his disgusting words, "Look such a beautiful thing you are. You should better stay at home it's not safe out here."

"I am not a patient person, will you answer my question or would you like to die?", losing my patience I asked last time.

"So, you will kill me. Then come, come and kill me. Do you think you are Matilda that you are scaring me like that? She is the only girl alive whom I can be scared of and you are just some little powerless beauty", he says with his arrogant face laughing.

I chuckled at his words, it seemed it was time to see his scared face. I removed the handkerchief from my face, "But you should also know that those who can meet Matilda personally not survive longer."

"What? H....h... how can you be....", with shock his voice trembled he fell to his legs and the same with the other men.

"Matilda, please forgive me for offending you. I will be your most loyal person please don't kill me. I was ordered to find out the person who saved Liam Martin and kill that person on the spot", he says begging for life.

So, that person's name is Liam Martin. Wait! Liam Martin the one from the Queen's...