The Walking-Stick Forest by Anna Tambour
Oh, this is lovely, like its cover. Dark. Creepy. Intrinsically violent, but beautifully so.
Farquar is a complex character. He evidently lives in the centre of a world of his own making. At one point I thought he could be kind. The next I thought he was a black-hearted scoundrel, with a soul as dark as his precious walking-stick forest at night. It's a cycle repeated several times over.
About the girl, though :
Her name is Rose. She has a history that is only implied at. It's one of the several scenes mentioned in Editor's Note for which a trigger warning is necessary. Speaking of which, people who are easily triggered by acts of violent and descriptions of assassinations, no matter how beautifully/artfully executed, should avoid this novelette, because Farquar and Hannibal Lecter could sit at a table in a room of sweet-smelling flowers and drink tea together.
Story could be found at Tor here: http://www.tor.com/stories/2014/05/the-walking-stick-forest-anna-tambour