Page 36 of Unkindness of Crimson Ravens

“I know all the nobles in this Kingdom well. I know how to approach them. They will listen to me.” I looked Francis straight in the eyes, raising my chin high. “Isn’t that what you meant byshe can help uswhen you talked to Caleb in the training room?” I turned to Roxanne.

“Eavesdropping?” She narrowed her eyes on me.

“You talk louder than you think.” I shrugged.

“And why—” Roxanne started, but was quickly interrupted by Francis.

“The answer isno, Your Highness,” he told me sweetly, casually taking a sip of his drink.

Frustration filled my veins, turning my hands into fists. I stared at Francis, imagining him ignited by the fire he sat so close to. His eyes bored into my own.

Who did he think he was to refuse my offering? I would not sit here doing nothing when it came to my siblings' well-being. I would do as I wished, I was not a child who needed permission, especially not from him.

“What are you doing here, Simon?” Roxanne changed the subject. Her voice carried across the silent room, forcing Francis and I to quit our staring match. “Some might think you live here at this point,” she teased Simon.

“What can I say? You have delicious refreshments.” Simon grinned, showing off his crimson painted teeth.

The conversation carried on, yet I could barely hear anything being said.

We need some kind of proof.Roxanne’s words were fresh in my mind. Something that could prove Wurdulacs were backafter seven years of peace, and perhaps I knew just where to find it.

My plan—if you could even call it that, more of an idea, really—was madness indeed, but I was determined to follow through with this scheme.

If Francis wanted me to stay away, I would put myself right in the center of this disaster in spite of him.

A small smile spread across my face. I would get the proof they needed.

Chapter 14

Thieves and Wine

The dark green sheets of my bedding were cool on my skin. The fear of sleeping through my only chance to leave unnoticed barely allowed me any rest. For my plan to work I had to leave the moment the sun hid behind the horizon, before anyone got a chance to wake.

This was madness.

Moving the black curtains that blocked any light from coming into my room, I peeked out of the window. The twilight sky was covered in dark gray clouds, protecting me from the sun rays that were rapidly disappearing from my view. It was time.

I grabbed the old map from my nightstand, studying it for the hundredth time. Spending the last couple of days secretly searching their library for that map was the easiest part of this plan: from this point forward nothing would be this simple. Yet I was determined to succeed.

The map was not very detailed, but at least it showed the direction of the palace. South.

To my big disappointment, the trip would take longer than I wished. A full night’s ride. A full night in foreign woods all by myself. Had Francis really carried me all the way here the night I’d been bitten?

Putting my new cloak on, I hid my hair under the hood. Anxiety rushed through my veins, my heart beat faster.