Page 17 of Unkindness of Crimson Ravens (The Crimson Duet #1)

“—desperate humans.” He continued. “Eventually, we had to pay the price for our risks.” He finished his drink, bestowing me with the most annoyed face I had ever seen him wear.

“I thought you wanted to chat,” I shrugged, offended by his reaction.

Francis let out a sigh of exhaustion—as though I was the one to start the conversation in the first place—before reluctantly continuing. “Roxanne, Issac and I were thieves. One day I convinced them to steal from a vampire; the plan obviously did not unfold as expected. The end.”

“How do you know Roxanne?”

Francis’s eyes narrowed on me. “Do you always ask this many questions?”

“As I already said, I was enjoying the silence, you were the one to start this.”

A grin made its way onto Francis’ face. “How about this: I will tell you the whole story if you tell me about those hidden passages we are to enter?”

“Is bargaining your only skill?”

“Bargaining is a weapon of royalty, perhaps I would fit right in,” he smirked, making my eyes roll this time. “Come now, Princess, I know you are curious, and I’m going to see the passages eventually. This way you get something in return.”

“Doesn’t sound like a very valuable bargain for you to make, don't you think?”

“Oh, but it is indeed. How can I protect the documents in a passage I know nothing about? Unlike you, I am not reckless enough to enter my enemy's grounds without any preparation.”

Annabelle snorted as though participating in our odd banter. Perhaps he was right, it was irresponsible of me to leave him this helpless against the underground labyrinth of the palace. “Very well then. I accept.”

A small smile made its way across Francis’ face. “Issac and I met Roxanne at the orphanage; our parents died when we were still young,” he started. “She was devastated when she first arrived: refused to talk to anyone.

“My brother, being his true self, eventually found a way to befriend Roxanne. He shared his desserts with her, protected her from older children in school: they were inseparable. I believe he even stole a kiss or two, although neither of them ever admitted to it.” Francis laughed at the memory, though his laughter fell short just a moment later.

The clattering of hooves was the only sound heard in this eerie forest and I started to wonder if Francis had changed his mind and did not wish to continue the story.

“The passage leads straight to my rooms,” I sighed.

“No one has used it for years. It is not far from the Queen’s study.

” I answered his question from earlier, attempting to buy his words with my own.

My candor made Francis grin. “When Isaac and Roxanne turned sixteen, everything changed,” Francis’ voice got darker.

“The orphanage deemed us old enough to live on our own, kicking us out on the street with our shy belongings. We had no place to go, no real skill, and no coin.” His hands turned into fists around the reins.

Yet, it was his only sign of distress: for his features stayed the same, as though he was merely telling me about the weather.

“We started stealing from those who did not know poverty,” he smirked. “We would travel to the most expensive parts of human villages, take what we could and flee, never staying in one place for long.

“We were truly good at it too, skilled thieves,” Francis laughed at himself. “We did it for years, never got caught, until I ruined it all.” Francis trailed off, looking at me expectedly: clearly not willing to proceed until I held up my end of the bargain.

My lips turned into a thin line, annoyed by the foolish game he was playing.

Yet the curiosity in me won the battle with my stubbornness.

“The passage is located in the Royal cemetery.

It is the only entrance—other than the one connected to the Queen's rooms—that is accessible from outside of the Royal grounds.” I closed my eyes, not believing I actually revealed secrets that could endanger my family.

Francis nodded once before continuing. “I convinced Issac and Roxanne to steal from Faris. The Vampire Village. I was over confident in my own skills: I didn’t think anything could go wrong. I led them straight to their deaths.”

Francis took a deep breath before turning to look at me.

“You can imagine the rest of the story.” He finished his drink.

“The vampire we stole from decided to teach us a lesson. He bit us, leaving us alone on the street. I tried to save my family, tried to get them away from Faris, but it wasn’t long before the pain deprived me of any strength. ”

A shiver went through me at the memory of the pain I had to endure after the bite. My throat ached.

“Caleb found us.” Francis turned away from me, staring back into nothingness. “He brought us to the castle, convinced his father to let us stay. He saved us, taught us, and protected us until we were capable of doing so ourselves.”

I wanted to feel sorry for him, wanted to comfort him, yet the only emotion I had left in my possession was anger.

Anger for the injustice they had to endure and anger for the injustice Francis shoved upon me.

“If you are so regretful of the fate your family had to suffer, why would you do this to me? Why did you bite me, knowing the burden one has to carry?”

“I wasn’t the one to create you, Your Highness,” he rolled his eyes. “I am not nearly responsible enough to commit to such a liability,” Francis winked. “Although it seems your creator isn’t very responsible either, leaving you all by yourself in the forest.”

My heart nearly stopped at his declaration, yet my mind refused to accept his words. Shaking my head, I looked him straight in the eyes. “If it wasn’t you, then who did this?” I asked, trying to catch him in a lie.

“I wish I knew the answer, Princess,” he replied simply.

No! This could not be true. He’d been the one to find me in the woods. If he was not responsible for my fate, then why had he been in the woods by the palace at all?

“I did not bite you, Your Highness,” Francis said, as though reading my thoughts. “I was nearby, trying to get home after the meeting. I heard your wails,” Francis rolled his eyes. “When I found you, I searched the perimeter of the cemetery, but whoever gifted you the bite had already left.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?” I asked him, still not convinced of his words.

“Would you have believed me then?” he asked me. “Do you even believe me now?”

I stared at the ground beneath me, opting to focus on Annabelle’s moderate steps rather than my own thoughts. The sound of night interrupted our silence, distracting me from my own miserable mind. I needed time. I needed time to think about all of this, decide for myself what to believe.

“It is your turn, Your Highness,” Francis smiled at me. “Tell me about your infamous royal life. Did you have unlimited amounts of chocolate?”

I laughed before I could stop myself. “I suppose we did,” I nodded, when the memory of Sandra entered my mind. “Though my sister and I always tried to steal the caramel fudge from the kitchen.” The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

I wished I could have some fudge with Sandra right then, maybe it would’ve made this new life more bearable.

“I see you are a thief too,” Francis replied. “I knew we had more in common than you let on.” He smirked at me.

I rolled my eyes, smiling back at him when Francis turned his horse to the left—away from the path—gesturing for me to do the same. “This way.”

My brows furrowed when I took the map out from my cloak. “According to the map, the palace is in that direction.” I pointed south.

Francis laughed, staring at the very stolen map in my hands. “Where in the Kingdom did you get this?”

“Your library,” I shrugged.

“A thief,” he winked, riding away from the direction I just pointed at.

“Where are you going?” I stopped Annabelle altogether, refusing to go any further.

“Come now, you didn’t think it would be a good idea to go to the palace now. You need rest, Princess.”

“I am well, thank you,” I argued.

“Our horses need rest to make the trip back.” Francis turned to glare at me. “We don't know what hurry we’ll need to leave in. Besides, when was the last time you’ve fed?” he asked me.

My face flushed at the mention of blood and I thanked the darkness for hiding my embarrassment. My throat ached from the reminder of the crimson liquid and my hands instinctively flew to cover it.

“That's what I thought,” Francis chuckled. “You want to endanger humans now? I thought this whole adventure was supposed to do the exact opposite.”

There was definitely logic in his words, although I was not convinced of his true motives. “That doesn’t answer my question. Where are you going?” I demanded.

“Have some faith in me, Your Highness.” He started his horse once again without waiting for me to follow. “We are going to my cabin.”

Leaving me alone in these foreign woods, he did not give me much of a choice but to follow after him, into the unknown.

In the middle of the meadow, hidden by dense spruce, settled down a small—two story—wooden cabin. A short, broken fence encircled the house. Its every window was painted black.

“My human family used to live here,” Francis said quietly, opening the metal lock. “Make yourself comfortable.” Francis gestured for me to enter.

A small kitchenette was set right by the entrance door to the right. A long extinguished fireplace took up the majority of the space. Only one person could fit in this corridor.

“You can take this room,” Francis pointed out the black door by the ladder that led to the second floor. “Let me see if we have any blood stored here.” He lit up the candles set along the walls of the corridor.

The floor creaked underneath my steps as I set a foot inside the room. Taking off my cloak, I closed the door behind me when the sound of every cabinet door opening reached my ears.

My eyes adjusted to the unnatural darkness almost immediately, leaving my brows to frown in confusion. Although I could not see any color, my vision allowed me to assess the space I would reside in.

The room was tiny, a small bed was set across from the black painted window. The room was crowded, overflowing with books and children’s paintings. Spider webs covered every corner of the furniture.

“Here, I found some for you.” Turning to the sound of his voice, I spotted Francis at the threshold of the room. Francis froze in his place, looking me straight in the eyes. I spotted the bottle with crimson liquid in his hand, yet my eyes traveled straight to his neck.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, as my heart rushed inside of my chest. My nostrils flared, my lungs ached.

An unknown desire within me fought for its way out.