Page 5 of Unkindness of Crimson Ravens (The Crimson Duet #1)

Peacefulness of the Dead

W alking outside at night was dangerous enough, walking outside the perimeter of the palace was terrifying.

Walking among the dead of the night was straight insanity.

An insanity my heart greatly allowed to take over my mind, for it was my heart that craved the comfort of the only people that had slayed every enemy for my well being.

The only people who had understood my worries, who had known every curve of my long shattered heart.

Fresh air reached my face, calming me down. Now, when I was no longer an emotional disaster and could think clearly, fear took over my mind. I should get back, yet something was pulling me to keep going.

I was not eager to go to a cemetery on a sunny day, accompanied by my guards, and here I was walking down the rows of the stones all by myself way past midnight. My impulsiveness would do me no good.

Still in my nightgown, underneath my cloak, I wrapped my arms around myself to keep warm. It was not yet winter, but the weather suggested it might as well be. The trees dropped their garments, readying for the repose.

Some explained this drastic temperature as the Gods sending us a warning: something was coming.

I did not believe Gods would do such kindness, but something indeed was coming.

Mother spent more and more time in her study with her most trusted counselors, but whenever I had asked about it I was left with It is not your concern, Cordelia.

You should spend this time studying, not wandering around.

Walking down the Royal cemetery where my father and brother rested alongside Royal warriors, I faced twin stones: Father’s and Brian’s. Brian was a great warrior, brother, and heir. The engraving on the stone suggested.

Brian was my age when he had fought in the last battle of Crimson War . He protected our kind at twenty four, when all I did was argue with the Queen.

Would I ever fulfill the expectations of an heir? Would I ever fulfill the expectation of my mother? I wasn’t born to rule and lead, Brian was. People had adored him. People tolerated me.

What would Father say if he saw what became of me? What became of all of us? What would Brian do if he was in my place? Would they have been disappointed in me like Mother was? Would they have seen rationale in my words, unlike our Queen?

For a long time I sat by the stones, staring at the names. My mind imagining what life would be like were my loved ones still here when the realization of an abnormal silence shocked my senses. The wind had quieted down, the crickets went silent. The cold sweat broke through my skin.

A shiver went through me when I felt a pair of eyes watching me from afar. Slowly, my head turned in the direction of my company when a loud croak interrupted the peacefulness of the dead.

The raven studied me with its hypnotizing eyes as it let out another loud croak. Stretching out its powerful wings, it made its way across the cemetery, flying past me, settling down onto my brother's stone.

The raven’s feathers were the color of the night ocean, shimmering under the moonlight. The raven crooked its head, its eyes did not leave mine for even a moment. I swallowed a lump in my throat, careful not to move.

Why does it look at me as though I am its next meal? I wondered, when something made its way across my neck. My hands flew towards the sensation, brushing my exposed skin of any unwelcome creatures. My body shuddered.

Slowly, I got to my feet, retreating a step back from the bird when my eyes found dozens of ravens surrounding me in a tight circle. Goosebumps covered my skin from head to toe.

Come now, Cordelia, they are just birds. Ravens do not attack humans. My breathing quickened.

They all stared at me when they started singing in unison, making the cemetery into their own orchestra. My eyes traveled through the unkindness of ravens when I saw bright crimson blood that colored some of their feathers. “What in the Kingdom...” A whisper escaped my lips.

Gods. Dear Gods! My palm covered my mouth.

Refusing to think of where the birds got their crimson ornaments, I forced my legs to carry me away from the horrors of feathered creatures who kept croaking after me.

The sound rang in my ears as I made my way back towards the palace’s grounds. It did not stop until I was out of the raven’s view, far enough to not hear their cries.

The bright moon that lit my way here was now hiding behind the clouds. Alas, I didn’t even bring a candle with me.

When the entrance of the passage entered my view, a branch broke behind me.

Gods, Cordelia, it’s just a squirrel, you need to calm down. I shook my head, holding my heart, as if that would stop it from jumping out of my chest.

The image of the ravens did not leave my mind as I kept walking.

I forced my lungs to take deep breaths when the sound of crackle reached my ears once again.

Just a squirrel! When I get back to my rooms I will be laughing at my own imagination.

Nevertheless, I squeezed the handle of my dagger, pulling it out of my pocket.

I tried to see the source of the sound that scared me but saw nothing. I saw nothing, but had an unsettling feeling as if I was being watched. I knew the feeling well. When you would think you were alone, but a Royal was almost never alone—that I had learned early in life.

Breathe. I commanded myself, but couldn’t seem to do even that, my body froze like a statue.

There was a part of me that was convinced that one of the knights saw my departure, and decided to follow for safety.

Perhaps, they decided to hide, allowing me privacy.

There was a part of me that was curious to see what might be behind the tree line, but I was not foolish enough to act on such a twisted idea.

The fog had become denser, covering my vision. The hair on my arms and neck rose and suddenly the air felt even colder—if that was even possible.

When my legs finally listened to me, I turned around back on my pathway. Thankfully, I was not far, but the cold air slowed down my moves: even the adrenaline rush did not help my muscles work. Perhaps I’d used up all of my resources on the previous day.

The crackling grew louder and I was not convinced it was a squirrel anymore. My walk broke into a run. I tried to look back at the cemetery, but my feet stumbled the moment I did that. Watch your feet! The last thing I needed was to fall straight on my face.

Air rushed past me in strong waves of a hurricane that almost knocked me to the ground. A wave was so strong it spun me around; I could barely see anything past my extended hand. Whatever or whoever this might be, most definitely was not here to protect me.

My stomach dropped.

Horror washed over me, my mind was stuck in the storm of my unresting imagination. Help! I wanted to scream, yet the sound did not come out. My lungs were empty.

Something grabbed my wrist, squeezing tightly, making the dagger fall with a terrifying clang—the only sound in this abnormal silence.

Its nails dug into my skin, breaking through my veins. My mind became rigid; my heartbeat ripped through my chest, smashing into my ribs. Every muscle in me was paralyzed, despite my best attempts to break free of my attacker.

The sharp pain in my wrist made my body shake; my wrist felt warm and cold at the same time. The force came so fast, faster than a wingbeat of a hummingbird. Though, it left just a second later, leaving me to the mercy of this unbearable torture.

The loud croak broke through the invisible wall around me. My head flew towards the sound. The unkindness of ravens circled above me. Their wings broke through the air, slicing it into two. The blood from their feathers fell down on me, the crimson drops hitting my face in a rainfall.

My instincts took over and I ran like never before. The moon was hidden behind the thick clouds now, as though it did not want to witness the horror either, leaving the night pitch black.

I only hoped I was running towards the palace—not away from it. Either way it didn’t matter at that moment, I just needed to get away as far as I could.

Unsure how long I ran for, I didn’t stop, nor did I look back. I did not stop until the pain in my wrist got impossible to handle, that even the adrenaline in my veins failed to mask it.

In half an hour—perhaps less, perhaps more—I was far enough from the cemetery, far enough from the birds, in the depths of the night forest. Unfortunately, far enough from the palace as well, but I would deal with that later; right now I had to find the strength to examine my wrist, which only got worse with every passing moment.

Leaning on the nearest tree, I searched my surroundings for any sign of life. The woods were vacant and for the first time in my life I was grateful to be alone in the night forest. Yet my relief was short-lived; the pain in my wrist cut through my bones, icicles grew inside of my veins.

I rolled up the sleeve of my wounded arm through the agony, using the inside of my cloak as a cloth to clean up my injury.

Excruciating pain erupted the moment the cloth made contact with the skin, as if fire itself wrapped my wrist, holding it hostage. A suppressed cry escaped me without permission. The ground started to move upside down, moving me with it.

I had to find my way back to the palace before I lost consciousness; I had to find a healer. I prayed to all the Gods and the Moon, I did not just catch rabies. Breathe.

When the wound felt clean enough, I put my hand towards the moonlight, forcing the air into my lungs. I cannot afford to faint right now.

Feeling steady enough, I took a glance at my injury.

A terrified gasp escaped my lips.

“No,” I whispered, examining my wrist.

No.

It was no animal that had bitten me, the mark was of a human.

No.

I failed to keep my breathing steady, and cared not if I lost consciousness right this moment. In fact, I wished that would have been the case. I wished it was all a twisted jest of my imagination.

My mind wandered trying to find any possible explanation, beside the obvious one.

Perhaps I was wrong, it was some sort of a wild animal that had bitten me.

Perhaps the events of the ball and the news of the upcoming marriage had been too much to handle—it must have made me paranoid; perhaps it had made me see things that weren’t actually there.

I just needed rest. I barely had any sleep, and this night had a lot on its plate. I must have gone mad.

Sleep. I just needed sleep, before I completely lost my mind.

I wrapped my wrist in a cloth to stop the bleeding, and to cover it from my own eyes, because in the back of my mind—even if I wouldn’t ever admit it—I knew. I knew what this was.

A death sentence.

A horrified scream—my own horrified scream—disturbed the sounds of nature around me. Sharp pain came in a new wave, even more powerful than before, making my legs give up.

My whole body was on fire, consumed by it. The scream didn’t stop, growing louder than ever, until my head spun so much my vision went bright white, then completely disappeared.

My consciousness was leaving my body, leaving the pain to take its place, and I was ready to accept my fate, ready to welcome death—begging it to take me away.