Three years ago...

Ralph realized that his heart could beat even faster as he stared into the eyes of the lady in blue.

What was her name?

Where had she been all this time?

Was she spoken for?

What did he have to do to get just one dance?

As he waited in anticipation, he looked at her watching him with utter wonder.

Surely, by the look she was giving him, she would not say no?

But his great fear was realized when her delicate mouth finally opened and one simple word came out. "No." And before Ralph could consider begging on one knee, she added, "But I would like a drink, my lord."

He blinked, suddenly alert. A drink! Of course!

"Y-yes, of course!" he uttered, already scanning the entire ballroom for the refreshment table, quite in awe that he had lost his sense of direction. Where was the bloody refreshment table again? Ah, there it was!

As he turned around to bid her request, he stopped and narrowed his eyes at her. "You are not going to disappear again, are you?"

She smiled. It was the most beautiful one he had ever beheld. "I shall try."

That must be enough, Ralph thought. He turned to get her drink, intending to do so in haste so he could return to her side and wait until she had enough and mayhap grant him his wish for a dance.

But along the way, Ralph paused and looked over his shoulder.

Lady in Blue disappeared yet again!

*****

The very first memory of wonder that Alex could remember was when her father placed her over his shoulders. She remembered holding on to his bushy hair, her eyes wide at the discovery she found by being so high. She saw further than she had ever seen while on the ground. She saw through the vast crop plantation and the woods beyond and around them.

But being too high in the air did not give her any fear for her father's hands were clutching her, securing her over his shoulders as he laughed at her reaction.

Alex felt that same sense of wonder now as Ralph's lips pressed against her. She felt the same rush of excitement as she discovered that there was something more than her imagination as his lips moved, gentle yet with enough pressure to make her comply.

But lacking was the sense of security for she felt herself falling although she was quite aware that her feet were firmly planted on the ground beneath her and Ralph's arm was around her, pressing her against his length while his other was buried underneath her bushy mane, cradling her head.

She found her hands clinging on his shoulders, the feeling of being swept off her feet getting stronger.

Her eyes closed unlike that first memory of being on top of her father's shoulders for this time her eyes closed not to see the wonder, but to feel it.

When her lips moved, a rush of current traveled to the tips of her fingers and she clutched Ralph's shirt even more, her feet sending her higher until she was on her toes, pressing her body willingly against the man that was invoking too many things inside her at once.

But then she came to her senses like when her father lifted her from his shoulders and back on the ground. She opened her eyes and found that she wanted more, but that she could not and she ought to return to ground.

And that she did by pushing him away, embracing the regret for she had expected it. Her breath in a rasp as though he had taken all air from her lungs, Alex refrained herself from attacking the bastard.

He stole her first kiss! He stole it, the bastard!

"Ye pay fer it, guv," she demanded through gritted teeth, her voice almost a growl. "Ye pay fer me first kiss."

Ralph looked as if he just snapped out of a dream and he blinked, gazing at her with wonder and disbelief. "Pay?" he weakly asked as if still feeling the last remnants of a trance.

Alex nodded. "Aye," she said, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "Ye pay fer the kiss, Guard."

"Alex—"

"Oi, don't ye Alex me, guv, just 'coz ye stole a kiss. Ye pay fer it," she said, holding out her hand. "Pay or ye will lose yerself some townsends—by force."

Ralph let out a scoff of disbelief as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I was expecting a blow, bandit, not a demand for a pay."

She stomped her foot on the ground. "Pay, guv."

He sighed and reached inside his pockets. He frowned. "I do not have my purse with me."

"I'll take that brooch, guv."

He bent his head to look at the small golden brooch over the breast of his shirt. "It's a family heirloom."

"Me first kiss is considered more precious than yer heirloom, guv," she retorted with sarcasm.

Ralph let out another heavy sigh as he took off his brooch and handed it to her. Alex gave him a smile as she closed her hand over it and with the same hand, punched him in the gut. He almost doubled over with an 'oof!' but managed to stay on his feet, stumbling two feet away and into an aisle of tall corns.

"Yer change," she said, whirling around to retrace the path they took earlier. "Do that again, guv, and ye'll regret it!" Alex shouted over her shoulder.

*****

Ralph was led to an extra room in the stone cottage by Gustav later after the fire died and the rest of the men went off.

He could not sleep as he was not certain if Gustav was aware of what he had done to Alex in the cornfield earlier. If he did, Ralph might not be able to wake up on the morrow for as far as he had witnessed, Gustav was the kind of father who would not give second thoughts on murder if he learned that his only daughter's first kiss was stolen from her.

Ralph had never kissed an innocent woman and had never truly imagined one to be quite innocent on that regard. Yet he still did not find it hard to believe that Alex was as innocent as this. Perhaps it was the way she had been living her life, or the way he saw her act that made it easier for him to believe it.

With a groan, Ralph turned to his side in the cot provided for him. Bloody hell. She was innocent after all.

This shall prove to be very difficult indeed.

The door to his room slowly creaked open and Ralph stiffened in the cot. Did Gustav find out? Was the man here to kill him now?

Bloody hell, it was just a kiss! A kiss!

He had been thinking of lying in bed with her naked, yes. Not a few seconds ago he was and the day before now and the days before that as well. But he had been keeping them to himself and had not acted upon them until a few hours ago! And he merely managed a single kiss!

Surely, he did not deserve to be killed for it?

"Oi!" Alex's voice hissed over him and Ralph stiffened even more.

Was she insane? Why the bloody hell was she here while he was almost sweating with desire while fearing for his life?

"I told ye we'll escape tonight, didn't I?" she whispered, pulling at his shoulder to force him flat on his back. Ralph was not able to escape her gaze in the darkness.

She looked like an angel that fell through the giant hole outside with the rays of moonlight seeping through the window streaming on her.

He ought not to have kissed her, he thought. Ralph was certain now that he was leading toward a doomed path.

But he blinked thoughts of Alex's naked body and beautiful face away from his thoughts.

He sat up and she backed away, her face impatient.

Ralph shook his head. "Your father shall have my head should he find out—"

"Me 'Pa won't agree if I tell him I'm goin' away fer quite a while, guv. And I can't let the bad men linger outside Meriwether. 'Tis my home, guv."

Ralph closed his eyes.

They ought to go now then, he thought. If there was no stopping her, he would dare not argue now. He'd rather walk out of Meriwether alive than be in the midst of a burning pyre for kissing her.

And we don't have much time, a voice whispered inside his head. We need to find Sophia.

Finally, he sighed and allowed a small nod. "Very well," he whispered. "Gather your things."

*****

Their exit from Meriwether was uneventful.

For a moment Ralph expected Ned and Barto to jump out of nowhere to make their escape impossible, but that did not happen much to his utter relief.

He was aware that there were men watching from above some of the tree rocks they passed by, but Alex simply said to move ahead without looking about like he was investigating the place like a Town Guard would.

They eventually came out of the rock forest, facing the red stone formations across the road. Ralph realized merely moments later that they were not unseen by the watchers, but merely ignored. That was no assurance that it was the safest way to enter Meriwether, of course, for Alex was with him. Alone, it would be an entirely different matter.

"How do you know this caveman, Jeremy Briars?" he asked as they made their way down the road and into the village center to find the tavern.

"I grew up with 'im 'round," she said with a shrug. "He and me 'Pa grew up together, see? He often came to Meriwether. 'Twas his first wife who came with 'im. She taught me lessons."

"Lessons?"

Alex nodded. "Aye. How te act like ye gentries. How te address a gentleman. How te lose me accent. All horrid lessons but useful at times."

Ralph nodded. "Of course. As someone who was immensely fooled once by her student, she did a terrific job."

Alex rolled her eyes. "She died."

"I am sorry to hear that."

"'Twas bad, guv. She was shot, see. By those bleedin' bastards livin' at the other side of the Dark Forest."

"I thought your father said the caveman left the Dark Forest after he married."

"Aye, that he did. After he remarried." A frown was on her face. "All the while I thought he just went somewhere. Never ken he left the bandit life!"

Ralph made no comment as he found that he was in no position to say anything about the bandit life. He was tasked to catch them, not sympathize with them.

"Are ye plannin' to go back te Wickhurst then?" she asked. "Are we gonna ask yer Guard friends if they know where the caveman is?"

Ralph waited until they were outside the tavern. He could not find the driver or the carriage. Perhaps the man hid in the stables and found himself a room to sleep in. There were a few drunken voices from inside the establishment, a great disappointment. He was hoping to steal a few hours to nap before they went on with their journey.

"Well?" Alex asked, adjusting the large satchel she carried over one shoulder.

Ralph made an attempt earlier to carry it for her but found that Alex could kick as strongly as she could punch. "An insult!" she had hissed quite many times in the stone forest, obviously in disbelief that he found her incapable of carrying her own luggage.

Ralph let out a breath, knowing what he was about to say next would be met with scorn. "I do not plan to take you with me to Wickhurst—"

"Nae!" Alex erupted. "Ye take me with ye, guv. I have te see this one through, see? I need te know who wants me dead."

"Yes, I understand, but I cannot possibly take you with me to see the Guards. I plan to provide you with protection in my estate—"

"Oi!" Alex said, her face growing red, "I told ye I'll take ye to the Dark Forest. Yer goin' te pay me fer me services. And yer goin' te take me te the men who killed Forest Lady and who want te see me dead as well. We have a deal, guv."

Ralph's face contorted in discomfort. He had been punched in the gut and kicked in his good leg not many hours ago. If he insisted his plans now, he might end up in an infirmary somewhere. "We shall talk more about this later," he said, shaking his head when Alex opened her mouth to contradict. "I am tired, bandit. And I need to at the very least get a proper amount of sleep to freshen my mind."

Alex nodded. "Very well."

Their eyes locked for a short second before Ralph cleared his throat and turned to enter the tavern.

Everyone in the room went quiet when Alex stepped in behind him. Ralph walked directly to the tavern owner who was standing behind a small counter.

"Good evening, Sir," he greeted. "I would like to take two rooms for the night."

*****

"Are ye bleedin' certain yer a Guard?" Alex hissed much later as she lay across from him.

"Yes, I am and I can arrest you right this very moment if you do not cease talking."

The carriage creaked as she turned on the chair to glare at the carriage ceiling. "Just so ye know, guv, yer driver is somewhere in that tavern sleepin' in a bed while we're in the bleedin' carriage waitin' fer him and the horses te wake!"

"I would not be if you were not found out," Ralph wryly retorted, closing his eyes and covering it with his forearm.

"I would not 'ave been if ye lied perfectly!" she shot back. "But ye stammered when he asked if I was a bleedin' bandit, guv, that ye did!"

"I stammered because you are a bandit!"

He heard her scoff. "Ye should've dressed me prettily then," she murmured. "I'm bleedin' wearin' rags. 'Cors they'll think me a bandit. They're all aware of bandits livin' nearby."

Ralph simply gritted his teeth.

"We ought te leave now, guv. Let's leave yer driver here. The tavern owner may find someone and they'll come and pick me—"

"Do not fret, bandit. I showed him my Guard badge."

"Then tell me why we're sleepin' in yer bleedin' carriage again, guv?"

Ralph sighed. "Because they—"

"Dinna believe ye when ye said I was yer sister!" she finished for him. "Bleedin' sister! Ye have nae imagination, guv."

Ralph let out a wry laugh. "Oh, that I do have, bandit, trust me."

"Oh, ye do? What can ye possibly manage te imagine?"

"Me and you naked and against each other if you do not shut your mouth and go to sleep."

Ralph did not hear another word from her.

Ralph chuckled and he opened one eye to find her gritting her teeth, glaring at the ceiling. "Just so you know, bandit, if you do end up kissing me as well one day, you will also have to pay for it."

Her murderous eyes darted toward him.

Ralph chuckled, closing his eye, knowing full well he had rendered her speechless for tonight.

*****

"What the bleedin' hell are we doin' here?" Alex asked with horror, staring at the dilapidated boutique, the only one in Blucksley.

"We are going to procure a bloody dress for you," Ralph said, opening the door. When she did not move from her spot, her arms crossed over her chest and disgust on her face, he raised his brows. "Come along, bandit."

"Just 'cos we were not permitted entrance into a tavern 'cos of me dress doesn't mean I'm gonna change how I dress, guv." She started to turn. "Nae, we're leavin' Blucksley. Me cousins will come lookin' fer me as soon as me 'Pa wakes up and find us gone."

"No, we are buying you a bloody—"

"Then go 'head and buy one. I'll go do the other task."

"What other task?"

"Kill a pig—or a chicken."

His face contorted in confusion. "What?"

"Ye said yer gonna get me a bloody dress. This shop doesn't sell dresses drenched in blood, guv. We'll need us to find blood te get a bloody dress."

Ralph sighed. "Your sarcasm is not warranted at this moment, woman. We are procuring you a dress. You would not survive Wickhurst if you cannot even fool the fools of Blucksley. If you wish to be a part of this, bandit, you must embrace a little change."

Alex glared at him. "Very well, then. Go and procure the dress. I'm stayin' here."

"No, you need to be fitted—"

"Ye buy it yerself, guv. I'm not enterin' that bleedin' shop."

"Fine!" he cried out, pulling the door open.

"And don't ye take it out of me pay!" she shouted after him, fuming.

How could he bloody be thinking of buying her a dress now? Her father would soon wake and find her gone. And then a ton of bandits would swarm the village, looking for her. Hopefully, her father would understand her reasons when he finds the note she left for him.

Alex leaned against the wall beside the door, her head bent. She hoped they would soon find Jeremy Briars. He was the only one they could trust to guide them through the Dark Forest or if not, at the very least point them to the right direction.

She heard a woman talking animatedly from inside the shop and Alex stole a glance through the display glass to find Ralph looking at a dress presented by the woman, his brows knitted into a frown.

"Bleedin' basta—"

Alex was not able to finish the last word for she saw the reflection of two men behind her, both of them with murder in their eyes. It did not take her long to recognize them and when she did, a gasp escaped her throat.

Alex froze in place and gulped.

They were the two men who escaped that day she was chased, the companions of the prisoner killed in Wickhurst.

"Not a again," she managed to groan before she was harshly pulled away from the display glass.