Nottingham

  Will crinkled his nose. “We escaped!”

  “Escaped! But we were supposed to rescue you!” Alan nearly lost his mind and bent over laughing. “Where’s Elena?”

  “She’s near, I was scouting ahead.” He turned and called out for her, while John saw in his face the tale of the last month, written in bruises.

  Robin saw it, too, and softened. “Were you followed?”

  “No, no. What are you doing this far south? We were aiming to camp outside Bernesdale for the night when Lena noticed the ribbons, followed them here. This a new camp?”

  “One of a few. This one we’ve been using—” Alan started, but Robin interrupted him.

  “Don’t—let’s get everyone here first. I’ll rally the others, you can tell us all at once.” He shook his head and backed away.

  Will waved his hand slowly in front of John. “Hullo, John.”

  He hadn’t even realized he’d been standing there mouth agape, without the first clue what to do or how to go about doing it. Then, as simple as that, the emotion overwhelmed him and he snatched Will up off the ground, his face already stung for smiling too wide and his lungs burned. For reasons he couldn’t quite place, John felt guilty for having his doubts about going to Nottingham tomorrow. He might have robbed himself of this feeling, of seeing Will and Elena again, of being reunited with the only thing he still had that felt like family.

  “You don’t know what you’ve put us through,” Alan said. “We’ve been leaving fake trails and camps, to keep the Sheriff looking.”

  “Well, we were lucky to find you, especially in this fog.” Will coughed. “We could have passed right by and never even known it.”

  “We were going to get you tomorrow, you know?” John said. “It’s all we’ve been working at.”

  Will seemed genuinely touched. “Are you serious? Is that why you’re here?”

  John gave a solemn nod, and fought the lump in his throat.

  “That’s insane,” Will winced at the thought, “you … you shouldn’t…”

  “We had to at least try,” John said.

  “I can’t believe Robin let you do that.”

  “It was his idea.”

  Will stopped shy of any response, and chewed it back down. A heavy moment passed before Alan sighed. “You gave us quite the scare. I thought I was going to watch you die tomorrow!” He punched Will hard in the chest, which looked to hurt more than it ought. Will was probably hungry and thirsty, and in desperate need of recovery. A thousand questions came to John’s mind, but they’d have to wait.

  “You would have been too late.” Will put his arm on Alan’s shoulder. “They were going to kill us tonight, and hang a couple nobodies tomorrow. They wanted you to come get us.”

  “I’ll be damned,” was all Alan could say, and John too felt a wave of relief. Everything they’d been planning, it would have been for nothing.

  “It would have been suicide.” Will shook his head in frustration. “You say this was Robin’s plan?”

  “Where’s your girl?” John asked, more or less at the same time he heard her voice, scrambling through the brush. John felt his heart clench, his eyes water. Marley had never borne them any children, but if she had, he could only have wanted two such as these to call his own. Alan rushed to Elena first, and near took the wind from her, holding on a bit longer than he ought. When finally John had his turn, he nearly suffocated her. Her head was tiny between his hands, and she sniffed away a tear or two of her own when he bent down to kiss her forehead.

  Then commotion overtook them as the others joined, their laughter filling the forest thicker than the fog. Arthur and David tackled Will to the ground, and the Delaney brothers introduced themselves with all politesse. Even the surly Gamble Gold seemed happy. The two boys from Bernesdale kept their distance from the group but were clearly relieved.

  Friar Tuck, of course, let out with his usual cackle. “This calls for a celebration! Two friends back, two drinks each!”

  Alan tried to tell Will five stories at once, about Much’s funeral and the prince’s visit, while Tuck busied himself at pouring drinks. Will and Elena rushed to help, on account of Tuck’s broken arm.

  John moved as well. “You two should be sitting down and resting. Let us tend to you.”

  “It’s no trouble,” Will said, and started gathering cups with Elena to pass out. There was only a small cask by the campfire, but a larger one was still on their oxcart, down the hill and concealed just off the road. Arthur and David rushed off with Geoffrey and Thomas to fetch it, and would likely make it a little lighter during the haul. Robin tried to stop them, but they started a drinking song as they ran and his protests went unheard.

  “Come on then,” Alan whined as they disappeared, “I can’t wait to hear how the hell you two got out of there. I’ll bet you left a trail of blood all the way!”

  “We’d best hope not,” Robin warned.

  Will patted Alan’s cheeks. “All in good time. We got the Sheriff. I assume you heard that?”

  This changed the mood sharply, by John’s estimation. None seemed eager to answer, which usually meant they were waiting on him. “We did hear that,” he answered, letting his voice speak to his disapproval.

  But Elena was just as eager as Will. “They know we keep our promises now.”

  There was no shame to either of them, like dogs looking to be praised for a kill.

  “That’s something we should have decided as a group,” John grumbled. He’d practiced this, in the event he ever saw them again. He knew the words to chastise them for being so impulsive, for neglecting the consequences of their actions. But he didn’t have the heart to bear it down upon them now.

  “You’re right,” Will was even apologizing, “but there wasn’t time. We had the opportunity, and we took it. In the heat of the moment, we had to make a call.”

  “The heat of the moment,” Robin’s words were crisp, he stared down into the cup he hadn’t even touched, “is the most important time to think clearly.”

  Elena took offense. “You weren’t even here. You left. What are you complaining about?”

  “Alright, alright,” soothed Alan, moving between them. “Let’s not get into that now. Tonight we celebrate! Hand me another drink!” His enthusiasm was joined by the boys, rallying him to empty his cup.

  Robin’s hand found his shoulder. “Let’s take it easy, Alan.”

  “Where’s the point in that?” he laughed. “I intend on sleeping all day tomorrow!” He made to upend his cup, but Robin stopped him again, more forcefully.

  “We’re still going to Nottingham tomorrow. This changes nothing.”

  That was ever an unsettling moment. John was as confused as the others. “What are you talking about?”

  “Scarlet and Elena are alive, that’s great. But, no offense now, that’s not the most important thing. Scarlet just told us they’re planning on hanging two other people tomorrow for the murder of the Sheriff.”

  Will squinted, but he didn’t take Robin seriously. “Oh come off it. He’s just going to hang a few old prisoners that have been around for years, they’d be dead anyhow.”

  “That’s not the point.” Robin shook a hand at him, but didn’t meet his eyes. “The people are going to see it, and they won’t know the difference. William doesn’t care about killing us. He cares about killing our reputation. Our credibility.”

  Will’s smile faded. “William?”

  “The Sheriff.”

  “You mean, your friend.”

  “Hardly,” Robin bit back, quick and bitter. “He’s trying to take away our support. If he hangs anyone tomorrow, he’ll declare it as a victory against us.”

  “Against us?” Will asked, stepping softly forward, then turned to the others, “or against Robin Hood? Personally, I don’t care if the people love us … but seems that may be the only thing you do care about.”

  “Well, you should,” Robin sneered. “You think you can accomplish anything without the pe
ople on your side? You think you’re safe here in the woods without the people keeping your secrets? If William wins them over, they’ll turn on you and hang you from the trees just for a break of bread.”

  “You think that will happen just because the Sheriff hangs a few patsies tomorrow? That’s ridiculous.”

  “If I may, Robin?” Nicks stood up. Robin nodded at him, but seemed distracted. “We risk a terrible lot going to Nottingham tomorrow. Our chances were slim before, and now we hear that it’s a trap anyhow. If you want to defend our reputation, then why not do it with the truth? We bring Will and Elena to every town and village and tell their story, about how the new Sheriff put two innocent men on the gallows just for show. That ought to show him for who he really is.”

  John felt the weight of many eyes floating onto him, and it seemed an unspoken agreement that he ought to decide the matter. It was not a responsibility to be envied. “I’d say he has the ring of it,” he sighed. “There’s nothing for us in Nottingham tomorrow.”

  Will laughed smugly at Robin. “Sorry you don’t get to be the hero.”

  “Damn it, Will,” Robin flinched. “Stop posturing and listen to me. You were always angry we were doing too little, now you’re angry we’re doing too much? You want a make a difference? This is how it starts. Tomorrow we have a chance to prove to every noble in twenty leagues that the people are willing to stand up for themselves. If we don’t go tomorrow, we’ll never have an opportunity like it again. And worse, we’ll have disappointed one of our only allies.”

  Will and Elena exchanged an uneasy look. “Allies?”

  “Prince John,” Robin said, looking to John for support. “We’ve been coordinating with his men to gain entry tomorrow. He wants to help. So if we don’t go through with it … I don’t see any reason for him to ever trust us again.”

  Again, bless their hearts, they left it to John. “Robin,” he said, as gently as he could, “that may be for the better. We were putting too much faith in that prince, and his messengers never told us half of what Will just did. I don’t think he means to do us right.”

  Most nodded in agreement, but Robin’s eyes grew desperate. “John.”

  “I’m sorry, Robin, but Will’s right.”

  “Damn it, we have to go tomorrow!” Robin wiped his brow and set his cup down, a defeat sinking into him. “We have to rescue Marion as well.”

  At this, everyone had their own reaction, though John’s was only of pity. They had discussed this, at length, though never to Robin’s liking. What was happening to Marion was terrible, but at least she was safe, and alive. They’d tend to her eventually, but the plan for tomorrow was mostly for Will and Elena, seeing as how there had been a heavy deadline on their lives.

  “What’s happened to Marion?” Elena shouted over the others.

  “She’s been taken to the castle against her will, to be married to William. I’m not going—” Robin cut himself off, but it was a thing he couldn’t unsay. “We’re not going to let that happen.”

  “Robin,” John tried to whisper it, “that’s not for tomorrow.”

  “She’s not going to marry him!”

  A silence smothered itself upon them, during which nobody would look at Robin. John was reminded of a snippet of conversation he had shared with Tuck once. Only the desperate mistake volume for reason. Robin had already lost his argument, but he alone couldn’t see it.

  “We have plenty of time for her,” John urged him. “We’ll plan something new, and we’ll have Will and Elena to help, even. But not tomorrow.”

  Even Will, who would normally pride himself in picking at scabs, treated Robin carefully. “You’d never get to her. It’s just not possible. Every gord in four counties is there for the funeral, and they’re waiting for you. You’d be massacred.”

  “You escaped,” Robin insisted. “That should have been impossible, too. So you know a way in and out, don’t you?”

  “It wasn’t as easy as that.” Will hesitated to say it, sharing an odd look with Elena. “We had help.”

  Elena bit at her lip, then glanced behind into the woods. “We were hoping to tell you all about it first, but…” Something was said between them that John couldn’t understand. Then Elena skipped backward and cupped her hands over her mouth. “It’s alright, you can come out now!”

  The hairs on the back of John’s neck, they ever woke up.

  “Don’t be angry now,” Will started.

  “You brought him here?” Robin hissed, reaching for a sword that wasn’t there.

  “No,” Elena snapped back. “We brought her here.”

  The fog whipped around the edges of a cloaked figure, moving silently out of the blue-green nothing, and everyone scrambled at the shock of an intruder. John’s heart pounded and he strode forward. His first instinct was to move Elena behind himself, but she moved to meet the stranger. The heavy blue weave of the cloak gave way to a delicate woman’s frame underneath. Her face had both particular beauty and emptiness. Her head was low, her hands clasped, her face shut. But her presence was a danger.

  “You’ll be wanting to stay behind me, Lena,” John said softly.

  “What’s wrong?” Elena asked.

  “You led an outsider directly to our camp,” Robin breathed it. Twice now this night they had been discovered without warning, and whatever safety they once felt in the fog was boiling over into fear.

  “There’s nothing to worry about,” Elena was carefree, “she’s the one who set us free.” She tried to lead the stranger closer, but John moved his staff to keep them separate. He was the only one with a weapon on him. The others had left them fireside.

  “I know exactly who she is,” Robin warned. “She’s working with William.”

  “My apologies, gentlemen.” The woman’s voice shook at its edges, but she spoke with confidence. “I understand your caution. My name is Arable de Burel, and I beg for your hospitality.”

  “Hospitality?” Robin sounded alarmed.

  She tilted her head back, but her voice wavered. “I have nowhere else to go. I’m not safe in the castle anymore. Robin, you struck me as a kind man when I met you. I was hoping that if I helped your friends, as I have, that perhaps you would help me in return.”

  “She’s not with them anymore, and she means well,” Will explained. “She’s risked a lot.”

  “She risks less than you do, Will,” John scolded him. It would seem his incarceration had taught him nothing of thinking on his actions. “She knows where we are, and what we plan on doing.”

  Will didn’t understand. “She’s not going to tell anyone.”

  John lowered his voice. “They’re not going to ask her nicely.”

  The girl, Arable, had clearly not considered it, either, and started to tremble.

  “She’s not going back,” Elena explained. “She wants to stay with us.”

  “What she wants is to use us, again,” Robin sneered at the intruder. “I’ve met her before, she brought me a message from William, which I was foolish enough to listen to. I don’t know what she’s told you, but she is no ally. She can’t stay.”

  Will turned on him. “She has to stay, she’s in danger there.”

  “We’re all going to Nottingham tomorrow, Will. She can’t come with us.”

  “I thought we decided we weren’t going—”

  “We didn’t decide anything yet!”

  “There is no way Elena and I are going back tomorrow,” Will said with finality. “So Arable can simply stay with us.”

  “This is reckless.” Robin started pacing. “Even if you believed her, you should have left her in a village, someplace safe. If she truly wants to join us, we could have gotten her. Later. But you’ve decided it for us, Will. Again. There are things you seem never to consider.”

  “Such as?” Will asked. He positioned himself between John and Arable.

  “Such as the timing.” Robin glared. “We’re on the eve of something important, and a stranger from the castle is sudden
ly amongst us. Someone within the enemy’s walls offers to set you free, and all you have to do in return is show her where your secret camp lies. You don’t find that at all suspicious?”

  That wasn’t where John’s mind had gone, but it was a solid point. As usual, Robin was thinking two steps ahead of the rest of them.

  Will’s jaw was tight. “That’s not how it happened.”

  “We obviously can’t let her go.” Robin was thinking aloud. “But without knowing where her loyalty truly lies, she can’t roam freely about us, not even for a night. Not this night.”

  Elena looked as terrified as Arable. “What are you going to do, lock her up?”

  “We didn’t mean to bring her here, Robin.” Will’s voice was softer now. “We didn’t know you had a new camp down here, not until we saw the ribbons, so we followed them. We were headed north, to the Oak Camp. I’m not the idiot you think I am.”

  “Well which idiot are you, then?”

  “Settle now!” John burst out, fed up with their bickering. They were keen on extremes, the both of them, but the situation called for a bit of understanding. “Let’s at least hear her out.”

  Tuck agreed, and took the opportunity to approach the young woman. She still stood, wrapped in her own cloak, precisely where she had appeared. Her eyes were buried in the ground before her, but Tuck stooped to smile at her. “Arable, is it?” She bobbed her head. “You are either greatly brave to be here, or equally foolish. You’ll need to give us a reason to trust you, if it can be done.”

  She spoke only to him, somewhere between anger and terror. “I brought you two of your friends, out of the prisons, that were to be hanged. Does that count for nothing?”

  “Not if you bring back thirty guards here tomorrow,” Robin answered.

  “Tell them what you told us,” Will prompted her.

  Arable gathered up her cloak in her fists and tugged at it, trying to find a face in the crowd that offered sympathy. John steeled himself, knowing how easy—and dangerous—it would be to trust the kindness of her face.

  “I have no loyalty to Nottingham, I never did,” she said. “I was only trying to survive, but everyone I needed has abandoned me. And the Captain, Guy of Gisbourne … he was going to hurt me to get at William. I’m not safe there.”