Page 29 of Queen of Sherwood

“Brother,” I called out. “You understand, don’t you?”

“I don’t fucking understand any of this,” Robert said in a low, choked voice. “This is complete madness.”

I let out a frustrated huff, aggravated at the men’s reticence and lack of understanding. “Charles and Brandt never made it to Ravenshead. I agree, and we all know, that more Templar Knights will be coming here to uncover truths. As long as the townsfolk understand the ploy, we get away with this. No one saw a damned thing. No white cloaks, no red crosses, and certainly no duel for the land rights of William Elder’s property.”

“Good luck convincing a town of over a hundred people to stay mum,” Robert said, shaking his head incredulously. “There will be an investigation, Robin. Two missing Templar Knights? They’ll knock on every fucking door here. Someone will cry foul.”

I seethed, baring my teeth. “Then we answer that question as it arises. For now, we stick to this plan, because we have no alternative.”

Dead quiet. My rushing heart, slamming against my ribs. I eyed each man in turn.

When they continued looking at me like I was a stranger, and were still stunned beyond reason, I threw my arms up. “Don’t look at me like I caused this! Brandt tried to assassinate Will, and you’d better believe he was going to kill me, too. Dead men and women tell no secrets, after all. Would you rather me and Will be buried in a bush near a pond than these two righteous assholes?”

The men ducked their heads in apparent shame. Only Will stood next to me, standing tall, evidently proud of how I was taking all this. How I scolded the men, showing a new side of leadership that I never thought myself capable of. A ruthless, cutthroat flavor of leadership that held pragmatism over empathy.

“So? Are we in agreement?” My voice was booming now, bouncing off the walls.

John, Tuck, and Robert shared hopeless looks.

Slowly, they nodded.

“Good. Then someone go find Landon. We need to make this lie believable. And we also need to find somewhere to put Sir Charles so he’ll never be found.”

Robert did the honors, spinning and leaving the cabin without saying a word. An aura of shame and regret had wrapped around his body.

The ambiance was decidedly gloomy, so I tried to smile, even though it felt sickly and probably looked worse. “Hoy, look at the greener side. At least Ravenshead gets to keep William Elder’s land, right?”

Chapter 8

Robin

“So you see, Landon?” Robert asked, finishing the gruesome story.

The stocky deputy of Ravenshead stood with us in the cabin, eyes as big as saucers. He couldn’t take his stunned gaze off Sir Charles’ corpse. His face was lined with sweat and fear.

“Landon?” Robert asked again.

The deputy looked over at my brother, a dumbstruck expression on his face. “What?”

“Do you understand what must be done? For the sake of every citizen of Ravenshead?”

“I . . . I understand none of this, Robert.”

Landon, who had disregarded me with a quickness when I’d first met him, apparently had a rapport with my brother. He called him by his first name, and spoke to him like, well, another human being, rather than a nuisance. I wondered what their history was, and just how many connections Robert had made during his months back from the Holy Land.

“That’s what I said, too,” Robert replied, and then put a reassuring hand on Landon’s shoulder and squeezed. “My friend, there was no way past this. The Templar initiate never had any intention of dueling Will Scarlet for his father’s property. The honey farm and the cabin now rest in the hands of the people here, to do what is best for Ravenshead. Not the Templars.”

“Are you trying to twist this into good news?” Landon gawked.

Just as I’d done after Robert left to retrieve Landon: trying to show the sunnier side of this entire debacle. Turned out Landon didn’t much appreciate it.

My three mates stood with me near a wall, watching Landon and Robert converse.

“You’ve made criminals of us all, Robert,” Landon said. “No.” He thrust a finger in our direction. “They have made criminals of us all! I always knew the Merry Men were bad news. This just proves it.”

He wasn’t wrong.

“Landon . . .” Robert trailed off. He glanced away, then back to his “friend.” “You were always going to have to decide, eventually.”

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