Page 74 of Queen of Sherwood

It was Robin’s decision, though, and I trusted her more than anyone. She was my world, and I’d follow her to the depths of despair if needed, even if it was an ill-advised trek.

We’d been out in the deep-thick woods for a while now, and had nearly traveled the entire road in one direction. Now we were giving our horses a break from galloping. The words were easier to hear without the wind rushing through my ears.

“You had honor before you joined—or created, rather—the Merry Men,” Robert said.

What is he getting at?

“If you want to call it that, Robert of Loxley.” I eyed him, riding abreast of me. “I’m surprised to hear you equating honor with the king’s army, after how you said they treated you.”

He chuckled. “Aye, true enough.” Scratching the back of his neck, he looked off toward the trees. He seemed embarrassed. Then he said, “I ask if you have honor because I need to know you’ll protect my sister when I’m gone.”

My brow arched, anger twitching my jaw. “You know I will, lad. That isn’t even a question. Where are you planning on going?”

“Oh, nowhere. Yet. I am a nomad by nature, though, Little John. I can’t bear the thought of bringing danger to the people I love from my own stupidity.”

I raised a single brow. “There’s that honor you’re speaking of. You’re a selfless man, Rob.”

He smiled at me. “I think we would have been friends in the army.”

“We can be friends now,” I said. “Best not to dwell on the past, I’ve learned, lad.” I was surprised I even said the part about being friends. I wasn’t a man who typically had many friends. Will, Tuck, and Alan were the only men I trusted with my life.

Could Robert fit in there somewhere, too?

He’s Robin’s brother, after all. She trusts him, so why shouldn’t I?

Alarm bells went off in my head at that thought.

I shouldn’t trust him because I’ve learned what happens when you trust strangers. Doesn’t matter if he’s Robin’s brother.

Every man is out for himself out here in Sherwood Forest.

It was a cynical worldview, but one that had kept me alive.

Robert cleared his throat. “I have a feeling danger will be chasing Robin wherever she goes, so long as she tries to destroy everyone who’s ever harmed her.”

“Aye. The list is long, and growing by the day. You might be right.”

“I mean, a bishop? That’s ambitious, even for my standards.”

I chuckled. Then my mood darkened as I remembered my stay as Sheriff George’s captive. Though it was months ago now, it seemed so recent when I thought of it. A terrible time—not just because of what George did to me, but because of the misery I felt being separated from Robin and my men.

I should have never doubted they would rescue me, with Robin charging front and center, running the entire operation.

“Like Friar Tuck,” I said lowly, “Bishop Sutton has only ever showed me kindness. When I was Sheriff George’s prisoner, he would come walk me through the yard—the only exercise I got a day. We would speak of penance and life. I can’t imagine he would be hiding such a dark secret.”

“The wickedest ones don’t advertise their vileness, Little John. My misnomer, Oliver? He was a childhood friend.” A dashing smile slashed across Robert’s face. “Robin would never admit it, but she fancied him when they were whelps.”

I scoffed.

Robert’s features darkened. He stared down at the ground in front of his steed’s hooves, flexing his jaw. “Me and a couple other soldiers caught Oliver raping a Saracen lass during one of our town raids, not far from Acre. As if the assault wasn’t bad enough, it was the idea of tainting his Christian blood that would have finished him.” Robert sighed and shook his head. “So Oliver concocted a plan with the other soldiers who caught him, and they placed the blame on me. Guess I had pissed one of them off at some point, and they were all for destroying my good name.”

My eyes widened. Christ Almighty.

“I was reprimanded and shunned by the army and my comrades. Only got let out from the garrison a month later, because we were running short on soldiers on the front lines. We did another raid, and that’s when Oliver met his end.”

I tilted my head. “No big remorse there, I’m sure.”

Robert flared his nostrils. “A childhood friend, John. Remember. Oliver hadn’t always been that way. Robin would remember him as the happiest lad. The military changed him awfully.”

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