Page 35 of Rogue of the Greenwood
The arrow was off. She heard its familiar zing, the sting from the slap of the bow. Her eyes remained on the target as the arrow arced upward, then began its decent. The speed was good… the angle was right… it became almost too small to see.
Then there it was:thwomp! The arrow hit its mark. She could barely hear the sound. Mr. Muchleigh and Henry did not seem to notice—perhaps they were too close to the noise of the creaking wagon and the jangling harnesses. The wagon continued on, moving into the trees and out of sight.
Marianne had done all that she could now; the next step was to follow them. But she was already out of breath from racing to get here. Her side had begun to ache. How much farther would she have to run? She was not at all used to such an athletic lifestyle, not since she was a girl.
She needed a horse. But she didn’t have a horse! Perhaps she could hire one, but that would take ages. Even if the wagon did leave a flour trail for her to follow, it would take far too long to locate a horse.
But what about a mule!She knew exactly where to find one of those. Sure, he was a relic, but Henry hadsaid Mr. Muchleigh used to ride him. He seemed a friendly, curious beast. Perhaps he’d be interested in going for a ride through the forest with Marianne.
She tossed her bow over her shoulder and hiked up her skirts, running once again back toward the mill. With the mill closed and the laborers gone, who would noticed if she borrowed Clarence for a while? She just hoped the old fellow was a bit faster than he looked.
Chapter 11
The chaos inside the hunting box had grown too much for him. The women had grown frustrated with the men’s domestic skills—or lack thereof—and they demanded control over any kitchen duties. At least this meant they’d all eaten well today. He was still hoping to hear from his friends in Nottingham with the promise of more supplies on the way. Robert wasn’t sure who ate more, his war-weary men, or the devouring hoard of bottomless children.
Either way, he was going to have to come up with some plan for future meals. He needed a plan for the future, period. How long would they need to stay hidden here? So far it felt as if they’d accomplished nothing toward the goal of rousting Gisborn from Greenwood Manor and bringing Robert back to life.
He still needed details about that dammed mortgage. That was the key, he felt sure. What sort of fight was he in for, how many parties were involved? He couldn’t sit around any longer, just waiting for others to gather information for him. He needed to act.
But how? The minute Gisborn realized Robert was alive, whatever scheme he was plotting would be set into motion. Until Robert knew what it was, he could hardly fight against it. But unless he could get involved and figure this out, how could he know?
It was maddening. Robert had been pacing outdoors, circling the lodge and hoping the fresh airwould calm his nerves. It wasn’t helping.
“Rob! Someone’s coming!”
He glanced up to see John calling from an upstairs window. They had decided that someone would be in one of the upper floors at all times, peering out the window to keep an eye on the overgrown drive that led to the lodge. After Much and Mr. Fraytuck brought supplies that first day here, the pathway had been partially cleared to make way for their wagon. The fear was that someone coming along the main road through the forest might notice that someone had recently used this forgotten drive. It would not do to have Gisborn ride up on them unannounced.
Robert didn’t take any chances. He nodded to John and immediately darted toward one of the rear doors to the building. He would make his way to the front of the lodge where he could see out. Hopefully their guest would turn out to be a friend.
He found a safe place to peer out and was relieved when an old wagon with two huge horses came into view. Perched on the bench were Much and a very animated Henry. Robert relaxed.
Footsteps overhead indicated that the others recognized their friends, too. Alan was first to come down the stairs and met Robert at the front door. They stepped out into the drive and waved as Much drove the wagon into the yard. From what Robert could see, the wagon was heavily loaded.
“You must have received my message,” he called to his friend.
Henry bounced in his seat, waving a neatly folded page. “I gave it to him! And I brought a message for you from Mr. Fraytuck.”
“Excellent. I will look forward to reading it; I’msure the good vicar will have some encouragement for us. Now, Henry, why don’t you run inside and see what Mr. Grover has been cooking. After you’ve eaten something, I’ve got a message for you to carry back to Greenwood.”
Henry beamed with pride that he was needed. Robert recalled being that age, eager to prove his worth and always ready to eat. Henry was a good boy. He did not deserve the hardships of his life. Robert shook his head. He was grateful for the boy’s assistance and hoped he could repay him in turn.
Making himself useful in the moment, Robert turned his attentions onto the wagon. “I say, Much. You have quite a load!”
“Indeed I do,” Much said as he swung himself down onto the ground. “You said you had a full house, with women and children to feed.”
“I have, believe it or not. They’d been put out of their home and were sheltering in the forest.”
“With all the rain we had, it’s a blessing you found them,” Much said, shaking his head. “Here, I brought flour, barley, and a good lot of cured ham. Cheeses, too. That should fill some bellies.”
“I can’t thank you enough.”
John and Alan made their way to the rear of the wagon, ready to start unloading. Much stopped them though, putting himself between the men and the wagon.
“Wait, fellows. One thing you should know… I brought along something rather dear, and I need your promise of protection.”
“If it’s a leg of mutton, I can promise to put it in a nice safe place!” John laughed.
“I’m serious,” Much continued. “Rob, I know youdon’t need any more worries, but we didn’t know what else to do. You’re the only one we could turn to.”
