Page 64 of Rogue of the Greenwood
They rushed down the steep, turning staircase. At a landing below, Mr. Fraytuck waited for them, breathlessly motioning toward a narrow opening in the apparently solid rock wall.
“Here,” he said, ushering them forward. “Hurry in. I will tell them you left by another way. Miss Maidland, I have placed your things at the bottom—you will find them there. I didn’t realize that you’d be leaving with an escort.”
She wasn’t sure what he meant, exactly, but was glad that he’d thought ahead. Apparently this was the way out of here, and he was kind enough to have hidden her things. When she’d arrived, she’d been wearing a simple gown over her costume, with a cloak over that to conceal that the gown was not fastened behind. Before announcing herself to the vicar she had removed the gown and cloak, donned the cap, and left her items in a packet. The vicar had commended her resourcefulness, even as he had scolded her. He’d somehow managed to place her things where she could retrieve them and redon her clothes, hiding the costume so she could return home.
“Thank you, my friend,” Robert said, slapping the vicar on his shoulder.
“You’d best thank me a bit more forcibly, if you don’t want me arrested for collusion.”
“Is that truly necessary?”
“You know it is.”
Robert sighed and Marianne wondered what should cast such a worried look over his face. He seemed very grim when he replied.
“Very well. Forgive me, then.”
“I will, if you do an adequate job of it,” the vicar said.
Robert shook his head, took a deep breath, then whirled around and landed his fist into the vicar’s plump face. The man’s nose bloodied immediately, and he staggered backward.
Marianne cried out but Robert took her elbow and shoved her into the dark opening in the wall. Her quiver with a few remaining arrows banged and scraped against the wall as she found herself in a narrow passage. Asecretpassage! She turned back over her shoulder to see the vicar righting himself and actually thanking Robert for his cruel treatment. Robert wished him well, then entered the passage with her. Mr. Fraytuck shoved a huge stone panel over the opening behind them. They were left alone in total darkness.
“Why on earth did you hit him?” she hissed.
“You would not want the sheriff to think the good vicar was in league with Robin Hood and allowed him to escape, would you? I had to leave them reason to believe he’d been overpowered.”
At least that made a bit of sense, but she truly could not like it. She snapped at him.
“In order for us to escape the poor man had to have his nose broken?”
“I didn’t break it,” Robert claimed.
He squeezed past her—holding tight to her hand—and led her down another set of narrow, twisting stairs that seemed to wrap around the wooden staircase on the other side of a stone wall.
“At least, I don’t think I did,” he added. “Come along, though. He’ll no doubt send the men off on another route, but we ought to get you home asquickly as possible. What the devil were you thinking, anyway?”
She didn’t care for his accusatory tone, but she was glad that he seemed to know the way they should go. She could see nothing but blackness around them and had to feel for each step.
“I heard Mr. Gisborn say that he intercepted a note,” she explained, keeping her voice low. “He was planning to catch Robin Hood in the very act of thievery!”
“You honestly believed we would come rob from the church?”
“I didn’t know what to believe. I just… I just knew I couldn’t let him capture you.”
He paused. She couldn’t see him, but she could feel that he’d turned in the darkness to face her. As he was on the step below, he would have been directly at eye level.
“Thank you, Miss Maidland. That was really quite brave.”
She beamed and was glad that he could not see the warm flush that came over her face. He called her brave! He appreciated what she’d done. The thought of it made her unaccountably happy.
Then he ruined it.
“It was stupid, though,” he went on. “You could have got yourself tossed in gaol. Or worse! One of those men out there could have shot you.”
“Just as they could have done to you!” she said. “You ought to be grateful I was willing to help.”
“I’ll be grateful when you are safe. Come on.”
