Chapter 5 Part 2

Alexis drifted restlessly in and out of sleep, waking to the sound of scratching or weeping originating from some far off cell. Her shoulder now throbbed as the bandage grew too tight from the swelling. She could not move it no matter what she did, and it hurt with an endless aching.  Her head rang with a deafening roar that drowned out her thoughts and encouraged the panic that lurked unbridled in her breast.

But she mustn't give in, she mustn't give up hope. She bit back the scream that strangled her throat and rubbed away her tears with dirty, ice-cold hands. "Calm down," She told herself, rubbing her feet with her good arm in a vain attempt to warm them. "Don't let them hear you cry. If they know you're hurt, they win. Come on, you can get out of here. Just think."

She took a deep breath and let it out shakily, shifting her weight against the jagged stones of the walls and floor. "Robin can't save you, he has no idea where you are. If you had stayed with him, listened to him, told the truth..." She broke. Her head fell to her knees, her body shook with new sobs. She was sorry, the guilt of what she had done pressed down upon her like the iron chains binding her wrists. She had gotten herself into that mess, and there was nothing she could do. No one to rescue her.

She sat up slowly, forcing herself to swallow and breathe again. "Stop it, now!" She seethed, scrubbing her face. "Crying won't get you anywhere. You can pity yourself later, now you need to come up with a plan.

"Right. The Sheriff will be down here in the morning. You need to get out before then. Well, first things first, you need to get out of these chains. And the cell..." She bit her lip and settled back, lost in thought. The hours dragged on and she eventually slept again, her head in her hand, back slumped.

She awoke to the sound of clanging metal. Her heavy-lidded eyes vaguely made out the form of Gisborne as he threw open the door. Her head swam and she wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep, but with a few large strides he had crossed the room. He now stood above her laughing, "Well, good morning my little thief. Before you meet your new friend, I have a few questions for you." Grasping her bad arm, he dragged her roughly to her feet as she screamed out in pain.
Ignoring her cries, he shoved her against the wall and held her shoulders so she could not fall. She clenched her teeth against the increasing pressure on her broken arm and stared at the ground, hiding her tears. He was clothed head-to-toe in a well fitting suit of black leather that mirrored his dark hair and eyes. His grip was perilously strong and his voice was deep and threatening as he whispered to her, "We shot you in the woods. Your body was never found, and here you are, back from the dead, it appears! Tell me, who is responsible for such a miraculous situation?"

She remained silent, now staring defiantly back at him. He saw this and pushed harder, digging the bandaged arm into the wall until she cried out again and again and tears rolled down her face. But she refused to answer his questions.

"Perhaps you are so simple you do not understand me. A group of men in the woods, did they find you? Robin Hood, were you with Robin Hood? Answer me!" He roared, slamming her against the stones and then flinging her body to the ground where she writhed in pain. The world around her was dark and blurred, her head rang and every inch of her frame ached. Her lungs were tight and she felt she couldn't breathe as tears and cries strangled her, but still she said nothing. She would never reveal her secrets, though Gisborne beat her until she was dead.

"You insolent little dog!" Gisborne yelled, kicking at her thin frame repeatedly. "Tell me now, was it Robin hood? It was, wasn't it?"

"That's enough!" A voice cried from behind him. The two turned to see the sheriff himself leering in the doorway. "Now, now, Gisborne, is that anyway to treat a lady?"

Chapter 5 Part 1

Alexis struggled and kicked behind her, heart pounding, adrenaline flowing, doing everything in her power to get away, to fight, to survive. "Enough!" Gisborne roared as she nailed him in the shin. "It's over, girl, give it up." He twisted her arm behind her back until she screamed. She was being dragged further and further into the crowd, towards the castle. Will, as he stood atop the gallows fighting off two guards beside his cousin, was the last thing she saw before the door to the dungeon slammed shut behind her. She desperately called out his name, but no one could hear her.

Surrounded by darkness and the sharp echoes of metal chains and the low moaning of tortured prisoners, Alexis realized there was nothing she could do, and relaxed in Gisborne's arms. All the energy she had was gone.

Gisborne called out something to the jailer, a fat, disfigured man with rotten teeth and a malicious glint in his eye. In a moment, a cell door was open and Alexis was thrown against the hard stone wall, left in a crying, shaking heap. "My arm..." She sobbed. "I can't feel my arm."

"Well, I guess you won't be needing these, then." With a laugh, Gisborne strode to her and yanked the knives from her shoulder, tearing the strap and causing her to cry out again. "It really is unfortunate for you that the arrow missed it's mark. Death is pleasant compared to what I'm going to do to you." The man replied with a forceful kick to her ribs that took her breath away. "I'll be back in the morning. The sheriff is looking forward to meeting you."

*****

The men laughed and cheered heartily over their successful rescue, striding through the forest on secret paths that had thrown the soldiers off their scent. The sun above them was bright and glorious, and the air stirred about them in a way that was unusually warm for autumn. In front of them the prisoner stumbled confusedly, shoved along by Robin, protesting loudly from beneath the blindfold across his face and struggling against the rope binding his hands.

"Sorry, mate, but this is for your own good. But mostly for our amusement. Just trust us." Robin chuckled, putting a reassuring hand on the man's shoulder.

"Well, 'mate'," the prisoner puffed, whipping away, "I'm sorry to seem rude, but I don't naturally take to trusting people that openly flaunt the Sheriff and then leave me completely defenseless. What you did was incredibly stupid. Now I'll have to run away again, and I just got back. I had a girl back in Loxley and I never even got to say goodbye..."

"Well, if it was such an unwise act, perhaps we should have let you die there and spared us all your whining." Robin rolled his eyes, veering the prisoner away from the tree he was about to collide with.

"Maybe you should have. Now the sheriff is on my tail and yours, and you have yourselves to thank for it."

"You know, most people are grateful when they are rescued from the clutches of a slow, painful, humiliating death. And don't worry, we're not new to the gallows. The sheriff doesn't bother us, right lads?" Robin turned to grin at his men who answered with a loud cheer.

"I hate to be the exception, but I'm going back there to turn myself in. Just let me go!" The man shouted, tugging all the more forcefully, but his time in jail had made him weak and his energy was running out fast.

"Don't be an idiot! That's giving him exactly what he wants. If no one stands up to him, his greed and power will only increase. Listen, Mr..."

"Adam." The prisoner replied gruffly, trying to catch his breath and come up with an escape plan.

"Adam. You said you had a girl here, right? We help the people that we rescue by relocating them. We know of places out of the sheriff's reach looking for workers. We can send you there, you can make a home, and if you give me your lady's name, we can find her and bring her to you there. Alright?"

Adam thought about this. "Fine. But you promise she'll be safe?"

"Upon my life."

"Alexis. Her name is Alexis and she lives in Loxley with her brother."

*****

As the cell door clanged shut behind him and Alexis was left in the corner, gasping in short breaths of the rank, foul air. It was thick and smelled of blood and decay. The walls around her were cold and damp, and rats scurried unseen in the dark. Her whole body was racked with pain, her arm hung limp at her side and blood gathered at the corner of her mouth where her lip had hit a jagged brick in the wall.

"He didn't see me. He didn't hear me..." she whispered, remembering how she had screamed Will's name with everything she had, every ounce of desperation, and he hadn't even turned his head. "What did you expect? You left him, you left all of them for their own safety. It would be pointless for them to try and save you again. Why would they? You lied to their faces. You don't deserve to be rescued." 

Chapter 4 Part 2

photo credit: Cheryl Ruffing

The sun was high above Alexis when she entered Nottingham, the town's big ominous black gates slamming shut behind her with a startling clank. Her steps were wayward and unsure now and her head swam from exhaustion and hunger. Her shoulder ached as much as her legs and her mouth was drier than the desserts of the Holy Land where Richard was waging his useless war.  "Stupid man for recruiting my father, and worse, for hiring the Sheriff and then running away, leaving us to fester here." She whispered through clenched teeth, her voice sounding gravelly and far away. She laughed, realizing if anyone important had heard her, she would be arrested for treason. "Yeah, like that's the worst thing I've done. "

Her heart sank in her chest a little at these words. She had left without saying goodbye, without thanking them. A sigh crept in her throat, but she stopped firmly in her tracks and reminded herself that she had to do it, she had to leave for her own protection, not to mention that of the men. She was far too dangerous for anyone to associate with. 

After awhile, she found herself in the midst of a large crowd. Swarms of hot, smelly men, women, and animals jostled her about in the thick mud and dust beneath the heat of the sun. Something unhealthy stirred the atmosphere. Children cried unheeded and dogs barked and wined, but this was barely audible above the gathering roar. It was quiet at first, bearing the disguise of a few mingled whispers, and increasing every minute, building up into a tidal wave of screaming, shouting cries. It was deafening and terrifying. All pushed and yelled, craning necks to stare at one solitary spectacle: the gallows.

Slouching dejectedly beneath them was the form of a young man, his head covered in a thread-bare sack, his knees wobbling and his tied hands caked in blood and dust. He could barely stand on his feet and his ribs poked violently through his rough tunic. Alexis swallowed.  It was like looking in a mirror.

The crowd grew more and more deafening; somewhere a trumpet bellowed. She tried to shove her way back towards the food stalls, but the mass of bodies had swarmed about her in such a way that she could hardly breathe, nonetheless move. In frustration, she turned her ruddy head back to the morbid scene.

A drum roll started, its sharp staccato taps weaving their way through the crowd, and a stifling hush fell across the town. It seemed as if the entire world were holding its breath, waiting with animal-like hunger for the prisoner's hour of judgement.

Next to the wooden death trap stood the man who was responsible for it all: The Sheriff. Glowering pompously above the throng, his thin, razor sharp lips twisted into a crooked, disgusting smirk. He was not a tall man, but what he lacked in height he made up for in ruthless ferocity and manipulative manners. His black eyes darted quickly back and forth, always searching, always starving.

The vile man cleared his throat and began some long, hypocritical speech about his duty and love for the people. By this time, Alexis was too concerned with her moaning stomach and throbbing shoulder to take any heed of his words. Besides, if she listened to him too long, she might do something desperate.

But she was pulled from her pain filled musings when she heard the name of the prisoner. As the syllables left the Sheriff's nasty tongue, she held her breath, her face paled and she stood as though frozen, scarcely daring to believe what she had just heard. But when the hood was lifted, revealing the prisoner's face, she knew she had heard perfectly. "No." She breathed, sweat gathering on her palms and fear drowning her soul. "No!"

She struggled to regain control of her emotions, to think clearly, to do something, anything, but she was petrified. Before her on the blood-soaked wooden platform he stood, awaiting death. She swallowed and forced herself to listen to his sentence. The Sheriff's nasally tones read from the scroll in his hands, claiming that his penalty was death, as a punishment for treason, failure to pay taxes and resisting arrest.

Alexis sighed. He always was one for tempting fate, and now it had caught up with him. But she couldn't let him die. She stared into his face as recognition stirred within her and memories flooded her heart. He was still handsome, but drawn, thin and haggard from days of undernourishment in the dungeon. 

By now, the executioner had been summoned. There was no time to lose. Thinking quickly, Alexis pushed her way through the throng, finally reaching the platform. Avoiding the notice of two very bored-looking soldiers, she clambered up the side, a knife clenched in her teeth. She had all but made it to the top when things went completely mad. An arrow whizzed through the air and severed the prisoner's bonds clean in two. The place was in an uproar of terrified screams. She dropped the knife in astonishment and she plummeted back to earth, frantically searching for the prisoner and her dagger all while narrowly avoiding being trampled to death.

 Swords were drawn, the Sheriff screamed for his guards, a man grabbed the prisoner and disappeared among the crowd with him, and before she could call out to them, a large, gloved hand gripped her throat and she felt a man's heavy breathing on her face. "I've got you now." The deep, threatening voice whispered in her ear. Guy of Gisborne stood behind her, a broad smile on his face and the dagger in his hand, held to her back.

Chapter 4 Part 1

"Stupid girl!" Alexis muttered to herself when she was alone. She sank down to the mattress, her head in her hands. "Now what?" She had given herself away. If they hadn't figured it out already, it wouldn't be long. With a sigh, she resigned. Lying down, she thought up a plan, all the while wishing there was an alternative. But it had to be done. She looked up at the thatched roof, blinking back the tears gathering on the ends of her eyelashes. Her thoughts wandered back to Will. She would miss him, against all reason, all odds, she would love him and miss him, and he would never know.

When she heard the last man go to sleep, leaving Allan to keep the first watch, Alexis slipped out from the mattress onto the rough ground. Gathering up the blankets (she had nothing else to keep her warm), she tiptoed through the door, and stood under the clear, silvery moonlight that turned the night into a world of dancing shadows. Allan's back was turned from her and he was lost in thoughts of him and Ellen.

Quietly as possible, Alexis entered Robin's hut, but he wasn't there. Not sure if this was a good thing or not, but in too much of a hurry to care, she swiftly located the leather case of knives and stuffed it into her dress. She turned to go, but something in the corner glinted, catching her eye. It was a bag of gold coffers lying unprotected within her grasp. Her hands twitched to snatch it, her heart raced. That could feed her for a year, it could maybe even buy her freedom. No one would notice...

No. She had already taken too much, and Robin, trustworthy or not, had helped her when she needed it most. She had lost a lot of things in her life, but not her pride. When someone helped you, you didn't stab them in the back. Holding this thought firmly in her mind,she slipped out into the shadows of the forest. 

With one last, lingering look, she swallowed the burning in her throat and faded into the wilderness, the word "Goodbye" left dead and cold on her lips.

In his hut, Will saw her through a crack in the door as she walked past, and he made a move to stop her, but Robin grabbed his sleeve and held him back. After the sound of the girl's footsteps died away, Robin went back to his hut without a word, leaving his cousin to stare at the ground, his heart clouding with anger and pain.

"He was right," He whispered to himself, trying not to think of the way her soft, delicate fame felt in his arms, and how her eyes sparkled when she laughed. "She never loved you, you idiot. It was all a con, just like Robin said." With a bitter sigh, he wiped away an unmanly, stray tear and flung himself onto the mattress.

How was it possible for a girl to win his heart so quickly? And what a girl she was. He mused morosely and sleeplessly over the fact that he might never see her again. He tried to tell himself that she had betrayed him, that she didn't deserve love, but he worried about her despite all this. What if she got hurt out there, or arrested? She was so fragile and young; alone, with no one to protect her. 

Alexis awoke to a curtain of blinding sunlight thrown over her face and the sensation of something digging into her backside. Sitting up and blinking, she turned to glare ruefully at the knotted root that had nestled in between her vertebra all night. For a moment, she didn't know where she was, but looking about her, she remembered. 

After leaving the camp, she had wandered up and down the dark, shadowy paths of Sherwood until exhaustion overtook her and she all but collapsed into the damp, hollow cavity of a tree to sleep. Her dress now smelled of mold and was covered in mulch, but that wasn't the worst of her problems. She was starving again.

After spending so long in the comfortable camp with actual food and regular meals, she had forgotten what it was like to be hungry constantly. "Well, that decides it." She grumbled to herself, moaning in pain as she stood and stretched. "First order of business: food." Picking up the knives, she made her way into the dense foliage, hoping to catch something before the hunger set in too deeply and drained what little energy she had left.

The sun was high in the sky before she found anything edible. With a gasp of delight, she saw just over the ridge where she was waiting, a fat, jumpy rabbit. "Oh, thank you, Lord," she prayed gratefully, drawing the knife back with her good arm and whispering under her breath.

"Wait... Wait... Now!" She released her grip on the blade and it went spinning though the air towards the unsuspecting creature. But, just before the blade struck its target, a clear, shrill blast of a trumpet rang though the air, startling the animal and sending it scurrying away unscathed. Alexis jumped into the underbrush, her hands on her ears. The knife dug into ground as a large, loud hunting party raced by not twenty feet from where Alexis had hidden herself, trembling and frightened.

"You've got to be kidding me," Alexis muttered, picking up her skirts and cleaning off the knife when the riders had passed without noticing her presence at all. "This is pointless." She finally decided. "I'm already a criminal, what have I got to lose but my life? Even that's pretty worthless." Wiping the mud from her face, she marched off in frustration towards Nottingham, too angry and too hungry to worry about the risk.

Chapter 3 Part 2

Sitting by the fire, Allan recounted to Alexis for the fourth time his tale of lost love, but she didn't hear a word of it. She stared into the heart of the blaze, her eyes glazed over in a mist of thought. A certain young man was forefront in her mind, and she considered the way his face lit up when he smiled, how he pushed his dark hair out of his eyes, and how he looked at her, showing genuine concern, like he cared. His blue eyes captivated her; his kind and gentle way delighted her. He was so kind, and no one had ever been kind to her before. She always told people she hated love stories and thought it foolish to be in love, but she could not help entertaining thoughts of Will. 

What could be done? In her weakened state, she had been forced to adjust to current circumstances. Actually, she did more than adjust. She embraced and loved the camp and its busy way of life. She admired the men's jolly outlook and adventurous spirit, loved the freedom of living so far from laws and death and taxes, here under the beautiful trees and among the wild animals. She felt, for the first time in her life, that she belonged. This place was made for her.

And so, it seemed, was Will. Could he possibly feel the same way? There were lots of pretty girls all over Nottinghamshire. Why shouldn't he be in love with one of them? And they had only known each other for five days. Surely she was being a fool. She wanted to believe she was something special. Maybe, just maybe, she was enough for him, but what had she to offer? No money. She couldn't cook a meal to save her life. In the eyes of all the village women, she was a failure. Who wanted an awkward, gruff girl whose only talent was fighting? And now she couldn't even do that. If it weren't for Will, she would be dead, and she hated to a burden. She was probably nothing but a helpless child in his eyes. She didn't even want to think about what he'd do if he learned about her past.

But her heart didn't listen. It kept revisiting the feel of Will's arms, strong and protecting as he carried her. When she was too weak to walk, the sound of his steady heartbeat filled her ears as her head rested against his chest. She was in love, and reason had nothing to do with it.

Just as Alexis was picturing Will pushing a lock of hair out of her face and leaning in, closer, so close, his lips coming to meet hers, she looked up and there he was standing above her, two bowls of stew in his hand. She started and blushed, feeling the full weight of her reflections, embarrassed that their object was now looking at her. Would he ever know?

"Hello? You awake? What's so fascinating about the fire that you'll let me stand here with my arms getting tired? Here, take this." Will placed the meal in her hands and threw her a sidelong glance as he took his seat beside her, stretching out and warming his hands. The weather was getting colder, and the snappy chill in the wind told forebodingly of winter's approach. He had replaced his scarlet kerchief with an equally red scarf bundled snugly about his neck.

Alexis picked up her spoon and was flustered enough to take a mouthful of the steaming stew, burning the inside of her mouth and nearly choking on the hot meat and broth. Will clapped her on the back and asked, "Are you alright? I guess I should have warned you that it's hot. Here, drink this." And he handed her some water.

She took it gratefully, and once she had regained her composure, said, "What 'rich tyrant did you teach a lesson, and what poor, wronged peasant did you avenge,' as you so colorfully put it?" As soon as the words were out of her mouth, though, she wondered if she should have let on that she had overheard Will and Robin's conversation.

Will's reply seemed to indicate that she had nothing to fear. He said, "None, really. Gisborne decided to rip apart half of the homes and shops in Loxley, and we helped the people rebuild once the scoundrel left for the castle."

"Gisborne? Why would he do something like that?" But Alexis had to turn away as she said this. She just couldn't meet his eyes.

"He was looking for something stolen from him, but they didn't know exactly what. The thief wasn't found. And one man was cut down where he stood." Robin had answered for Will, as he sat across from them and fixed his piercing gaze on Alexis. She would have had to be deaf or daft to miss the tone of suspicion in his voice.

Alexis choked again, shocked by this bit of news and terrified by the look Robin shot at her. It wouldn't be long before one of them made the connection and realized she was the thief, and now she was responsible for the death of an innocent man. This was never what she had wanted.

"Are you alright?" Will looked worried as Alexis coughed and sputtered. "Something wrong with your throat?"

"Umm, I'm just tired. I've just been out in the cold too long. I think I'll go get some sleep now. Good night," Alexis muttered, springing to her feet and retreating into her hut.

Robin looked at his cousin, raising his eyebrows. Will lowered his gaze and fell to poking the fire.

Chapter 3 Part 1

photo by Cheryl Ruffing

Guy tossed and turned, trying to sleep, but how could he? One of his most prized possessions had been stolen by some dirty brat who had managed to get past his idiotic soldiers. Now the body was nowhere to be found and neither were the knives. It hadn't helped that the sheriff was in a less-than-amiable-mood, and had Guy running about all day, so that by the time he could bring some men to search for the knives, it was dark and the corpse was long gone. His irritation slowly gave way to worry.

What if he never got those knives back? And what had happened to the body? Obviously it couldn't just get up and walk away. Had a scavenger of an outlaw taken it? Or worse, had he, with some delusion of being noble — the dirty showoff — made off with it? Robin. Curse him! Guy had hated him since childhood.

Gisborne's mind wandered back to the knives and the memories they held. They had been a gift from his father, a souvenir of happier times. No! He would not think of that. Never look back. That was his motto; and it had served him well for years. Time to focus on the present. In the morning he would get a warrant to search the surrounding villages for the knives. Of course, he would not find them, but no one must know that he had been successfully robbed by a girl. Plus, terrorizing the villagers might be enough to draw that reclusive Robin out of his hideaway in the forest.

***

Days passed and, while Alexis began to regain the meager strength she had had before, Robin and Will again and again pestered her with questions about who she was, what had happened, where she lived. She stubbornly answered none of these. She kept her mouth shut but her eyes open. She was now well enough to come out of her hut and sit around the fire, watching the men go about their daily life — if one could call it that —  underneath the Sherwood. She saw them come back to the camp with armloads of treasures and food and drink and other comforts, and news of the sheriff's latest wrongdoings. Whenever there was such news, a group of them, always led by Robin, would leave the camp with their stolen goods, and many weapons, and some hazy idea of a plan.

Sometimes Will would stay to keep her company, when he and his lithe body and dead aim were not needed. Other times she was left in the care of Allan, a man strong enough in body, but rather light-headed and forgetful, he could never focus on the task at hand. Alexis soon found the reason for this: he had a sweetheart. How many nights had he bored her to death with confusing and unrealistic descriptions of his paramour's perfection? Her eyes: they were like stars! Her mouth, a red ripe apple, crisp and sweet at the same time. Her laugh sounded like it was that of a fairy. The only thing more ridiculous to Alexis's ears than these fantasies was the their object's name. Ellen. The idea of Ellen and Allan was so perfectly sappy that she actually groaned the first time time she heard it.

And each night, Allan's voice would crack as he told once again how cruelly they had been separated by her unjust father, who would never allow his daughter to marry a fanciful musician with naught but a lute to his name. Again and again he mourned his having to be apart from her for even a moment, and it seemed like an eternity since he had last seen her. He recounted with much embellishment his being framed for wooing another man's bride.  Him, love anyone else! Could Alexis believe that? No, she would obligingly shake her head. No, she could not. He had been accused of making love to some Earl or other's fiancé. The inhumanity of it all! Allan had been forced to seek refuge in the woods to avoid hanging, and had found his place among Robin Hood's men as a minstrel. He believed that he and Ellen were somehow destined to live happily ever after, but Alexis couldn't see it happening.

Alexis had no need for romance. She knew it was the stuff of fairy tales, nothing but goodwill and unrealistic dreams. Life was hard enough on one person — why support another person's sorrows as well?

Chapter 2 Part 2

Alexis breathed sharply and quickly through her nose, hating Will and his friends more and more with each crunching step that approached the hut. What could she do now? She was defenseless, weakened. Bracing herself, she turned to face the door as it opened slowly, and a man stepped into the hut, firelight pouring in through the doorway behind him, outlining his tall, chiseled silhouette, and concealing his face in blackness. Alexis was prepared for some malicious deceit, or even just a sword through her heart, but was startled when he spoke with a voice that was kind and gentle.

"Don't let him fool you. He's just like Will, trying to calm you down so you won't struggle," Alexis told herself. He came and knelt by the bedside, and she saw a darkly handsome man, maybe in his twenties, with hair a bit longer than Will's, and a well-trimmed beard covered the lower part of his face. His voice was low and strong, his eyes twinkled with a look of merriment.

"Hello," he whispered, placing his hand lightly on her chin and turning her face toward the light. "You had quite a fall earlier, so it appeared. Have you been well cared for in my absence? Will likes to pretend he knows what he's doing, but... "

Alexis said nothing, but looked at him through anger-filled eyes. If he made any sudden movements, she would spring, refusing to go down without a fight.

The stranger sensed her hostility and withdrew his hand. "Well, not much of a talker I see. How did you end up with that arrow in your back? A little run-in with the sheriff?" He continued, staring back. But what a stare! He seemed to look into her very soul, as if he knew already what she had done. His gaze was not cruel, but sharp, and it weighed upon her like a rock.

Alexis looked at the floor, and stammered, "I'm f-fine." She took a deep breath, regained her courage, and defiantly pronounced, "I don't have to tell you anything."

"No, you don't, but then I can't help you."

"Help me? You want to kill me. You're no better than that sheriff. You'll steal from me, then kill me. I know who you are — thieves, murderers. How will you help me? Will you ease my suffering, then help yourselves to anything I've left behind?"

"You think we want to kill you? I am Robin Hood! I don't kill anyone but in self-defense. And steal from you? What have you got that I could possibly want?"

"If you are Robin Hood, I want proof. For all I know, you could be some band of impersonating vagabonds."

"I'll prove it, but not until you can leave this hut, and I will not kill you." Robin reached out to touch her gently, but pulled his hand back, knowing she'd recoil. In a soothing, tender tone — so unfamiliar to Alexis's ears, Robin said, "Trust me, please. And get some rest. I'll make sure my men stay away. If you need anything, just call for me or Will." Robin turned to go, but not before taking a peek at the girl's wound. Assured that she was alright, he left the hut, knowing that what she needed most was time to rest and time to trust.

Alexis watched him leave the hut, glaring the whole time. Once his dying footfalls convinced her that he had left her alone (at least for the time being), she let out a long, deep sigh, and settled back down as best she could, trying to blink back the tears that sprang to her eyes. Haunted by thoughts of what her captors might do to her, she found it hard to sleep.

Outside, the men all paused in their work to look up as Robin emerged. "She will stay with us until she is well again. Then we will find her a new life. She's no different than the others we've helped." These were his words, but in his heart, he knew they weren't true. He had never known a female to be shot without a trial, and he had never seen anyone so young punished in such a way. What had she done to warrant this? She did not look like a criminal. She was scared, and it was all too evident that she had been tossed around by life pretty badly. He'd had no reports of murder, no stories of any great heists. The girl was a waif, most likely a thief, but if she had stolen money, where was it? Why hadn't she just been turned over to the sheriff? What had she done?

"Cousin?" Robin was awakened from his musings by the touch of Will's hand on his shoulder. "Can I talk to you in private?" He looked troubled.

"Of course." Robin replied, leading him up a hill at the far end of the clearing. They were about halfway to the top when Robin turned to Will. "I was just about to ask you a few questions myself," he said.

"It's about the girl."

"Go on."

"When I was dressing her wound, I... found this. It fell out of her dress." Will handed the pouch to Robin, and as he opened it, the light of the torch Will carried shone upon the crest. Robin shared a substantial look with his young cousin and let out a long, low whistle. It was one thing to steal a loaf of bread, but a person had to be incredibly bold or incredibly foolish to steal from a man as ruthless as Guy of Gisborne.