Page 4 of The Wicked Prince

John held his bleeding hand in the other, clutching it to his chest and swearing under his breath. The guards continued dragging Robin back, as she now struggled against her restraints to get another crack at him. She screamed incoherently as one of them put her gag back on her, smearing the blood on her cheek.

Robin Hood was absolutely feral.

The doors slammed shut.

And Prince John was just getting started.

Chapter2

The second the Sheriff’s men hauled Robin into the dungeons, her Merry Men started clamoring.

“Where did you take her?” Will Scarlet.

“Hey! Answer us, you big ugly brute!” Alan-a-dale.

“What did ye do to her?” Little Jon.

The guards didn’t answer, instead choosing to throw her in an empty cell and locking it. Robin reached up and removed the gag, and their questions all started anew as the guards hurried away.

“Robin! Where’d they take you? Did you see Prince Parasite?” Will called out from the cell beside her.

“Are ye injured? What happened? Can ye speak?” Little Jon from the cell across from hers.

“If they put their hands on you, I swear, I’ll—” Alan from the cell beside Little Jon. She waved her hand and they all fell silent as she pushed herself up.

She just grinned at them and said, “Don’t worry, boys, this blood’s not mine.”

“Whose is it?” Will asked, narrowing his eyes in the dim dungeon light. A girl hides a sprained wrist, a cut leg, an arrowhead in her shoulder, a twisted ankle, and other various small injuries a few dozen times and suddenly every man becomes a mother hen.

And this was exactly why. She couldn’t let them worry about her. She had to put on a brave face. She had to be just as strong as them.

Robin wiped at her face with her manacled hands, making her filthy sleeve even filthier. “Prince John’s.”

Alan scoffed. “Be serious, Robin. If you’re injured—”

“I am serious! It’s not my fault no one ever taught him to keep his hands to himself!” Robin shook her head. “Apparently his royal education didn’t tell him that wild animals are prone to biting.”

Little Jon broke the silence with his deep voice, saying, “That’s our Robin.”

Will and Alan relaxed, and after a beat, started laughing uproariously. They’d been foolish to worry about her for even a second. That was exactly what she wanted.

Although she knew they would worry if she told them what Prince John had said. They’d lose their minds, and there was no sense in that while they were all stuck in their cells unable to do anything about it. Her men had done a good job protecting her ever since she came to them; she tried to return the favor and prove herself worthy of it. She owed them everything.

Besides, Prince John certainly hadn’t been serious. Prince John hadn’t been serious about anything a day in his life. He was a walking joke.

No. He’d only said that because he was trying to get into Robin’s head and mess with her before he killed them all.IfRobin couldn’t figure out a way to break all of them out of the dungeons before then.

She’d been counting on the Sheriff to make a mistake while transporting them to Lathe, so they could escape before she ever had the misfortune to see Prince John’s face again. She hadn’t expected themnotto make a mistake. They always made a mistake. They used to, at least. This time, they’d been extremely well prepared.

Robin looked over at her men, her family, and she cursed herself for being the reason they were all going to wake up to nooses. She’d gone running the second she heard Marian was going to marry Guy—the man who had been trying to arrest Robin for years simply to raise his meager status. The man who clearly was only pursuing Marian to marry his way into her nobility and wealth. The man who was the only known friend of Prince John.

Frankly, his association with Prince John alone was enough.

Although friend was probably the wrong term. Prince John wasn’t capable of having friends. Lackey was probably more accurate.

Robin generally stayed away from Marian for her cousin’s safety, but she wasn’t going to be safe marrying someone completely in Prince John’s pocket. She couldn’t believe her cousin had gone through with it. Robin had been too late to stop Marian; she’d had to settle for trying to convince Marian to run away with her and the men, but apparently Marian actuallylovedGuy.

Marian had tried to explain it, claiming Guy wasn’t the villain he seemed to be and had a good heart. But Robin wasn’t buying it for a second.

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