Page 34 of Robin and Marian
Scarlett beamed at that. She was already atop a dappled Pinto. Its ribcage heaved under the saddle in eagerness for the coming race—one that she was dressed for in jeans, boots, and a light, red pullover. Marian was impressed with how easily Scarlett moved with the fluid motions of her horse. “I’m sure Midge will have fun,” she told her grandfather. “He loves spending time with you.”
“He loves his niece and nephews too,” Richard said. “You’ve done so much for my boy.”
“Well, I know which nephew he wants to be when he grows up.” Scarlett directed a proud look at her brother. She did nothing halfway—now that she’d defied Alan to accept Robin with open arms, Scarlett wanted Midge to take after him? It was too much.
While the King descendants lined up on the lawn with the other houseguests, Alan slanted the two siblings a narrowed sidewise glance and, for the most part, treated Robin coldly. Robin’s return was still putting a strain on his and Scarlett’s marriage.
Marian turned back to her horse, feeling nervous. Robin was quick to hold the reins while she mounted, and only surrendered the reins after he had calmed her mare. Then he mounted his own horse, a spirited black Arabian. He was amazingly spry with only one arm.
The sheriff walked past them, deep in conversation with Guy. “Bells, huh?”
“Yeah, the maypole is covered in them,” Guy said. “Just follow the sound of bells.”
Robin laughed at that.
Guy glanced up. “Oh? Richard’s favorite has this all figured out?”
“Since when did you start giving out tips to find the maypole?” Robin asked.
Guy ignored the question. “I wonder ifyoushould be riding this morning, Robin? You’ve made a habit of getting hurt.”
“It might not be wise,” the sheriff said. The hard lines of his face were cemented into a stern expression. “Remember your conditions of parole—no crossing county lines. Sherwood Forest covers multiple counties.”
Scarlett frowned at Guy and the sheriff from the opposite side. Her fingers fidgeted with the reins. Robin noticed her too, because he turned from her and kept his voice light, “Oh, I’m not too worried about it, sheriff. I’m sure you’ll be breathing down my neck the whole time.”
That coaxed a chuckle from Scarlett, and with a bright look at her brother, she tugged on the reins of her horse to get to the starting line. Tuck came in with his own steed—this one a chocolate brown-and-white paint. He nodded in agreement like he was already a part of the conversation. “You can’t be too careful, Sheriff.” His expressive eyebrows rose with his voice. “There’s crazy stuff going on.”
Somehow Tuck had turned into the sheriff’s unofficial assistant after the fire last night, offering all sorts of unsolicited advice. He was having the time of his life pairing that role with that of the scruffy youth pastor. He’d attempted to clean up his look with suit pants and a clean t-shirt, though the collar was still a little too low to be respectable. “If you like, Sheriff,” he said, “I’ll keep my eyes open for any funny business.”
Guy looked uncomfortable while the sheriff agreed to it and patted the pistol at his side. “Stay close.” They left for the refreshment table, and Tuck followed them, his horse ambling behind them like a shadow. The sheriff turned, confused. “Not close tome,” he clarified.
“Oh, right.” Tuck looked disappointed and returned to a fuming Robin. A bubble of laughter erupted from Marian’s lips.
Robin rolled his eyes. “So, you’ve found your new best friend? He’s Sherlock and you’re Watson?”
“He’s the only one looking into what’s going on around here,” Tuck defended himself. “Something’s not quite right and we’re going to figure it out.”
“You going to do that without the internet?” he asked. That momentarily stumped the young hacker.
The whistles blew to signal the maypole competition, and Robin didn’t wait for Tuck to answer as everyone lined up their horses. Richard had inadvertently turned this from a friendly race to a fierce one. Even Alan looked determined. Scarlett gamely went along with the fun. If Marian had had a chance before, she certainly didn’t now.
Guy climbed upon his gray thoroughbred, his jaw set. It was a hot-blooded beast with a long neck and legs. He spared Marian a glance. “Stay with me.” He crowded Robin with his horse like they were jockeys sparring before a race.
Robin wasn’t as immune to the rivalry as he acted. His horse chomped at the bit and stomped beneath him, and he kept the Arabian in check, but his impatient gaze was on the trail leading to the opening of Sherwood Forest.
Richard moved to the side of the competitors and tilted up his gun, shooting it in the air. In a squeal of horses, and shouts from their riders, the race was on. Two riders broke ahead of the group: Guy and Robin. They were neck and neck, their bodies one with the movement of their horses before they disappeared into the thick swath of trees that obscured the trail.
And just like that, Guy had lost Marian. Everyone else rushed on ahead too, including Tuck. He disappeared into the trail after Scarlett and Alan. Marian was a firm last. Her mare slowed to a trot, and she turned to see Midge in the distance, dashing around his father in his excitement. She waved at them before going into Sherwood Forest herself.
It was quieter inside this tangle of trees and greenery. It cut off the wind rushing through the grounds of Guy’s estate, and she inhaled the scent of moist, clean soil. The other riders left no trail of where they’d been. The forest floor was only a bed of green. Such romantic scenery reminded her of what finding the maypole used to be, with laughing couples holding hands to pick the perfect tree. How times had changed.
The bright sun filtered through the northern hardwood trees of birch, beech, and maple, making their leaves appear almost neon in color. Her mare was game to exploring, and Marian gained more confidence the more her horse answered to her commands. Eventually she found a trail that forked in three different directions. One seemed more traveled, and she took that, hoping to stumble across a living, breathing person.
Since she didn’t have a cellphone, she tried to memorize the landmarks to find her way back. That was, until she heard the sound of bells and remembered the conversation she’d overheard from Guy and the sheriff. The maypole would be covered in them.
Her heart sped up with excitement. She’d had no hope of finding the maypole before anyone else, but she’d love to beat out Guy for it.An ungracious thought.Still, he had more than enough of this land—not that Marian wanted any more ties to Nottingham, but she could donate it to someone who deserved it more.Another ungracious thought.She was full of them.
Marian followed the sound of bells until it was overpowered by a babbling brook and she lost it. Feeling like she was close, she explored around the banks for a bit until the brook widened into a creek. By now her mare was having none of it. The flies and other insects were especially thick near the water’s edge, and her horse jerked with impatience and broke over the water, splashing loudly as they went to the other side of the bank.
