Chapters (76)
- Title Page
- Copyright Notice
- Dedication
- PROLOGUE
- PART I
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- PART II
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- PART III
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- INTERLUDE
- PART IV
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- INTERLUDE
- PART V
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- PART VI
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- INTERLUDE
- PART VII
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- PART VIII
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- EPILOGUE
- AUTHOR’S NOTE
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- ABOUT THE AUTHOR
- Newsletter Sign-up
Marion finally chose to speak. “I thought you were in favor of doing nothing, Robin. You were the one that wanted us keeping to ourselves.”
His eyes accepted the blame. “Things have changed. We’re at war now. And that’s my specialty.”
“War?” He had treated the word as casually as a friend’s name, rather than a line Marion had never wanted to cross.
“First thing’s first,” Robin continued. “We’re getting Scarlet and Elena back.”
Marion’s eyebrow cocked itself, while John gave a low whistle. “Back, now? You say they’re locked up in Nottingham Castle.”
“Castle Rock is impenetrable,” Arthur said.
“They did it,” Robin shot back. “They got inside to kill the Sheriff, didn’t they? Two of them, without a plan. I’m willing to bet we can do better.”
But John disagreed. “The castle was empty that night, Robin. All the guards were out on raids. They must have taken advantage of that. But now, after what they’ve done, I’d bet it’s locked down tighter than ever. Don’t mistake me now, I love them both, I’d do anything to have them back here, if for no other reason than to smash their heads together. But we can’t save them. We lost.”
“That may be how it feels,” Robin laughed, “but it’s not how it looks from the outside. People are flocking to you. They want to join Marion’s Men. And why?” he asked, his voice alive and surging. “It’s certainly not for the stew. It’s not for safety. It’s because of what we represent, and what they represent. The Sheriff, the Captain, the Guard, they’re the men who come into your home and take what’s yours. They’re the men who kill children in the streets. And who are we? We’re the ones who said no to that injustice. We’re the ones who rob from the rich and give to the poor. We’re the ones who killed the Sheriff when he became too greedy. We’re the ones who are winning.”
Something swam in Marion’s mind as he continued. He made it sound so easy, a world in which every man and woman controlled her own destiny, rather than simply found ways of surviving each new woe. She had practically abandoned that idea barely ten minutes ago, and now he made it sound like a tangible thing, which they simply had to reach out and take. The forest blurred away behind him.