A vein pulsed in Baron’s temple. Then he turned sharply and stormed away, boots crunching through the underbrush.
“What was that?” Will Stutely whispered. “I thought he was on our side.”
“Give him a break,” Little John muttered. “He probably didn’t grasp the full danger when he agreed. It’s better to know that now than mid-mission.”
“He was the sheriff’s son,” Father spat. “If he doesn’t grasp the danger involved, I’ll eat my hat. He’s just being a coward.”
“He isn’t a coward,” I snapped back, glaring at my father.
Baron wasn’t a coward. Not even close.
BARON
Icrashed through the forest, branches reaching out to snag at my arms and the underbrush crunching beneath my boots. They didn’t understand. Theycouldn’tunderstand. Every single one of the Merry Men stood there nodding along to that reckless, suicidal plan as if they were discussing the weather, not volunteering Laurel for a death sentence.
It wasn’t the danger tomethat mattered. It washer.
I snapped off a low-hanging branch viciously as I tramped on, the splintered wood sharp against my palm. Her so-called friends had presented the idea of her working alongside her worst enemy as though it was some ingenious plan. How was she so at ease with it?
None of them had any idea. They didn’t know what Prince John was capable of, but I did. I had seen the brutal treatment of his servants; I’d even participated in doling out those punishments when called upon. I’d seen the kinds of men he attracted: mercenaries with dead eyes and bloodstained fingernails.
A wide stream cut across my path. I grabbed the nearest rock and hurled it into the water. The splash slapped back against me,cold and satisfying. Anything could happen to her. Anything. How would I be able to keep her safe? And Robin Hood’s men expected me to pretend like this was some grand adventure? Laurel would end up dead within a month. I wasn’t going to stand for it. I kicked at the dirt on the path. Loose pebbles flew into the air and ricocheted off the trunks of trees.
A twig snapped. I turned and found Laurel standing there, arms folded, watching me with her shrewd, perceptive stare that always made me feel simultaneously seen and flayed alive.
I turned away.
“Quite the temper tantrum you had back there,” she said mildly. “If you’d woken those two Sleeping Beauties before Alan knocked them out again, we’d need a whole new plan.”
I didn’t answer. Any plan—anyotherplan—would be better than the one they’d concocted. If Prince John learned who she was… the vengeance he’d unleash would make my father’s punishments look merciful. They would torture her until they broke her. The thought alone made my stomach twist.
“Baron, talk to me,” she said. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
I couldn’t bring myself to look at her. “I don’t think this is a good plan. There’s too much at risk. Do you enjoy putting yourself in danger?”
“That isn’t it.”
“Then what is it? What am I missing? Everyone is acting like this is a good idea, but they don’t know what they are getting into.” My fists clenched. I tried—truly tried—to control my temper, but the thought of Laurel walking unprotected into that nightmare on purpose had scraped me raw. I remembered, with a jolt how she once told me my rages frightened her. I inhaled slowly, trying to force air into a chest that had gone painfully tight. I couldn’t lose control around Laurel. If I did, she might leave me without a second thought. I would be rejected, cast aside, and cut out of her life.
I looked to the sky as if searching for my answer there. Was this the life I had signed up for? When I agreed to leave my father’s camp with her, I thought I would be able to protect her. When she’d been chained to me, Ihadprotected her—even if it meant being the villain who kept her tethered. Now she was free, and somehow she felt more at risk than ever.
Laurel didn’t fill the silence. She simply watched, those bright eyes steady and unwavering.
I couldn’t watch Laurel risk her neck over and over. Sooner or later, gambling with her own life would end it. It went beyond wanting to keep Laurel safe. I needed to keep her safe. Losing my mother had nearly destroyed me. Losing Laurel? I couldn’t imagine it. My world would go cold and empty.
I went to sit on a decaying log, but it buckled under my weight with a loud crunch, and I ended up falling backward into the newly created pile of crushed wood. I stood, cursing, and brushed off the seat of my trousers.
“Smooth,” she said, one corner of her mouth lifting. “I know you aren’t scared,” she went on, stepping closer to me. “So what’s the problem?”
“I don’t want you to die,” I burst out, the truth ripping free before I could cage it. I pressed my fingers to the bridge of my nose, breathing hard.
Her arms slipped around me—small, warm, and grounding. I froze for a heartbeat, then slowly, helplessly, wrapped my arms around her too. The anger leeched out of me with every breath I took against her hair. Being held by Laurel never felt like an intrusion. It felt like relief. It felt like redemption.
How could one person carry so much fire and still be so soft?
She was everything I wasn’t. She lived for adventure. She was vibrant where I was grim, hopeful where I was hardened. Her heart was gentler than she’d ever admit, hidden as it was behind stubbornness and arrogant bravado.
But me? I'd never looked out for anyone but myself. I'd become a traitor so well practiced I could switch loyalties like changing coats. I'd betrayed one person after another, working my way up my father's ranks and backstabbing anyone in my path. I had always despisedmyself for living that way, but my whole life had been nothing more than survival.
