Sherwood Rogue

Chapter Sixteen

After the meal, a maid showed me to a room near where Andrea found my dress. It had the same view, as well as a big, soft bed. The chest at the foot of the bed was empty, so I dumped my pack, swords, knives, bow, and quiver inside, then looked around for something to pass the time while I waited for Will.

The room boasted a small shelf with a few volumes of leather-bound books. I perused the titles, mostly religious themes, until I spotted a worn copy of Homer's Odyssey. I flipped it open to make sure it was an English translation, then retreated to the window seat.

The hand-written pages were hard to read at first—I hadn't read anything in four years—but I was soon wading into the classic tale of a man called away to war.

I could only read a page or two at a time, and often found myself staring out the window into the darkness, listening to the unfamiliar nighttime sounds of the lodge. I must have read for about an hour before deciding I'd had enough of Homer for the evening. There was still no sign of Will. It was too early to go to bed, and I shifted my position on the window seat, restless. Unable to sit still any longer, I walked to the chest and grabbed my knife, strapping it to my leg under my dress.

No one walked the corridors. In the silence, my deer hide boots scuffed softly against the stone, and the rustle of my skirts sounded loud as I walked downstairs to the dining hall.

I was surprised to find the room completely deserted, all the benches stacked against the walls and the fire banked for the night.

I made my way to the cloaks hanging on the wall near the door and pulled one out to wear against the night's chill. It was large and dragged behind me, but I was only going out for a short while. Outside, I breathed in the chilly air as I looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings. A light down at the end of the courtyard beckoned, and I made my way toward it.

Seeing the stable, I walked inside, past the slumbering guard, to look at the horses. They were poor beasts at best, except the two Will and I had ridden in on and one pregnant mare that looked promising. Clearly, the lodge had not prospered in recent years. I shook my head. Will was going to have a lot of work to do to get Gamwell standing tall again.

As I left the stable, I shook the watch awake. He jumped, looking at me. "This is no time to sleep," I whispered. "It is the hour of thieves."

I left the man staring at me as I walked into the darkness. Hearing him get up to check the horses, I shrugged. They would learn to trust me.

I was halfway back to the hall when the moon sailed clear of a cloud, lighting the courtyard. I looked up, seeing the stars gleaming in the sky beside the waxing moon, and closed my eyes, tipping my head up to the light.

I sighed. It wasn't the same. It would take a long time to adjust to living in a confined area again. I missed the trees, the sounds of the night animals, the forest . . . .

"Did you get lost?"

I dropped into a crouch, drawing my dagger and whirling toward the voice coming out of the shadows.

"Jesus, Will," I exclaimed softly. "Are you trying to get yourself killed? You of all people should know how jumpy I get."

"Well, if you're going to be so jumpy," he said with a laugh, "don't stand about in the middle of the courtyard, looking up at the sky."

"My eyes were closed," I said sheepishly, sheathing my dagger and straightening.

"Eyes closed . . . . That's worse. You should be flogged!"

"Only by your hands, milord," I said, winking at him.

Will held out his hand to me and I took it. "I went to your room, but you were gone."