The Nightwatchman (English)(From Ashes Vol.2)

Chapter 54 - Broken Hearts

Marian stood up and she headed to the door of the tavern, as in a dream.
A dream, she said to herself, it must have been a dream. A bad nightmare from which she would awaken to find herself in her usual everyday life, in that same life that until a few hours ago seemed dull to her, but that now was desirable like a oasis in the desert.
Her soul was a desert, her heart nothing but scorching sand.
Guy had taken that girl's hand and he had brought her upstairs...
At that moment, Marian had felt something breaking inside her.
She had said to herself that girls in the taverns had no importance, that this was something many men did and that wouldn't compromise a true love. When she saw that woman dressed in such a glamorous fashion, a part of herself had felt relieved: if that girl was the Meg who had sent the message to Guy, then she couldn't be important to him.
But seeing the man she loved taking the hand of another girl to bring her into the filthy room of a tavern was more than Marian could bear.
Theoretically, she could convince herself that it didn't matter, but seeing it happen before her eyes was completely different.
She watched the stairs leading upstairs, and for a moment she was tempted to climb them, knock on every door and find Guy to snatch him away from that woman's arms.
And then? What would she do next? What would have been of them?
Marian felt the disgusting taste of the wine that she had drank earlier rising in her throat, and she ran out of the tavern just in time before giving up to nausea.
She leaned against a wall of the alley, trembling as she emptied her stomach, and she thought that perhaps that was the most humiliating moment of her life.

Guy jumped from a roof and landed on the one below, marked by one of Robin's arrows. He cautiously walked to the edge, and looked around in search of the next arrow to reach.
The night breeze made his cloak flutter, and Guy smiled.
At that moment, the whole city was at his feet, no one knew of his presence and he could reach any place in Nottingham by simply jumping from roof to roof without Vaisey's guards noticing him.
He was free, just like that gentle wind that refreshed the night.
Guy had missed that sensation.
He breathed deeply and returned to focus on the mission: he didn't want to disappoint Robin.
He followed the path traced by Robin, until he reached the narrow window of the warehouse. The opening was just large enough to let a man inside, but Guy managed to get in with some effort.
He silently passed a room with barrels and sacks of supplies, and, with the flat of the sword, he hit the guard, half asleep by the door. The man collapsed to the ground and Guy dragged him aside before tying and gagging him, then he removed the bar and opened the door.
Shortly afterwards, the outlaws slipped into the warehouse and began to empty it.
"Good job." Robin said, satisfied.
"That fool of Gisborne, huh? I'd like a bit more respect, Hood."
The outlaw laughed.
"Did I say something untrue? Now go back to the tavern and be careful, we'll take on from here."
"I could help you to empty the warehouse."
"No, I don't want you to take more risks for something that we can do on our own." Robin lowered his voice so that only Guy could hear him. "Your mission with Archer is much more important, and only you can accomplish it."
Guy nodded.
"I know. Don't be caught, then, because I won't be here to save your neck."
Robin laughed again, and Guy came back to the roof of the building, determined to go back as fast as possible. Until then, the mission had been a success and he wanted to end it without mistakes.
He jumped on a roof, and the straw thatch broke under his weight, making him slide toward the edge. Guy threw himself forward and widened his arms to try to slow the fall. He managed to stop a few inches before falling over the edge and he stood motionless for a few moments, breathing heavily. He was lying on his belly on a rather damaged roof and he had to be careful about how to move to avoid falling down. He cautiously raised his head to look around, and immediately flattened himself again on the roof, hearing a low sound coming from the alley just beneath him.
It was a kind of sob, the muffled cry of someone.
Guy wondered what he should do: in that place he was too exposed, and if he waited for that person to leave, he would risk being seen by some guard, and in any case he would return to the tavern too late, but, if he tried to move, the person in the alley could hear him and give the alarm.
He had to find out who that person was, and to understand if he would be able to neutralize them before moving from the roof. If it wasn't an armed guard, Guy could jump off the roof, stun that stranger, and resume the escape without any problems.
He leaned over the edge of the roof to look down, and he almost let out a cry of surprise.
Marian!
The girl was sitting on the ground in that filthy alley and she was sobbing, holding her face in her hands. Guy couldn't see her face, but he was sure that it was her.
He stared at her, his heart in turmoil.
Why was Marian there? Was she alone in such a dangerous and ill-frequented area of the town? And why was she crying? Did anyone hurt her?
For a moment he was about to jump down from the roof and to take her in her arms, asking her what happened, then he remembered that he was still dressed in the Nightwatchman's costume. He couldn't afford to be recognized by her, but he couldn't even leave her there.
He raised his head to look at the other roofs, in panic, trying to decide what to do.
The tavern wasn't far away: he could run there jumping from roof to roof, get rid of his costume and then come back to her as quickly as possible. He should think of some excuses to justify his presence at Nottingham in the middle of the night, but between him and Allan they would surely be able to put together an acceptable story.
That seemed to him the only possible solution, though he hated the idea of leaving her alone for the time it would take to go to the tavern and back. But it was just a matter of minutes, he said to himself, and he would run as fast as possible.
He decided to do it, and he tried to get up and move as fast as he could, when the roof gave way under his weight, making him fall into the alley.