The Eternal Shadow

Chapter 50

L

"Now, does she want an egg or bacon? She can't have both, I don't care who she is."

Much, God bless his soul, was in a quandary about what to serve a severely wounded Marian for breakfast.

Djaq however, was in a quandary about something altogether more serious:

"Pray to your God... and to mine. She is going to die."

She had done her best to treat the wound but Gisborne's dagger had hit it's mark with full force at close range – the odds of surviving such an injury to the abdomen were slim in the best of circumstances and here they were, in a cave, without proper instruments.

Djaq told Marian as much – to lie about something so serious was not a kindness so she did not sugarcoat the truth nor hide what she knew - she told it straight and in doing so, prepared herself and the others for the worst.

She was not giving up, no, never that, but she was not about to delude herself or anyone else as to Marian's chances of getting through this.

Faced with such frankness, the wounded lady felt that it was time for herself and Robin to have a serious conversation;

"So? Never lie to a dying man."

"You are not going to die and I have never lied to you."

"Oh, come on. We have never once spoken the truth to each other."

"This is not the time to argue."

"Do not tell me when it is time to argue!"

Brave, wonderful Marian - spirited to the last.

"I'm serious. We have never once spoken the truth to each other. For instance, I say you are a fool when I mean you are a hero. I criticise your actions then mimic them myself as The Nightwatchman. I chastise Robin Hood..."

"Shh..."

"I will not be shushed; these might be my last words!"

"No they will not be. They cannot be. Because we should be together! Marian, I should never have left you; I should never have gone to war. It was a mistake! And you were right, I wanted glory but believe me the battlefield is the last place you'll find it."

"You would always have regretted it if you hadn't gone..."

"But not as much as I regret going. Not as much as I regret losing you. Marian, I should not have gone."

"Robin..."

"I..."

"I love you, you love me, we all love each other. Drink the wine."

What a legend. One might perhaps think that Djaq was being a killjoy here but she earned that right by being a surgical ace whose primary concern was saving Marian's life. It was whilst doing that very thing however, that she came to realise that she was in over her head and urgently required assistance. Robin knew the very man and was now counting on Pitts in more ways than one.

He arrived in a whirlwind looking like he'd just fell out of bed. Indeed, for a man who had much to hide, he had shifty written all over his face. It was unsurprising then that Robin was quick to smell a rat. Unfortunately, this realisation arrived at the same time that the guards did (courtesy of the helpful trail of bandages Pitts had left for them to find). It all went downhill from there.

Marian died. Vaisey and Gisborne arrived. Their 'friend and helper' Pitts decided to make a run for it and in doing so ended up with an arrow in his back thus scuppering any hopes of bringing Gisborne to trial for attempted regicide...