Page 69 of Far From Sherwood Forest

All of them are glaring hard in my direction as they head this way. My gaze moves between them, none of them really familiar. The times I ever got close to catching Robin Hood back in Sherwood Forest, it was either just him or him and John. His men liked to scatter, making it that much more difficult for me and my officers. So, while his entire band of men were fugitives, I never bothered to put names to the faces I rarely saw. I was always too focused solely on Robin.

But as they approach closer…

I recognize one of them.

And my brain stalls.

Everything slows to a crawl. Time doesn’t stop, but it sure as hell staggers. I barely manage to fight against it, like walking underwater against a current, before I can finally bring myself to move.

Before they’re in earshot, I grab onto Robin’s arm again and pull him toward the back of my truck, making sure to lower my voice anyway.

“Who’s that one? The one with the longer brown hair?”

He peers over at the one I’m talking about and then back to me. “Will Scarlett? That’s my cousin.”

My jaw clenches. My eyes narrow. Now that they’re nearly to the front of my truck and I can see his face more clearly, Iknowexactly where I’ve seen him before. My blood heats up rapidly, flames of fury dancing beneath my skin. When I turn back toRobin, I realize my entire body is shaking with it.

“He got Marian killed.”

“What?” Robin yanks his arm out of my grasp and backs away. “That’s ridiculous.”

“What’s ridiculous?” John asks as they all come to a stop beside us.

I can’t wait for Robin to believe me. Rage similar to what I’ve felt toward him in the past and what I now feel toward Ivy is boiling up to the surface until heat is radiating out of my pores.

Moving forward, I barrel my way past John to get to Will. I fist the front of his dirty tunic with both hands and spin him around before shoving him until his back slams against the side of my truck. I tower over him as he stares up at me with wide eyes, dazed and afraid.

“You led Marian to her death,” I snarl, my nose an inch away from his.

“Henry!”

I’m vaguely aware of Robin grabbing my left arm, attempting to pry me off his cousin. However, between my anger and the adrenaline, he has no chance of moving me.

Instead of backing off, I let go of Will with one hand and retrieve my gun from the holster at my side. Placing the barrel beneath his chin, I tilt his head back so he’s forced to meet my gaze. There’s still fear in his eyes but not nearly as much as there should be.

“I know you don’t know what this is,” I tell him. “Think of it as a smaller bow with a more deadly arrow. All I have to do to shoot it is pull this trigger.”

My finger grazes it.

“Henry, please.”

Robin’s shaky, terrified voice almost gets me to release Will.Almost. But I won’t, not until Robin knows the truth.

“Admit it,” I demand Will, pressing the gun a little harderunder his chin.

“Will, tell him he’s wrong,” Robin says.

Will doesn’t take his eyes off me, his chin trembling now, his chest heaving. His eyes are red and glassy, and I can see the moment he breaks.

“I can’t, Robin.”

That’s it. That’s all I needed. Just a confession.

Except I’m still fucking pissed off.

Letting go of Will, I return my gun to its holster, then ball my hand into a fist. Will doesn’t see it coming until it’s flying toward his face. I punch him straight in the nose, and the back of his head bounces off my truck. Blood immediately pours over his lips and down his chin.

“Henry!”