Chapter 1
Guy lay on a wide mahogany bed in the master bedroom at Locksley Manor. He looked in the ceiling of the room, then sighed and closed his eyes. He was tired, tired beyond any measure. His face was pale, with dark circles under his eyes, the influence of strong emotion he had felt after his return from the Holy Land.
He shut his eyes and took a deep breath. His expression turned detached, his body stiffened, his head strangely empty; he felt like coarse creatures with dark, unfathomable minds. His surroundings seemed foreign and alienating. He was on the verge of getting up and leaving the room and the house, which he used to call his after Robin of Locksley, known as Robin Hood, had been outlawed. Now he no longer felt comfortable in his house, Locksley's house as he referred to it in his mind.
He was shocked with the recent trip to the Holy Land. He hoped he would kill King Richard and marry Marian upon his return to Nottingham because Robin Hood was dead and there was nobody to distract him from his mission. But everything went terribly wrong. King Richard was alive, he had no power and was still dependable on the grace of the Sheriff; Marian was not his wife and didn't love him. The only positive thing he achieved was Robin Hood's death, for he accidentally killed Robin who jumped in front of his blade as he meant to kill Marian for the betrayal of his love for her and for all her lies.
"Marian… where are you?" Guy whispered to himself.
Guy heard the soft flick of cloak against clothing, the slow footsteps a cautious intruder. He felt Marian's presence in the room, but persuaded himself that his mind was playing tricks with him.
"I am here, Guy," Marian's voice resonated.
Guy's eyes shot open and he sat up in the bed so quickly that his back clicked. He stared in the emptiness of the room, his eyes examining his surroundings. He blinked, his vision blurred. His face was as white as death itself, for he saw Marian standing near the bed, her blue eyes blazing with fire.
"How have you come here?" Guy shouted. "Why are you here? Do you want to tell me that you love him?"
"I came here to talk. I think there's been enough pretending," Marian said quietly.
He jumped to his feet. "I didn't pretend! I said the truth – that I wanted to take care of you and that I love you. You pretended that you loved me! You played with me! You used my feelings for you!"
Marian said nothing, only held his gaze. She shook her head in disappointment. "I thought that you can be a good man. I wanted you to change and turn against the Sheriff." Her face contorted in anger. "But instead you tried to kill the King and then almost killed me."
Guy laughed bitterly. "But I didn't kill you."
"You almost did." She looked as though she would spit in his face.
"Why did you love Robin Hood?" He sounded desperate, his voice edged with sorrow. "I loved you so much! I could have loved you more than any other man! I could have given you myself! But you…"
"I betrayed you," Marian finished for him, tonelessly.
"You betrayed me many times. I wanted to save and protect you, but you–"
She cut him off sharply. "And for that you meant to kill me," she said coldly.
Guy looked straight into her eyes; his gaze was not cruel. "I didn't want to kill you. It was an accident. I only wanted to make you silent." He hung his head. "I could not listen that you loved Robin Hood."
"Accident?" Marian scoffed. "You looked very determined in your actions."
He was looking at his boots. "But you are alive."
"I am," she said expressionlessly.
Guy turned his gaze to her. "And you are free now?"
She laughed at him. "How do you think?"
"He is dead. So you are free," he told her, his face blank, but his heart hammering harder and harder at the thought that she was without Hood and he perhaps had a chance.
"And you wish to marry me?" Her voice was edged with contempt.
"I think we can be happy now," Guy said quietly. "Hood… he manipulated you… he seduced you with his sweet words about justice and peace… about this weak King Richard who is the reason of England's misery."
Marian shook her head in denial. "Robin didn't seduce me. I loved him for many years, when he was away and when he came here and was outlawed. We were betrothed since childhood."
"He didn't deserve you! He was nothing and nobody! He was a mere thief and a knave! He was a hypocrite!" Guy protested, his fists clenched, his blue eyes darkened with rage.
"Robin deserved me," Marian interrupted him. "He is a good man, one of the best in the world."
An oppressive silence stretched between them, long and agonizing.
"He loved the King and England, not you."
"Robin is alive," Marian said sharply.
Guy jerked his head and stared at her in disbelief. He felt numbness overcoming him, his heart was hollow. "Alive? But… but…"
"He survived," Marian informed.
"But his wound was grave…" He stammered. He didn't want to believe her.
"Robin barely survived," she continued in a cool tone. "He was very sick for a long time. He had high fever and infection, which nearly killed him." Her eyes narrowed in anger. "He struggled for every breath for many, many weeks, and I prayed that he would recover." She smiled. "And he did."
"Congratulations." He took a breath, a deep steadying breath.
"People usually die from such wounds, but Robin's life was spared," Marian said, eyes hard on his again. "King Richard said that this is reward for Robin's bravery."
He cursed under his breath. "And how is Hood doing now?"
"You are really interested, Guy of Gisborne?" Marian hissed like a serpent hissing before attacking its victim. "It was a mortal wound. He survived by miracle and God's will."
"God would be fair and just if Hood died at my hand!" Guy screamed.
"Shut up, Gisborne."
"Or what?" He teased her.
"Just don't test my patience," she warned. Her face had a tormented expression for a moment before turning blank. "Quite a long time will pass before Robin will be the same man, for Robin is still not as strong as he used to be. He needs much time to recuperate."
Guy ground his teeth. "Then your lover is a lucky man."
Marian flashed a bright smile. "Robin is not my lover. He is my husband."
His eyes turned wider. "What?"
The charming, happy smile lit her face. "We exchanged marriage vows when he lay dying… when we thought that he was dying." She let out a small laugh. "And then we wanted to bury him and Carter, but we realized that he was breathing. It was the happiest moment in my life."
He began pacing the room. "Did you come here to tell me that you are happy? What do you want me to say?" He stopped and stared at her, his eyes stormy with anger. "Or do you want me to wish you all the best in your marriage to this outlaw?" He sneered. "A happy, long life and a brood of children?"
"No," she said briefly, her voice colder and sharper. "I only wanted you to know that Robin is alive and that you didn't manage to ruin my happiness."
"You said that. Are you satisfied?" he hissed.
"No," she uttered in a voice that resembled silken murmur.
"What do you want?" He stared at her, confused.
Marian gave him a fierce glare. "I want to keep Robin and myself safe," she hissed. "You almost killed Robin and me. You claimed you loved me, but you don't know what love is."
"I loved you, Marian! And I still love you!" Guy screamed. "You betrayed my love!"
"I was at crossroads. I had to help people and Robin, for what they are doing is right."
"You never thought that your lies hurt me! You ruined me and broke my heart!"
She narrowed her eyes at him. "And you ruined lives of many other people."
"I don't care about others!" Guy roared. "You lied to me, not any other man! You lied to me!"
Throughout all that time, Marian was holding her hands behind her back, and he didn't see a Saracen recurved bow clasped in her arms. Suddenly, she swiftly stepped backwards and brought her hands forward, a bow in her arms. Her eyes blazing in determination and anger, Marian aimed straight at Guy's chest, preparing to shoot an arrow.
"I told you that I want to keep Robin and myself safe," Marian announced, her mouth set in hard lines. "I didn't let Robin kill you in the forest and on other occasions, but now I see that I did a wrong thing."
"Bravado!" He laughed at her. He didn't believe that she would shoot him.
"Whatever you want, Guy of Gisborne," she parried, her face contorted in anger and disgust. "What is your love for me if you wanted to kill me but accidentally wounded Robin? Your love is love only in your imagination. You don't know what love is."
He made a step forward. "Give it to me," he said, showing at bow in her arms.
"This is Robin's bow." Marian smiled heartily, her voice gentle at the name of her husband. "I practiced shooting from this bow for many months while Robin was sick. And I will kill you from his bow because this is exactly what you deserve. Believe me that I won't miss."
"You will not kill me," he said with an impudent sneer, but there was a tremble in his voice.
"I have to," Marian contradicted, her face revealing sheer determination. "The King is still in the Holy Land, signing the peace treaty with Saladin. Until he comes, I want Robin and myself safe."
"You won't kill me," he replied hesitantly.
She gave a laugh, full of disdain towards him. "Oh, believe me, I will kill you."
Her face impassive but her eyes hard and focused, Marian nocked an arrow which wounded Guy in his chest. He didn't have time to step aside as an arrow struck him in his chest, penetrating his lungs.
"Marian… Marian…" Guy murmured, gasping for air; blood filled his mouth and he coughed.
"I told you that I would kill you," she said harshly.
He staggered backwards and tumbled to his knees. "Marian…" He raised his eyes to her. "Why?"
"For Robin and for myself," Marian responded flatly. She felt shiver running down her spine. "For King Richard whom you almost killed in Acre two years ago when Robin stopped you."
Gathering her strengths and grounding her teeth, she fired another arrow, this time in his neck. He fell on the floor, arrow protruding out of his neck and his chest. His eyes widened in horror at what had just happened, his heart beating slower and slower.
"For my father," she whispered.
"Marian," he murmured. He coughed again, and then his gaze went steady and fixed in one point. He dragged an agonizing breath, and shut his eyes.
Marian came to him and eyed his corpse. Guy was dead. She killed him.
She leaned down and, with an effort, drew out two arrows from Guy's body. She didn't want to leave them in the Locksley Manor as evidence against Robin, for she used Robin's bow. Nobody knew that Robin survived, except his gang and her, Marian, and they wished to keep it that way for many more months. Robin had to recover and recuperate, in safety and peace, in his beloved forest. And then the King will return to England, they will defeat the Sheriff and they will be allowed to go back to the Locksley Manor.
Marian cast a quick glance at Guy's body and walked to the window. She climbed to the window-ledge and jumped down, heading to the forest, to Robin and her friends. She wasn't happy with what she had done; her heart screamed that she had committed a murder. But Robin was safe now; she was safe from Guy. She could have spent all her days with her beloved Robin, taking care of him and helping him to recover. Everything will be alright now.
I love the concept that Marian kills Guy to make her life and Robin's life safe. If Guy had so grievously wounded Robin that he had barely survived, then it was the second time when Guy had almost killed Robin. As a clever, compassionate, and kind lady who loves Robin with all her heart, Marian losses her last respect for Guy and gives up on him as a man who can atone for his sins.
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