Chapter 1:

Six years later

"Oh my gosh, Perry! Stop being such a freak!"

"Well, you know what, Gwido?! You can go fu-!"

"Language!"

Aunt Della didn't even look up from her tiny bible as she scolded six-year old Peregrine, who looked at Gwido with rage. Peregrine's round face was red from the sun, and his jet-black hair was slick with sweat from playing all day. Standing in front of him was Gwido, his fists clenched in anger and his green eyes fixated on Peregrine.

"But—"

"No buts," Aunt Della told Peregrine, finally looking at both of the boys. She raised her head in disappointment. She wore a wide-brimmed hat which matched her lavender gown, both of which were overly extravagant, especially for such a hot day. "You are my godson and I taught you better than that. Gee, if you're gonna swear, use something better, damn it!"

Gwido stomped his foot on the grass and crossed his arms defiantly. "Well, you're swearing, Auntie. Don't be such a hypocrite. You know what the Good Lord says about the hypocrites."

Aunt Della raised an eyebrow with amusement. "Listen here, Gwido Sebastian. I have memorized the Good Book and I know what the Good Lord says. He also says to love your brother because if you hate your brother, then you're a murderer."

Peregrine's dark-blue eyes widened and he took a step back from Gwido, fear evident on his face.

"So Gwido is a murderer?" Peregrine asked, realization dawning upon his round face. "I knew it! He's evil!"

"Well, you know what?" Gwido shouted at Peregrine. He charged towards his brother like a bull, and the two fell on the grass, wrestling each other.

Aunt Della got up and tried to break up the fight without hurting herself in the process. Then, she gasped and screamed when the boys rolled around the grass, not paying attention when they bumped into a little boy of five years of age, his olive-green eyes widening when he fell. He had been playing with a two-year old toddler.

The five year old landed in a puddle of mud, after which he started crying. His brown hair was covered in the mud, which then dripped onto his face. Gwido and Peregrine looked at the boy with looks of regret on their faces.

"He started it!" Peregrine pointed a finger at Gwido when Aunt Della came marching in, enraged.

"No, he started it!" Gwido pointed a finger at Peregrine.

"No, you did!"

"No, you did!"

"Stop it, the two of you!" Aunt Della lifted the five year old boy to his feet. She wiped the tears and the mud from his face with her handkerchief. Then, she picked up the youngest of the four boys. Luckily, the two-year old didn't cry; he was only dazed at what was going on, his blue eyes wide with bafflement. However, his brown hair was speckled with mud. Aunt Della looked at Gwido and Peregrine with a stern expression on her face. "You're both setting a bad example to your little brothers! You know what the Good Lord says about those who give scandal to the little ones!"

Gwido rolled his eyes. "Enough, Auntie! Please! It was Mirek's fault he wasn't watching."

"Wha-!" Aunt Della almost laughed at the absurdity of Gwido's excuse. "Mirek is only five years old! And might I say that you almost caused Aidan to fall and hurt himself, and he's only two!"

Peregrine snickered. "Yeah, Greedie. He's only two."

Gwido shoved Peregrine to the ground. "Oh, stuff it, Perry!"

Peregrine scrambled up as soon as Gwido pushed him down. He held his head up in defiance and pride. "You will never, ever tell me what to do, Gwido! Ever!" At that, Peregrine walked away to play with some of the other children in the village.

Aunt Della shook her head in amazement before setting two-year-old Aidan onto the ground. As soon as Aunt Della let go of him, Aidan ran to play with Mirek and the other boys from the village who came previously to play with them. Aunt Della watched as Peregrine angrily walked away, his fists planted on either side of him.

Aunt Della sighed as she watched Peregrine. "I simply can't believe it. Not only does he look like the vermin—poor child—but he also acts like the vermin! What ever shall I do!?"

Gwido, who had calmed down significantly, looked at Aunt Della in confusion. "Why do you always call Daddy the vermin?"

Della patted Gwido's back. "One day, Gwido. One day, you will understand. It's a long story, goes way back, long before you were born."

Gwido shrugged his shoulders before he ran off to join Mirek and the other children. Still, Aunt Della couldn't help but notice as Peregrine and Gwido avoided each other like the plague and how in their eyes burned unhealthy rage for children their age, especially since they were brothers.

Aunt Della walked towards the boys and sat down on a nearby bench, opening her little bible once more. But she didn't read; instead, she kept a close eye on the boys, who laughed and played, enjoying that blissful moment of their childhood.

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Meg looked out the window from her bedroom, gnawing at her fingernails in ever-increasing worry.

She turned away abruptly and started to cry. She tried to calm down, as it wouldn't be healthy for her baby, but calming down was proving to be problematic for her. Meg placed her hand over her growing belly and allowed herself to cry even more. At least the boys wouldn't be there to inquire. They were inquisitive children, especially Gwido. He never ran out of questions to which he had no answer to. Meg could only imagine his curiosity and a million questions afterwards if he even saw that his mother was in an awful state of anxiety.

Meg took a deep breath, but it only increased her crying. She leaned against the wall, as if trying to find balance, but that did not staunch her tears. Throughout the past couple of months, the words were swimming in her head, refusing to go away from her.

For the first time since she lived in Locksley, she lived in utter fear.

The sounds of a horse neighing and galloping and the children greeting someone roused Meg from her thoughts. She looked out the window and saw her sons run towards Guy, who had just arrived home. She managed to smile when Guy wrapped all of their sons in this big bear bug, greeting each one of them with a kiss.

Meg heard Guy ask for her but Clotilda, their maidservant, replied that she was in her bedroom, and had not been outside all day.

Meg closed her eyes in shame. Her distress would be as conspicuous as sunlight, and, therefore, she would have to explain to her husband the reason behind it. She already guessed what his reaction would be.

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The door to their bedroom opened. Guy entered it and immediately closed the door behind him. He couldn't see Meg's face; she was facing the window. He removed his sword and jacket and lightly threw them onto the bed.

"Meg," he said, wondering at her silence. She would always greet him by running to him and wrapping her arms around his neck, overjoyed that she would see him again. This time, she did not even move when he entered their bedroom. It was so unusual that Guy thought that perhaps she didn't hear him as he arrived.

Then, he heard her sniffle. Guy knew that it had to be her trauma. It happened multiple times before during their eight years of marriage. He paced towards her. "Meg! Are you all right?" And even after eight years, his concern for her and her well-being never dwindled.

Meg hung her head in shame and buried her face in her hands. Guy wrapped his arms around her, but it resulted in stiffness. Usually, Meg would gladly accept his embrace and bury her face in his chest, but now, she seemed as if she didn't want any of Guy's solicitousness. Now, Guy was bewildered.

"We were threatened," Meg said between sobs. "Our children and me."

The moment Guy heard that, all hell broke loose in his mind. Immediately, he plotted how they would die, whoever dared to threaten his family.

Meg pulled herself away from Guy and turned away. "Comments, cold looks, indifference, I ignored and pushed away. But threatening our children, I cannot ignore that!"

Guy nodded. "Who were they? You need to point them out to me, for I will hunt them down! Whoever threatens you and our children have already placed the noose around their necks!"

Meg shook her hand. "I don't know who they were." She took a deep breath, still looking away. "They hate me, the villagers and everyone else breathing in England. No matter how hard I try, no matter how hard I try to be a good lady of Locksley, they still resent me. You don't belong here, foreigner, they say even as I walk to the marketplace or even on the road. Go back to where you came from. This is England. But nothing can be as terrible as threatening to kidnap our children and send them to France or my country!"

Guy opened his mouth to respond, but Meg turned to Guy and interrupted him.

"They hate me because I'm a foreigner!" she said. "They hate me because I come from a different country. Ever since I started living here as Lady Gisbourne, I've been received with nothing but resentment. I could ignore comments and cold looks, but threatening my children is too much! I try to be a compassionate lady, but whoever threatens our sons deserves no compassion!"

Meg looked away again. "I don't understand it all, this-this hatred. The villagers, especially, hate me. But what wrong have I done? Is coming from another country such a crime in their eyes? They treat me as if I were a common dog. I'm a human being, not an animal!"

Anger burned within Guy. It took everything in him to not go out and send all of the villagers to the noose.

"I want you to point out to me those who threatened you and the children. I will deal with them," he said finally.

Meg gulped. "Just, don't be callous."

"Callous? Meg, I will inflict punishment on them as I see fit."

"But-"

"You are terrified, Meg! I can't stand the possibility that you, our children, and-" Guy rested his hands on Meg's belly -"our baby could be hurt."

"But you know I don't like it when you turn cruel. Just, don't be cruel. No killing."

"Whoever threatens our sons deserve no compassion. Your words, Meg. You are a kind and compassionate person, but you cannot allow yourself to be walked all over. Don't let these monsters get away with threatening you and our children. I reiterate, Meg, I will inflict punishment on them as I see fit. You are the lady of this Manor. You deserve to be treated like one, namely, with respect. You and the children cannot feel unsafe, and I will see to your and their safety. Just, point out to me who send the threats and I will deal with them."

This gave Guy a sense of déjà vu. He recalled how his own mother was received with hate as long as he could remember just because she came from another country. He tried to defend her, but he was considered a child back then. Also, people would not take him seriously because he shared his mother's blood. He tried doing what his father was supposed to do-defend Ghislaine-but Roger was always at war. And that made Guy bitter about his father.

He did not want a repeat of what happened with his mother.

Guy wrapped his arms around Meg and rested his forehead atop hers. Right now, he wanted to hold her and protect her. He was constantly away at the castle and other places, so he wanted to cherish that moment he had with his wife. Even though his children were outside, Aunt Della was there, watching them. Although she was a rather eccentric and crazy person, she could send death glares and probably death itself to those who even looked at the boys the wrong way.

Guy smiled as he placed his hand on Meg's growing belly. "Our fifth bundle of joy. I eagerly anticipate our new addition."

Meg could not help but smile. When her husband smiled, it was hard for her to not do the same. He had ways of loving her that no other man could even dream to have. He always made her feel safe and loved. And, he established himself many times before as someone she could go to whenever she felt like she needed to talk with somebody.

And she trusted him with all her heart. That was the best part in their relationship. They both trusted each other.

"I hope it's a girl," Guy said softly.

"We'll have to wait five months to find out," Meg said, her smile broadening. "However, I already have some ideas for names."

"Really? Well, you're not the only one. I have some of my own. It was difficult enough for us to name the boys. I could only imagine if it's a girl."

Meg laughed. "That's because we couldn't agree on the boys' names. It took us months to decide."

"Now, we have five more months to decide on another name."

"Oh, how fun it will be!"

Guy chuckled. "Indeed. Now, let us go downstairs. The boys have been asking for you."

Meg nodded. Wrapping an arm around her waist, Guy led Meg downstairs outside, where the boys were racing towards her the moment they saw her walk out the door.