Chapter 14
It was already midday. The sun was high in the sky and Much tried to ride as fast and hard as he could in getting back to Locksley. When he arrived, he jumped off the poor, sweaty, brown mare that he had ridden so hard and ran into the manor house, hoping to find Robin.
"Master……Master", he shouted upon entering the main area.
Lady Mary Katherine had been in the sitting area doing needlepoint in the sunlight when Much bounded in. "Much, my gracious!" she expressed a bit exasperated with his entrance. "Whatever could warrant this shouting?"
"I am sorry, Lady Locksley. Please forgive me", he humbly apologized and bowed in front of her trying to catch his breath. "However, it is of the utmost importance that I find Master Robin."
Hearing the commotion of Much's entrance, Robin came around the corner and overheard the last of Much's apology.
"What happened, Much? Did you find Marian and give her the note?"
"No, I am sorry, Master. I did not."
"I see."
"No, Master. Forgive me, but I do not think you do yet."
"What is it, Much? Is Marian all right?"
Much began shaking his head and babbled on and on about Lady Knighton's death and Marian running off and needing to find her.
"With a thoughtful expression, Robin said, "Much, please ready my horse."
"Robin", said his mother. "How are you going to ride a horse with that splint on your leg?"
"I will find a way, Mother. I have to go. She needs me."
Looking at Robin and seeing the determination in his eyes, she did not stand in his way. "Very well, I will go to see how I can be of help to Edward while you and Much go look for Marian. However, I want you to take a wagon with a driver instead of trying to ride. You should also take a blanket with you. If she ran right out of the door, she probably did not stop to think of grabbing a coat as she left. Take some water and some food as well just in case" she directed. Afterwards, she left in her carriage to support Edward and left the boys to do their job.
Totally ignoring his mother's wishes, Robin managed with Much's help to mount his horse. He did not have the desire to take any time to get a wagon ready for a journey. Much filled a bag with a blanket, water and some dried meat and fruit as Lady Locksley had directed and after the crutches were tied to the saddle, they were off. As they were leaving the edge of the village, Much asked, "Where do you think we should look first?"
"I have a pretty good idea that she's on the top of the hill where we met all summer", pointed Robin. "That is where we start."
When they reached the top of the hill overlooking Locksley, Robin carefully dismounted his horse and untied the crutches. He was thankful that there hadn't been a lot of snowfall to have to walk through as that would have been very tricky to do without slipping.
He called Marian's name and walked toward the tree from where he stood to shoot his bow. Just before he reached the tree, he caught a glimpse of what surely had to be Marian's dress on the ground. He stopped and turned to speak to Much. "Bring the bag with the blanket and the food. I will stay with Marian. You can go to Knighton and let them know she is safe and I will bring her home as soon as she is ready. We surely will not be too long. She will see reason when she realizes she is cold and hungry."
Much nodded once and walked quickly to the horse and returned with the bag for Robin. "Are you sure you will be all right?"
"Yes, thank you my friend. Go. Tell her father she will be home soon."
Robin watched Much ride down the hill and then hobbled quietly over to the tree. He walked in silence in front of Marian and sat down beside her. She was just staring out into the forest, not really seeing anything in particular. She did not speak, nor acknowledge in any way that he was there. He reached into the bag, pulled out the blanket, and wrapped it snugly around her shoulders. Leaving his right arm behind her back he gently pulled her into a hug. Leaning into his shoulder she broke down and began to sob uncontrollably. He just sat there, held her, and let her cry until she couldn't any more.