"Ah, feeling better, Gisborne? All healed from your… illness… I assume," the Sheriff said from the chair in his bedroom at Nottingham Castle. He sat close to the fire, the flames flickering through the night's darkness. Guy stood just within the doorway.
"So, how was your… expedition, Gisborne? Hmm?"
Guy was silent. The Sheriff turned to look at his lieutenant, mildly surprised to see his cheeks red and his eyes slightly puffy.
"Ah.. You've been to Locksley first."
"…Yes…" Guy's voice shook.
"Well, there's no need to worry about what happened overseas. Hagger sent a report ahead of you. The Black Knights will just have to try another approach."
Guy sniffed back his faint tears.
"Oh, stop your sniveling. You're failure wasn't that terrible."
"It has nothing to do with my failure in the Holy Land," Guy found his voice, yelling back at the Sheriff. His hand clutched at Catrine's dagger, which he now carried in his belt. "This is about my… my… wife."
"Your what, Gisborne?"
"My WIFE!" Guy pulled out the curved dagger's blade.
The Sheriff stared at the metal blade. "You had one of those, Gisborne? Oh, I'm terribly sorry."
"Of course I did," Guy growled through his teeth. "And she did nothing but serve you and me."
The Sheriff stood, grabbing Guy's arm and forcing him to lower his dagger. "Such a shame really. I mean, when tragedy strikes, there is nothing else to do but move on."
"How can I?" Guy whispered, fighting tears and standing still.
The Sheriff moved Guy to the chair, making him sit. He walked behind Guy, wrapping his arms around him and whispering into Guy's ear. "Well, as you can see, I've totally forgotten already. And besides, you don't need her for family. I've always thought of you as… something… like a son really. You and me, Gisborne. We are dearer than family." Guy shuddered as the Sheriff's face pressed closer and closer to his own. "Your home has always truly been here, working for me, and you know it. Otherwise you never would have left her. Just a point to ponder, Gisborne."
The Sheriff pulled away from Guy, smiling. He could almost see Guy's heart hardening at the thought. Guy proved himself an excellent fighter, and now all he had to do was transfer loyalty. Something easily done, the Sheriff thought.
He watched as Guy stood and left the room, shutting the door behind him.
***
Guy wandered out into the halls, aimlessly walking the corridors. He stopped out on one of the castle's balconies—the same one where he pictured life as the Lord and Lady Gisborne, where he'd plan to leave the Sheriff for good. He leaned out over the rail, watching the first traces of dawn appear in the sky. Now, he could never have that life.
Catrine was gone. And it was all his fault. He should never have left her so close to giving birth. If he had been there, she would have fought harder, he thought. Guy clutched at his heart, remembering the pain and the piercing scream in the desert. He might as well have stabbed her to death by leaving. Guy felt the tears coming, resting his head in his folded arms on the rail.
He looked up at the last few stars in the sky. "Why?" he asked her. "Why didn't you fight? Why didn't you wait?" his voice barely above a whisper. He felt his anger rising. He had to leave for his mission, he thought. She wanted him to, forced him to. He worked for the Sheriff because of her. No. It was her fault. And now she left him, never to return. He clenched his head in his hands.
And then he felt his own fingers in his hair, just as she used to touch him.
He shuddered, suppressing a sob.
He would be the Sheriff's man, out of anger against her memory and just in order to maintain her memory. He straightened up, and grabbed the hilt of his sword, staring as the last star disappeared on the horizon.
