II - The Cost

"Please tell me you've started to lay golden eggs, Gisborne," the Sheriff said as the guards closed the door behind Gisborne.

"I… Why?" Gisborne replied. Sometimes it was difficult to tell if the Sheriff was going somewhere with his little "jokes" or if he was just doing it for his own amusement.

"Prince John is very disappointed that his brother is still alive," the Sheriff said and waved the letter in his hand. "And because he funded our trip but did not get anything in return for his investment, he wants his money back." The Sheriff shoved the letter at Gisborne.

"And he wants us to pay him?" Gisborne asked, reading through the letter. He had hoped that he could move on from the awful trip to the Holy Land, to forget about Marian and everything that happened and leave it all behind. Yet now he was expected to pay for it all?

"Yes, and he wants his money soon," the Sheriff said.

"And how- Is this what he expects us to pay?" Gisborne asked as he finally got to the part where the Prince made his demands.

"It seems that the Prince has counted every penny that even remotely related to our journey. Now, because I am feeling very generous, I'll say we split it in half," The Sheriff demanded as he snatched the letter back. Even half of the amount would be far more than Gisborne had at hand. He might as well just hand over Locksley to the Prince.

"Half? How is that fair? It was your plan that failed."

"Well, if you had aimed your sword a little better, you could have killed the King and not that bothersome leper!"

Gisborne had to restrain himself from just grabbing his sword and running it through the Sheriff then and there. Marian was still a touchy topic for him. Was it not enough that he had to relive that day again and again every night in his nightmares? Did the Sheriff just have to pour salt into his wounds? Gisborne bit his teeth together and willed himself to remain calm, although the Sheriff could see the rage burning behind his eyes.

"Now, be a good boy and start coming up with the money," the Sheriff said.

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Gisborne asked through gritted teeth.

"Figure it out. Tax the peasants if you need to, I don't care so long as you get that money."

"What do they want now?" Rebecca sighed.

Gisborne and his men were causing a commotion in the village, and several people were already arguing against them.

"Some kind of new tax," Kate said bitterly.

Matthew crossed his arms in annoyance. "Didn't we just pay them? It seems that they have a new tax for every day of the week. It's not like we have anything to pay with at this point."

Rebecca watched as Gisborne's men entered one of the houses despite the resistance of the family that lived there.

"Kate," she whispered to her daughter. "Why don't you see how Maggie is doing?" Kate was confused at first, but seeing the look in her mother's eyes made her realize what she needed to do.

"Oh, right, of course."

Kate headed back into their home and ignored her sister, who wanted to know what was going on. Instead, she walked straight up to their mother's bed and pulled out a small leather bag from underneath the mattress. It wasn't heavy, but that bag contained everything they had managed to save and hide from Gisborne. There was no way Kate would let them get to this money.

"I want to see what's going on!" Maggie demanded as Kate brushed past her, putting the money in her pocket. She would have to hide it somewhere better, where Gisborne's men wouldn't look. Rebecca was still standing by the door when she got back outside, and Kate just gave her mother a nod.

"I want to see!" Maggie repeated, trying to see past her mother and sister's skirts.

"I need you to stay inside for a while, all right?" Rebecca said as she kneeled down to speak with Maggie. As Kate searched for a good and quick hiding place for the money, she noticed that Matthew was approaching Gisborne.

"You can't do this! Most of us have nothing left already!" Matthew protested.

Gisborne paid no attention to him, but he did seem annoyed. His men were moving to the next house as the elderly couple that lived there tried to stop them.

Matthew moved even closer to Gisborne. "If you had been here this past winter, you'd know that most of us spent our money on food and medicine!"

Get out of there, you idiot, Kate thought. She tried to move to get a better look at what was happening, but some of the other villagers had had the same idea, and were now blocking her view.

"We've already paid our taxes, you have no right-"

Matthew's words were cut short. There was a flash of metal, and then someone screamed. Kate saw her brother collapse on the ground. The people in front of her moved, and she saw a sword covered in blood. Kate's head was spinning. Suddenly Gisborne and his men stopped existing to her, and she rushed to her brother. Matthew was on the ground gasping for air, and as Kate lifted him into her arms, she felt her own hands getting wet with blood. Gisborne said something, but all Kate could hear was Matthew's desperate gasping.

She tried to find something to say, anything, just to comfort her little brother, but at that moment she knew no words. Then, somewhere else, Kate heard a familiar voice. But because she knew no words, she wasn't sure what that voice was saying to Gisborne. Gisborne responded, and Kate finally recognised the other voice. Robin Hood. He always came to the villagers' rescue.

Not that it mattered now. The great hero was too late.

Kate saw her mother rush to them, already in tears and speaking frantically. Kate held Matthew tighter. The few coins in her pocket were pressing uncomfortably against her thigh. Matthew opened his mouth as if to speak, but instead of words, thick, red blood poured out. Kate watched as her brother coughed and gasped.

And then he stopped.

Rebecca screamed.

It was the worst sound that Kate had ever heard. It broke her heart, and Kate was certain she became deaf, because there was nothing else for her to hear. That scream haunted her nightmares for the rest of her life.

Kate wasn't sure how long she had been sitting outside her home on the small stool, just staring at the spot where Matthew had died. Her brother had been alive when she woke up that morning, and now his body was in the barn, waiting to be buried. Kate could remember every detail about the day up to Matthew's death, but everything after it was a blur. She wasn't sure why she was holding a knife. Had she been cooking? Had she even had anything to eat? Kate wasn't sure why she was outside. Maybe she had wanted to get away from Maggie's questions about Matthew and their mother's crying. They were both probably asleep by now.

This was not fair. When Kate's father had died, Maggie couldn't even walk yet, and Matthew had been too young to be the man of the house. That too had been Gisborne's fault. Ever since Nottingham got a new Sheriff and Gisborne arrived in Locksley, taxes had become unreasonable, and the peasants were expected to work until they dropped dead. And that was essentially what had happened to Kate's father. Poor little Maggie couldn't even remember him. Would she remember Matthew?

Kate glared at the manor. Nothing good had come from Gisborne. He had only brought death and suffering to Locksley from the day he arrived. It would have to end. Gripping the knife tightly, Kate got up. She didn't have a plan yet, but she was sure she could come up with something. She took the long way around to the back of the manor, where the guards couldn't see her. She measured the wall with her eyes. She was a good climber. When she had been younger, her mother had scolded her for coming home with so many bumps and bruises after she had fallen out of a tree. Now that practice finally paid off.

Kate hiked up her dress and climbed on the windowsill. There were just enough ledges on the way up for her to hold on to. Before she even realized it, she had pulled herself up on the windowsill of Gisborne's bedroom.

The anger inside Kate grew as she saw him sleeping peacefully in his bed. Why was he allowed to sleep like nothing happened after what he did to Matthew? Kate dropped into the room as quietly as she could and approached the bed. Sure, murder was wrong, but surely Kate was allowed to commit this one after what Gisborne had done? His list of crimes was far longer than hers. She raised the knife up, took a step closer, and drew in a deep breath.

And that's when Gisborne woke up.

In a flash, he managed to grab Kate's wrist and twist the knife out of her hand. She fought back, but he was physically much stronger than her, and pushed her down to the floor. She tried to bite his hand, but his grip remained strong, and Kate was sure that even a little more pressure would break her bones. He called out for his guards, and soon Kate was being dragged down the stairs, through the kitchen and down into the cellar. Once the door closed behind her, and the cold and darkness surrounded her, she found herself crying for the first time that day. Kate could only hope that Maggie would remember her.

The next morning Kate was dragged to Nottingham. She hadn't slept, and instead she had spent the night in the pitch-black darkness wondering when or if she would ever get out. Anger was still boiling inside of her, and she couldn't bring herself to regret trying to kill Gisborne. Her only regret was that she hadn't succeeded. At least then this would all have been worth it. Now she would have to endure whatever punishment she got, and Gisborne would get away with murdering Matthew with no consequences. And because this was Nottingham, Kate knew that there was only one fate for her.

The guards' grip on her arms was strong enough to bruise her as they took her to the Great Hall. The Sheriff was already there, uncharacteristically cheerful. His presence had always unnerved Kate, and whether his mood was good or bad, it was never good news for the people around him.

"Good morning, Gisborne," the Sheriff said. Then he noticed Kate. "What's all this?"

"This girl tried to kill me last night," Gisborne replied and held up the knife Kate had tried to use on him. Rather than being angry, the Sheriff just seemed amused.

"Gisborne, what have you done now?" he asked and approached Kate. She decided to not look away, and instead met his cold, soulless eyes.

"He killed my brother," she said, trying to keep her voice calm.

"Oh, Gizzy, we need those peasants to pay the taxes," he scolded Gisborne, with the same tone someone would use to explain to a child that they needed to share their toys.

Kate felt sick.

"What do we do with her, my lord?" Gisborne asked, clearly just wanting to get the matter dealt with.

"Oh, take her to the dungeons. We'll execute her later. Right now we have other things to do."

That was when Kate began to panic. Suddenly her death seemed more real than before.

"Don't I even get a trial?" she asked, digging her heels against the floor as the guards tried to pull her away.

"A trial? We hardly need one of those, do we? You're not even denying your crime," the Sheriff said.

Kate wanted to protest, but she knew that at this point her words meant nothing. Gisborne waved his hand and the guards dragged her away.

Rebecca was pacing around frantically. She couldn't get started on any chores, not when grief and worry filled her every thought. Kate hadn't come home that night and when Rebecca saw her daughter being dragged away, it hadn't been difficult to guess what Kate had done. Or tried to do, considering that Gisborne was still alive. For a while now both Kate and Matthew had been filled with rage and frustration towards the injustice they and everyone else in Locksley had to endure, but it seemed that Matthew's death must have pushed Kate over the edge. Rebecca knew what waited for Kate in Nottingham, but she couldn't bring herself to think about it. She had already lost one child the day before, she couldn't lose another one.

Only one of her children was still safe, and she was asking for breakfast. Rebecca had to do something.

Right then, as if God had heard her prayers, Robin Hood himself knocked on her door.

"Rebecca, I'm sorry about Matthew. I know this won't bring him back, but it's something," Robin said softly and offered her a bag of coins. His friends were standing behind him, holding some food. But Rebecca did not care about their offerings.

"You can't bring back my son, but I need you to save my daughter."

Kate was tired, hungry, and scared. The dungeons were cold and wet, so even though she tried, Kate could not get any sleep. At least that would have taken her mind off of the fact that she would be dying soon. What had she been thinking? Had she really thought that she could just kill Gisborne and get away with it?

The only comfort Kate had was that at least she would see Matthew soon. Or would she? Matthew had been innocent; he had done nothing wrong when he tried to stand up against Gisborne. But Kate had tried to kill someone. Where would she go once she died? The justifications she had come up with to get rid of Gisborne were gone from her mind. She just wanted to go home to her mother and sister. They needed her. Who would take care of them once both Kate and Matthew were gone?

If Kate had had any more strength left in her, she would have cried. She was ashamed – not for what she had tried to do, but for doing this to her family.

Every moment that passed made Kate more paranoid. Hanging was most likely the punishment that waited for her, but a part of her feared that it could be something even worse. There were rumours that the Sheriff tortured his prisoners by peeling their skin off and cutting off pieces of their flesh before sewing the skin back on. Some parents threatened their misbehaving children by saying that bad children were sent to the Sheriff. Kate had thought that the skin-peeling was most likely just a rumour, but she couldn't stop her thoughts from spiralling. She hoped her death would be quick and painless.

In addition to Kate, there were not many other prisoners. At the other end of the dungeons there was an old man who kept muttering to himself. There was also another man, but he was laying so still on the floor of his cell that Kate couldn't be sure if he was still alive. She was leaning against the wall in her own cell with her arms around her knees. The Sheriff should have just executed her right away. That way she wouldn't have to go mad while waiting for her own death.

An eternity passed – or at least it felt like an eternity. A guard walked up to Kate's cell, but she paid no attention to him. She had been dragged this far; they might as well drag her the rest of the way to be executed as well.

"Kate?" the guard called out to her. No, that's the old man over there, she wanted to say, but decided to stay quiet. The guard opened her cell, although it seemed to take an awfully long time, and Kate couldn't hear the jingling of keys. But finally, the door opened, and the guard marched over to her.

"You need to come with me," he said quietly, more softly this time.

Kate looked up. She knew this man! It was Robin Hood. Suddenly she found whatever strength was left in her, and she got up. Robin grabbed her arm but didn't squeeze it the way the guards had done.

I'm going to live. I'm going to get away, Kate thought as Robin led her through the winding corridors. They walked past several guards, but none of them paid attention to them. Kate felt invincible. Her heart was beating fast, and she was scared someone else would be able to hear it. Robin took her to the kitchens. After making sure no-one saw them, Robin pushed her to a corner.

"You have to walk through the gates. My men are waiting for you, they will take you to the forest. Don't look at anyone, but make sure to look like you know what you're doing. Put this on," he said and handed her an apron. "You're just a kitchen maid going to the market to buy some ingredients. Got it?"

Kate nodded. Something this simple couldn't possibly work. Surely the guards would notice how terrible she looked and suspect something was up. But Robin didn't waste a moment. He pushed Kate out into the courtyard, and then disappeared back into the shadows. The sun felt too bright in Kate's eyes. She drew in a deep breath and started walking. One step, then another. She kept her eyes on the gates. She was so close to freedom. She could see Maggie soon. She could apologise to her mother. Only a few more steps.

Her heart was pounding loudly in her chest as she approached the guards. Would they stop her? What if they saw how nervous she was?

The guards weren't even looking at her.

Then she was out. Kate stopped herself from letting out a sigh of relief. She wanted to look back, but kept her eyes forward. She kept walking, out into the crowd, to her freedom.

The outlaws took Kate to the forest, where Robin joined them again. The relief of getting out of Nottingham was almost enough to make Kate forget about how hungry and tired she was.

"I can't believe that worked!" she said when Robin caught up with them, having lost his disguise somewhere along the way.

"We were just lucky that the Sheriff hasn't changed anything since… well, since last year," Allan laughed.

"We might not be as lucky in the future," Robin said, but he was smiling as well.

"Well, thank you anyway," Kate replied just as her stomach growled loudly.

"You must be hungry. We should go to the camp and get you something to eat," Robin said and began leading the way.

"Actually… I'd just rather go home now," Kate said.

Everyone else stopped and looked at each other awkwardly. John was the one who broke the silence.

"Kate… You can't go to Locksley," he said.

"Why not? I need to make sure my mother and sister are all right!" she protested.

"And that's what the Sheriff and Gisborne are expecting. You need to stay away from Locksley for now so that it seems that your family knows nothing about your escape," Robin explained calmly.

The thrill of having successfully escaped had left Kate, and was now replaced with worry and disappointment.

"Where do I go then?" she asked. It felt like something was stuck in her throat, but she did her best not to cry in front of everyone.

"You can come with us," Much offered.

"I don't want to be an outlaw," Kate said in a much colder tone than she intended.

"It's not like we chose this life either," Allan said.

"Well–"

"Not now, Much," John said, cutting Much off.

Robin paid no attention to the others, and instead placed a comforting hand on Kate's shoulder.

"You don't have to join us for good if you don't want to. But for now, it's not safe for you to go home either. By attacking Gisborne, you made yourself an outlaw. Stay with us for a few days, and once things settle down, you can see your family again, and then you can figure out what to do. How does that sound?" he offered. Kate kept her eyes on the ground. She could only nod, because the lump in her throat had grown too big. She blinked away tears and let out a shaky breath.

The outlaws led her through their secret paths deep into the forest. Everyone else walked ahead of her, clearly pretending to not see her tears and giving her some space. Only John lingered behind, quietly following behind her and making sure she wasn't tripping on tree roots.

The reality of her situation was finally hitting Kate. Matthew was dead. Had he been buried already, or was his body still waiting to be laid to rest? Poor little Maggie had lost both a brother and a sister in less than a day. Rebecca would have to take care of her all on her own. If Kate was now an outlaw, it was the same as if she was dead. She shouldn't have sought revenge. Now she had led her family to circumstances that were even worse than before.

But even with all this pain and regret, Kate still felt anger burning inside of her like a hot flame. This was all Gisborne's fault. It wasn't fair that she and her family had to go through so much pain while he suffered no consequences. As she made her way towards the outlaws' camp, Kate vowed to herself that Gisborne would pay for his sins.

The Sheriff of Nottingham was in a bad mood. Not only had Gisborne failed miserably at his tax-collecting – really, how hard could it be? – but now he had come home to find out that one of the prisoners had escaped, and that no-one had any knowledge of the matter. The execution had been the one good thing Sheriff Vaisey had been looking forward to that day. Deep down he had a feeling that Robin Hood had something to do with the disappearance of the girl, but there was no way to prove it. The Sheriff was quite tired of his guards' incompetence, so it wouldn't be a surprise if the girl had simply broken out on her own. He made a mental note to find out who had been on duty at the dungeons that day and have that guard tortured. That should at least provide some entertainment.

The Sheriff sat by his desk, counting the money he and Gisborne had managed to gather over the past two days. It wasn't much, but it should be enough to calm the Prince down for now and buy them more time. The Sheriff just needed a plan. Some way to extract money from other people's pockets. The fact that they had failed to kill the King was not his fault, so he would rather not use his own money for this. If only he could come up with a plan that happened to include robbing from or possibly even killing Robin Hood, it would be even better. Oh, how he wanted to get Hood trapped in his dungeon so he could hear the sweet screams resulting from long and painful torture. Even just emotional torture would be nice. Maybe the Sheriff could have the other outlaws tortured and make Hood watch. He would gladly start with Gisborne's former sidekick.

A guard dared to interrupt the Sheriff's daydreams.

"My lord, Henry of Colchester is here to see you," he announced.

"Unless he is here to donate his entire life savings to me, I'm not interested," the Sheriff grumbled without looking up from the money.

Before the guard could say anything, the man in question brushed past him and bowed down in an exaggerated manner.

"I'm sorry to bother you, my lord. I'm afraid I'm not here to give you money," Henry said.

The Sheriff eyed him suspiciously. It was clear that the man was a nobleman, although he had seen better days. He looked to be about 60 years old, though his white hair and unkempt beard made him look older than what he was. His clothes were very worn for those of a nobleman's, and the Sheriff had to admit that he had seen peasants that were better dressed than him. For a moment the Sheriff thought that this was just a trick. Still, Henry of Colchester had something about him that made it obvious that he was a nobleman even though he didn't really look like one. Perhaps it was the arrogance and the entitlement in him. Surely an imposter would have put a little more effort into his looks.

"What is it that you have then? It had better be good if you intend on wasting my time," the Sheriff said.

"Oh, I will let you judge that yourself. But I believe that you will be very interested in what I have to offer."