by Jaleta Clegg
Chapter 10
Will led the horse over the top of a hill into a small cup of a valley. Shaggy bushes and lacy trees dotted the bottom. A stream ran through the middle, dammed into a pond at one end. A large fire sent lazy spirals of smoke into the air. Men in green outfits lounged near the fire.
Will stopped the horse by one of the bushes.
"Your lodgings, noble lady."
I glanced around. "Where's Tayvis?"
Will's grin widened. "Is that who he is? I was wondering when he'd show up. He's probably meeting with Robin. And no, you can't join him until and unless Robin agrees."
I sat stubbornly on the horse.
"You can wait there as long as you like, except the horse might object." Will scratched his ear. "Or you can come down and wait in comfort. Lunch will be served soon."
Food brought me off the horse. Will caught my elbow. I tried to shake him off. His grip tightened.
"You will either wait here in the hut, or you will be escorted. Is that clear?"
"Very."
"I'll be happy to escort you. And maybe we can drop the act." He switched into Basic.
"And maybe you'll let go of me." I shifted my stance into attack mode.
"I wouldn't advise you to try that." Will's grin never wavered. He pinched a nerve, before he let go. "Let me take you to the cooking fire."
"And if I don't want to go?"
"Then you can sit in the hut." He gestured at the bush beside us. The branches had been woven together into a rounded enclosure.
"Lunch sounds good."
"This way." He sauntered across the clearing, my arm firmly in his grip. "If you're with Malcolm Tayvis, that means you must be Nuris Heydon. Except you aren't fifty, bald, and male. You want to explain who you are?"
"Are you Patrol?"
"Are you?"
I didn't know how to answer. If I said I was and I wasn't, I could be charged with impersonating an officer. Tayvis hadn't clarified my status.
Will jerked my elbow, spinning me around to face him. "Tell me your name and I'll talk them into feeding you."
"Why don't you ask Tayvis?" I rubbed my elbow.
"Because he isn't here and you are."
"Dace."
Will frowned thoughtfully. "Nope. Never heard of you."
"I'm not surprised."
"I know everyone who comes and goes from this planet and you aren't on my list. How did you get here?"
"I crashed. How did you get here?"
"I'm one of Robin's graduate students. I've got three degrees in ancient languages. Dadilan seemed the perfect place to earn another one. How did you crash?"
"My ship exploded and I landed in an escape pod. Should I be telling you any of this?"
"What is it going to matter? The truth will come out sooner or later."
I waited for him to say something that made sense.
"No philosophical statements on the nature of truth? You disappoint me."
"Good."
He laughed. "Maybe if I feed you, it will loosen your tongue."
"Will Scarlet!" The newcomer to our very odd conversation exited from one of the huts. He held his slender frame elegantly, his beard trimmed to frame his mouth. His shoulder length hair shone with cleanliness and brushing. His clothes were very tidy and very green. "Is this the charming lady I've heard so much about?" The man bowed. "Master Tayvis spoke highly of you."
"I rather doubt that," I muttered.
"Forgive my bad manners, but it is a necessary precaution. I'm sure you understand." He took my hand, his manicured nails in sharp contrast to my raggedly chewed nails. "I am Robin Goodfellow, and these are my men. We are here to change this world."
"Right." I pulled my hand free.
"You are going to help us." His blue eyes glowed with fervor. "You are going to help us bring peace and harmony to the people of Dadilan."
"And hygiene?" I knew a lot about hygiene; it had been the favorite topic of the orphanage director.
Robin blinked rapidly, his smile blank. Will stifled a laugh behind his hand.
"Come, eat with us. Grace us with your presence." Robin waved expansively at the smoking fire, skipping past my comment. He took my arm, leading me through a screen of bushes.
The air smelled of roasting meat. Men in green sat on rocks and stumps in the clearing. Tayvis sat on the far side talking intently to several men. He didn't look up, though most of the other men did.
"Best manners, gentlemen," Robin called out, "we have a lady present."
Robin seated me at the only real table in the clearing.
"So, Lady Dace."
"What did you call me?"
"Lady Dace. It is your name, is it not?"
"Dace, just Dace. Not lady anything."
Robin's eyelids fluttered rapidly. He studied my worn peasant outfit. He chewed his lip, then smiled, beaming brightly. "All women are ladies, even those who happen to be slaves." His smile stretched wider, as if he had just spouted off the most profound comment ever uttered.
I shook my head. My stomach growled. Robin pretended he hadn't heard.
"All women possess virtues and grace. Some have just forgotten it."
"What do you want me to do now? Embroider for you?" He reminded me too much of Miss Hadley, the orphanage director.
Robin cocked his head. His hair flowed perfectly, a shining wave of brown. I was acutely conscious of the messy state of my short hair.
"You embroider?"
"Not if I can avoid it." I shuffled my feet through the dirt under the table. I could embroider tiny little stitches, despite my resistance to Miss Hadley's tutelage. She won through sheer persistence.
"Then what do you do? Sing? Play an instrument perhaps?"
"She's a philosopher," Will Scarlet said as he rejoined us. He set two platters of food on the table.
"A philosopher." Robin chewed thoughtfully on a piece of fruit. "What university?" He switched to Basic.
"I never claimed that." Was Will trying to get me in trouble?
Will winked. "Tourens University."
Robin's eyes widened. "You're on the philosophy board at Tourens? Why didn't anyone notify me?" His eyes narrowed. "Why are you traveling with the Patrol?"
"Protection," Will said. "You know what the situation here is like, Robin. Do you think she'd get far by herself?"
"Will's lying," I said. This had gone far enough.
Robin ignored me. "What research is Tourens doing here? Strange. Dadilan doesn't have much of an organized religion. A few priests and a general taboo against the usual things. Demons are a problem, true." He frowned as his voice trailed off. He stared for a long uncomfortable moment before his smile suddenly reappeared. "The monks! Of course. It makes sense now."
"What?"
"The monks. The Order of Myrln. A very obscure sect, I'm sure there must be something about them in your records at Tourens. You're here to study them."
"I'm not here to study anything."
Robin's smile never wavered. It was like talking to a thruster gasket except they made sense. I gave up, turning to the food instead.
I understood food. I'd worked in the cafeteria at the Academy, not because I'd needed money, but because the cooks didn't care where I grew up. They were more than happy to educate me about spices and cooking. I figured eventually I'd find a spice trade route. Lots of money, and the cargo didn't weigh much. It was perfect. It was also difficult to find such a route unless you had the right contacts. I hadn't been around long enough to acquire any.
I took a bite of something that resembled a roasted lizard. The skin crackled, the meat tasted of unfamiliar spices. I savored it, enjoying the tender juiciness. I took another bite.
"It is to your liking?" Robin asked, slipping into the formal speech of Dadilan.
"It's very good."
Will took a seat beside me, helping himself to vegetables on my plate.
"Bad manners, Will." Robin pursed his lips.
"You said I was to
keep an eye on her, Robin. I'm just staying close."
"A noted researcher from Tourens does not need you shadowing her."
"I'm not from Tourens."
"She wants the company, Robin. John asked to speak with you. Something about the slave caravan due through here tomorrow?" Will shot me a warning glance.
"It completely slipped my mind." Robin stopped short of kissing my hand when he saw the grime under my nails. "Please. Pardon me, Lady Dace." He dropped my hand.
I smiled stiffly.
Robin dashed away leaving me alone with Will.
"Eat your lunch, Dace." Will pinched another bite.
"Before you finish it for me? I'm not a philosopher. I'm not from any university."
Will shrugged. "Robin might take you a bit more seriously now."
"And he might not if he finds out you lied."
Will grinned, unrepentant. "I'll admit I was mistaken. That should smooth it over." He waited until I took another bite before stealing the rest of the lizard leg. "So come clean and tell me the truth. What are you doing here?"
"You mean what am I doing with the Patrol undercover agent."
"That, too."
"Why don't you ask him?"
"He's busy. Your lunch is getting cold. And I'm asking you."
"What does a graduate student in linguistics care?"
"A pretty lady like you? You expect me not to take an interest?"
"Why don't you go away like Robin told you to?" He thought I was pretty? He was either blind or he hadn't seen many women.
"What are you trying to hide, Dace?"
"Nothing."
"Then you shouldn't mind telling me who you are and what you're doing on Dadilan."
"I crashed and I'm trying to live long enough to get off this lovely planet."
"Sarcasm doesn't become you."
I sighed. "Tayvis doesn't believe me either."
"Eat your lunch. You look like you could use it." He stood, patting my shoulder.
"Aren't you supposed to be escorting me?"
"Be a good girl and eat your lunch. I'll be back in a jiffy." The pat turned into a squeeze. "If you don't, you'll go hungry and Robin will find out you lied about your credentials." He stole a last bite. "Behave yourself, Dace." He walked jauntily away, nodding to the other men.
I watched Tayvis while I picked over my food, my stomach twisting in knots of tension and nerves. Secrets inside secrets, who was I supposed to trust? I wasn't very good at this kind of bluffing. I much preferred Comets. At least with cards I could guess what the other players held. I understood the rules.
Tayvis laughed. He leaned forward, speaking quietly. The whole group moved close, heads together. They stood as a group, walking off through the bushes.
I stayed at the table. It wouldn't do any good for me to follow them. It would only confirm Tayvis' suspicions.
I mentally shelved the tangle of deceit and lies and concentrated on the food. The meal was the best I'd had in weeks. I tried to place spices and couldn't. Dadilan had its own seasonings, different from any I'd ever tasted. The other cadets had made fun of me for thinking the cafeteria food was good. This was better by far, much better.
I polished off my food, then eyed Robin's plate. He hadn't eaten more than a few bites. I pulled his plate over.
I licked my fingers clean when I'd finished his meal.
"I hope you saved room for dessert." Will set two plates on the table. "Berry scones. They're delicious."
I helped myself to one of the crusty, lumpy things. It was good, sweet and crisp. I ate a second.
One of the green men stopped in front of the table. "Will? We've got three new recruits down by the pond. Robin said you were in charge until he gets back."
"Excuse me again." Will nodded to me before leaving with the other man.
He'd left half a plate of food behind. I studied it for only a moment before sliding it in front of me. Who knew when I'd get another meal this good? Fair was fair, I thought as I ate Will's lunch.
I broke the last berry scone in pieces, nibbling at them. My belly was much too full, but it was a good feeling. I'd been hungry too often in my life.
Will returned. He eyed the empty plates. "I don't know how you keep your girlish figure. Do you want more or are you finished?"
"Is there more?"
"Later. Robin wants you suitably attired by the time he returned. He wants you looking the part for tonight's dinner."
"What part?"
"You're going to play Marian to his Robin."
"Who?"
Will tilted his head, pursing his lips. "You've never heard of Robin Goodfellow and Maid Marian?"
"Would any of this make sense if I had?"
He shook his head. "I am astounded at the lack of basic education given to young people in the Empire these days."
His comment stung. I ducked my head. When I left Tivor, I spent two years catching up on the basics: reading, writing, science, math, history, everything I should have known but didn't. I learned barely enough to get me into the Academy. I still had too many holes in my knowledge. Tivor wasn't big on teaching anything to orphans, especially female ones, except for domestic skills. And hygiene.
"Is it something I said or did the scones disagree with you?" Will leaned over the table.
It wasn't his fault. He didn't know my blind spots.
I lifted my head. "What is it I'm supposed to know?"
"I'll tell you on the way." He held out his hand.
I let him help me to my feet. He headed through the bushes, pulling me behind him.
"I know the perfect gown for you. Lots of lace."
I dug in my heels, dragging him to a stop. "Why don't you just throw me in the river? Or make fun of me some other way?"
"Robin insists on it, Dace. Why do you object to wearing a dress? Most women like them, especially the lacy ones."
I pulled at my stained skirt. "Isn't this bad enough?" Dresses reminded me too much of the life I thought I'd escaped.
"I could have Big Robert carry you. Or you can come on your own feet." He grinned. "It isn't that bad. I promise. I'll even tell you the legend of Robin Goodfellow and Maid Marian."
"I don't have a choice, do I?"
"Not really."
