Author's Note- "Inserted Chapters" in "A Hero's Prologue." This story takes place during Guy and Catrine's marriage. Just a small story about the couple working for the Sheriff (essentially Guy and Catrine fluff).
Enjoy! And please R&R!
"My lord Gisborne!" a voice called out from outside the manor, the knocking at the door echoed through the entire manor. "Sir Guy of Gisborne!" the man called again, pounding even harder.
Catrine sat up in a panic, clutching at the sheets around her, pulling them up to cover her nakedness. Guy sat up beside her, rubbing her bare back with one hand to calm her. He got up and threw on his tunic and pants, then he moved to look out the bedroom window. "What do you want?" he called down.
The man backed away from the door. One of the Sheriff's men. Another three waited on horseback not far off. "Lord Gisborne, the prisoner has escaped! The Sheriff demands you return to the castle immediately!"
"What do you mean he's escaped? He was to be executed at dawn!" Guy shouted, his voice gravelly in fury.
"I don't know, my lord, but the Sheriff wants you now!" the soldier answered, remounting his horse.
Guy pounded his fists on the window ledge and stormed to the fireplace, grabbing his jacket from where he had tossed it carelessly aside last night. He turned to look at his wife, sitting on the bed, wrapping herself tighter in the sheets. Even in the early morning darkness, Guy could see that her eyes were filled with trouble and worry.
"Where will you look, Guy?" she quietly asked as she watched him buckle his belt and sword around his waist.
"I don't know. But he can't have gone far," he said, checking the blades of his sword and daggers for sharpness.
"Be careful. He was the marshal for the King. He could be dangerous," she moved off the bed, wrapping the sheet around her.
"Or he could be helpless in a town that doesn't know who he is or even gives a damn," Guy watched her move towards him, tucking the sheet under her arm then fixing her hair.
"Well…" she sighed enticingly, "I could help you find the marshal." She smiled coyly, tracing her fingers over his cheek. Guy tilted his head to kiss her, pulling her closer to him.
She kissed him longingly and passionately, wanting to tease him just enough to get what she wanted, to spark his interest just before he left. She smiled under his kiss.
Guy pulled away, "No, I need my wife to stay here. I don't know where I'll go or what will happen. And I don't want to risk hurting you." He watched her smile fall from her lips. He kissed her again, "Please, Catrine. Please wait."
She sighed and adjusted the bed sheet. "Fine," she spoke. "Your wife will be waiting for you when you return."
He gripped her arm pulling her close once more. "Promise?" he asked, a smirk on his face.
"I swear I will be standing right here when you return, Guy," she smiled and kissed him one last time.
She stood alone before the bed, watching Guy leave the room and run down the stairs. She moved to the window, following his shadow as he mounted his horse and rode off with the soldiers towards Nottingham.
Then she quickly began to get dressed in her shift, wrapping a robe around her. Carefully, she tied her hair close to her head, securing the strands into place with jeweled pins. Too fancy, but she had to move quickly.
She stole down the stairs and into the empty guards' quarters. They had all been assigned to the castle to stand guard over the prisoner—the King's own former marshal, the chief coordinator of his military operations. She gave a smile as she rummaged around through the chests, looking for clothing that would fit her; she remembered when they captured the man, arresting him right in the middle of the Great Hall. Marshal Walter Cunningham was a worthy catch, and he just happened to stay overnight at the castle on his way back home after being honorably discharged from the King's service. It was a proud moment for the Sheriff really.
Catrine pulled on a pair of leather pants and a black and gold leather tunic, placing on the final layer—a black leather jerkin. "Jeez, Guy," she thought, "enough leather?" She smiled as she picked up the spare helmet and sword, placing each on her person.
She ran out the door to the stable, walking past her own horse who gave a knowing whinny. But she couldn't take her own, not in her disguise. She jumped on the next horse, adjusting herself in the saddle and turning it to run out of the stable. Catrine laughed to herself, she just had to make sure she kept her promise to Guy, to just be in the bedroom when he returned. Simple enough, she thought.