“That wasn’t why I … I’m not …,” I sputtered. “Don’t you want to go back to Sherwood Forest?”
Robin Hood’s hand slid from my cheek to my shoulder. “You brought us to a new land—a fortuitous event, indeed. The sheriff’s men have death warrants on our heads, and they recently took to setting dogs on our trail. So, no, returning to Sherwood is not a pressing matter.” He took one of my hands in his, then lifted it to his lips and gave it a brief kiss. “And now I must bid you farewell.” After dropping my hand, he gestured to Little John. The big man left his place guarding my bedroom door and climbed out the window with more agility than I expected.
I blinked at Robin Hood, unbelieving. “But what about the poor villagers who depend on you?”
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He laughed, which surprised me, then held up The Adventures of Robin Hood for me to see. “You are as amusing as your history.” With the book still in his hand, he swung himself out the window and onto the rocks that bordered our lawn. The first few Merry Men were already running down the street.
I watched them disappear and sighed. I supposed they would come back when they realized what the world had become. They weren’t going to be able to forage for food. Once you left town, the only things around were cacti and a bunch of scrub brushes that were waiting to dry up and turn into tumbleweeds. I hoped the Merry Men’s survival skills would help them remember which house I lived in. That way, when they had second thoughts about living off the land, they would be able to find their way back.
I took some clothes into the bathroom and changed. Then I picked up the things the Merry Men had thrown around. Thankfully, most of the broken glass was on the outside of the window, so I didn’t have to clean up much of that.
I couldn’t even mutter angrily about them trashing my stuff. Not after I had just been to the police station for trashing city hall. Mr.
Handsome Undercover Policeman would probably find it fitting that I was finishing up the night on my hands, wiping up spit from my carpet.
When I finished, I sat on my bed calling Chrissy. No one showed up except for a few bugs that flew through the broken window. I shut my eyes to rest them, and the next thing I knew, it was Saturday morning.
• • •
Sandra opened my door and called out, “Rise and shine. Time to do your chores.” My dad usually woke me up on Saturday mornings, so 65/356 the fact that Sandra had done it meant he was still mad at me. I was probably in for something horrendous like scraping pigeon poop off the roof.
I pulled the sheet over my head.
Sandra walked over and sat on my bed. “Come on, look on the bright side: today has to be better than yesterday.” Sandra was one of those optimistic people who not only saw the glass as half full, but figured it was half full of her favorite drink.
I tossed the sheet off and sat up—not from optimism, but because I suddenly remembered the rest of last night. My fairy godmother.
Robin Hood. I didn’t want Sandra to see my astonishment, so I tried to keep my expression calm.
She wasn’t looking at me though. Her gaze zeroed in on the gaping hole in my window and she let out a shrill gasp of alarm. “What happened?”
I didn’t think she’d believe me if I told her a bunch of Merry Men broke it. In fact, I wasn’t sure I believed it myself. Could that stuff have really happened? Fairies and leprechauns didn’t pop into people’s bedrooms. Robin Hood and the Merry Men weren’t real.
But nothing was left of my window except for jagged shards. That part was real enough.
I chose my words carefully. My lies might have magical consequences. “I was in the kitchen, and I heard a crash. When I got back to my room, the window was broken.”
“Why didn’t you tell us?”
“It was late.”
She walked to the window, shaking her head. “You didn’t see who did it?”
“No.” Which was true. I didn’t know which of the Merry Men had shattered it.
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“It must have been Bo.” Sandra’s jaw clamped tight. “Well, he can pay for this window along with the ones he broke at city hall. I’ll call his parents and tell them so.”
“Don’t,” I said. “I’ll pay for it.” I hardly had any money to my name. I would have to find a job. I supposed that didn’t matter, since I wasn’t going to have a social life now.
She put her hands on her hips, watching my curtain flutter in and out of the frame. “I’ll ask your father to put a board across it for now. I doubt anybody will be able to come out to fix it until Monday anyway.” Sandra left, muttering about Bo, and I stood in my room staring at the window. “Chrissy?” I called.