Robyn and the Hoodettes (15 page)

The next door she came to had the unmistakable noises and
aromas of people behind it. A great many people.

And a cow? Yes, definitely the stench of cow behind the door.
How had they even got it up here?

Creaking the door open, Robyn found herself staring at the
rear end of Bella.

Her mother looked up from her stool by the cow and beamed.
“Robyn darling!” Then her face fell. “They haven’t sent you up here
too, have they?”

Stunned, Robyn shook her head and looked around the room.
“I’m here to get you out. All of you,” she said. Only then did she
notice how many ‘all of yous’ there were. The women and children
from her village she knew straight away, but there were many more,
including Joan’s elderly parents and others she knew from
Littleton. It wouldn’t be fair to get her people out but leave the
rest behind.

Eleanor left Bella mid-milking and locked Robyn in a hug.
Mother Miller then appeared, flour over her face and hands,
smothering her in a three-way hug. Four and five way, judging by
the bodies clamouring around her.

She squeezed out, “No time for hugs, we have to
leave.”

“
But we’re nearly done.” Mother Miller said.

The wind howled through the narrow windows. Several villagers
worked together attaching a heavy quilt over it to block out the
wind.

C
andles burned in stone holders to shed light, but there
were no fires like the Inn where they could keep warm. Surrounded
by timber, a fire up here would incinerate them.

“
We’re making flour and butter to see Sheffield through the
winter.” Eleanor said.

“
But we have to go. Now”

Mother Miller said, “But we promised Maudlin we’d get the work
done.”

“
Maudlin’s a lying cow.” Robyn said, then noticed the
long-suffering beast and said, “Sorry Bella.”

Mother Eleanor looked from the villagers to Robyn. “We made a
deal that if we produced enough for the winter, we’d be able to
stay. If we left now, what do we have to go back to?”

“
But
–”
But nothing. What
did
they have to go back to? Only the smithy still had a roof
back in Loxley. Littleton fared even worse. Who knew what condition
the other villages were be in.

“
But she’s keeping you here as prisoners!”

Mother Eleanor said, “As we have nowhere else to go, it’s a
moot point darling.”

Robyn’s head was going to explode in frustration. “I broke
in here to get you out. And you want to
stay
?”

“
If you’ve got any sense, you’ll stay as well,” Eleanor said.
“Sheffield is our liege lord. We came here for help and we’ve
received it.”

Everyone was staring at her now and looking confused and
guilty. Even the people not from her village–for there were dozens
of women and children up here working. Sewing, milking, milling
flour and churning butter. Where were Joan’s parents? They had to
be here somewhere.

She
splayed her hands out. “Doesn’t anybody want to get out of
here?”

The wall quilt rippled aside. Wind howled through the thin
window, its icy teeth biting Robyn’s neck. She pulled the hood over
her head.

Maybe her mother wasn’t so crazy after all. At least
staying here, they had a place to stay
; warm blankets and plenty to eat. Much
more than they had back in Loxley.

A knock came from the other side of the wall.

From this height?

Mother Miller opened a hatch to reveal Marion sitting in a
loop of rope, his face whiter than flour.

“
We have a way to get you out,” he said. “Then we can get
Robyn out of the dungeon.”

“
I’m here,” Robyn made a small wave.

“
Oh, hi.” A huge grin split his face, followed by red blooms on
each cheek. “Well done you.”

Robyn beamed with pride. Not just from Marion’s compliment,
but his hatred of heights. How he hadn’t vomited yet was a
miracle.

Joan and Georgia chose that moment to stagger in to the
room. Joan sized up the room and said, “OK let’s get everyone out
in an orderly fashion before Maudlin calls in
reinforcements.”

Once more the wind howled through. It snuffed the candles,
filling the air with waxy smoke.

“
Joan? Is that you?” Her elderly parents
approached.

Oy, the delays! Robyn wanted to slap them all upside the head.
Why where they not listening to her and doing exactly what she
said?

Turning to Marion, she shrugged in futility as Joan’s elderly
mother hijacked the scene and loudly called out to her daughter.
She took her sweet time reaching Joan, which only made Robyn
agitate all the more to get out of there.

Maudlin was coming!

But no, this would play out in parent-time, as Joan
introduced her mother and father to Georgia.

At which point, Marion climbed inside the window and Robyn
helped him get his breath back. Credit where it was due, he’d done
an incredibly brave thing.

“
That took guts,” she whispered as they closed the window
slats.

He gave her a nudge and kept his voice low. “How’s the plan
going?”

“
It was going fine until just now.” Robyn crossed her arms
over her chest, then raised her voice to the room. “Can we get out
of here? We can have reunions later.”

“
Robyn dearest,” Mother Eleanor said, “All things considered,
this is the best place for us to be.”

“
But Marion
has gone to so much trouble!”

Breaking away from her father and both her mothers for a
moment, Joan said, “Robyn’s right. We should get out of here. Mum,
Dad, Mum, you should come with me. Hey Marion, how does that sling
work?”

Marion wedged the hatch open, cold wind raced through. His
fingers clamped on the edge of the frame, his knuckles as white as
his face. “Wilfred and Madge have the horses are down below,
they’re pulling on the rope, which goes up there through a couple
of pulleys and holds you up and guides you down. Works great. Just
don’t look down, yeah?”

Joan reached the window and had a look out. “Oh dear. It is a
long way. Are you sure it will hold me?”

It didn’t seem possible, but Marion’s face paled even
more.

“
Everyone out the window in an orderly fashion,” Robyn
said.

Joan stepped back from the window. “Shouldn’t I go last, you
know, just in case the rope, uh, you know?”

“
Nobody else is going, Joan,” Eleanor said.

Robyn gasped. “Mother! Stop ruining it. Maudlin will be here
any second!”

“
Well I’m not leaving,” Eleanor said, sitting back down near
Bella.

Something exploded inside Robyn. “You’re choosing the cow.
Over me?!”

“
It’s not like that,” her mother said, making a little moue
with her mouth. “But that is a long way down, and we’re not
prisoners. We’re free to leave any time we like. There’s no lock on
the door.”

The wind flapped the tapestries back and forth. Not many
people made eye contact with Robyn. Those who did had looks of
helplessness about them.

“
But we went to so much trouble!” Robyn said. Hot tears welled
in her eyes. No way would she leave without them. No way on earth
would she . . . Dammit! The first drop splashed on her cheek, then
the next.

She swiped with her tunic sleeve and turned to Marion. “So
much for plans then.”

He looked equally crestfallen.

“
Well Joan, you may as well climb out,” Robyn said, every word
dripping in defeat.

“
That’s a heck of a long way down. Can’t we take the stairs?”
Joan said.

“
Come on Joan,” Marion guided her out the window, speaking
softly to her the whole time with a reassurance that masked his own
terror.

What a man!

Joan looked back to her parents. “You’re coming too,
right?”

“
Er,” her father said, putting his arm protectively around his
wife. “Might be best we stay here through the winter. We’ll be home
in spring.”

Joan’s elderly mother turned to Georgia. “Our girl is so
precious. Take good care of her.”

Tears welling up in her own eyes, Georgia nodded, then
embraced them in a group hug. “Thank you so much. She’s a lovely
girl. Thank you.”

Joan? Lovely? Robyn boggled as she watched her giant friend
clinging to Marion as Wilfred eased the rope to lower them to the
ground.

“
I’m next out the hatch,” Georgia said as she made her way to
the window.

“
Why don’t you stay with us, Robyn dear?” Eleanor asked. “There
are so many of us, Maudlin will hardly notice one more. We’ll have
plenty of bread and milk and be warm enough right through
winter.”

All this effort to find her village, and they didn’t want to
leave. How infuriating!

Marion appeared at the window hatch again. “Grannyma and
Tuppence are safe at the sheep pens. Madge wants to stay with us.”
Then he handed over a small bag of gold coins. About half of the
half Marion had split from the original bag.

“
Thank you Marion.” Mother Miller’s eyes grew round like
plums. “My goodness, where did you ever get this?”

Marion scratched the back of his neck. “I wish there was more.
Maudlin has the rest of it.”

Mother Miller shoved the purse of coins under her apron.
“Thank you,” she said, giving Marion a heavy knitted shawl. “You’ll
need this more than me.”

Next down the rope pulley was Georgia. They were going as fast
as they could, but Maudlin could turn up at any moment.

From the safe ground below, Joan waved up to Robyn.
There wasn’t much
room down there, what with the narrow path and the tall fence
surrounding the tower keep. There was no room on the other side of
the fence at all, just a long sloping hill all the way down. All
things considered, Robyn was relieved she was breaking out, instead
of trying to break in.

Robyn willed Marion to get back up to the hatch as fast as he
could. Heavy footsteps sounded in the stairwell on the other side
of the door. “Hurry Marion.”

“
You’ll need this,” Mother Eleanor said. In her hands she held
the bow Robyn had fished out of the Littleton well. This time it
was clean and freshly strung with a tight drawstring. And she had a
quiver full of arrows.

Robyn threw her arms around her mother and wept into her
neck.

Eleanor said, “Now you stay safe, you hear? And tuck in your
frock before you climb out, don’t want to get it caught on
anything.”

Robyn giggled. “You’re the friar of tucks, and the tie-er of
frocks.”

“
Be good Robyn,” her mother smiled sadly. “And stay safe. And
find somewhere warm. I will see you in Spring.”

With another hug of farewell, Robyn slung the weapons over her
shoulders and climbed out the hatch.

Only to become stuck because the bow was too wide to fit
through the window.

“
Oh this is too perfect!” Maudlin said as she stormed in the
room.

Panic overrode common sense. Robyn grabbed the weapons off
her back and threw them out the hatch, hoping they’d land inside
the fence below. As Maudlin stomped towards her, she climbed out,
reaching for Marion.

The cold wind stole the grip from her fingers. She fumbled and
slipped in Marion’s arms. Couldn’t find the loop in the rope for
her foot.

“
Hold on,” Marion said as they swung in mid air.

“
Don’t drop me!” Robyn cried out. She would have cried for real
if the wind didn’t rip her tears away before they came
out.

“
Don’t worry, I’ve got you,” Marion said.

The hatch rose in the air. Or, more logically, they dropped
away from the wall. Maudlin leaned out the hatch, cursing them a
good one.

Slipping down his body, Robyn wrapped her arms and legs as
tightly around him as she could, locking her ankles and wrists
around his middle.

“
Nearly there.”

An agonizing time later, they felt the soft thud of the ground
underneath them.

“
Marion, you were amazing!” Robyn smothered him in
kisses.

He laughed and pulled back to draw breath. “I’ll try not to
let my halo blind you.”

“
That must have killed you to be up that h–”

Marion shut her up with another kiss, then said, “We’re safe
on the ground, that’s all that matters.”

The ground. Frantically, Robyn looked around for the bow and
arrows she’d tossed down. They were scattered about, muddy but not
broken.

“
Let’s get going,” Wilfred said, untying the rope from around
Marion’s torso.

“
Well done on getting the horses and the wagon up here,” Robyn
said.

Marion shrugged the compliment aside. “Always good to have a
plan.”