“How about I take you prisoner instead?” I called.
Baron half-smiled. “Go ahead and try.”
Before he had even finished speaking, my knife was whizzing through the air. It was a perfect throw, but Baron was just as quick as I was. He lifted his own pack to block the attack, and my knife buried itself in the middle. I dashed across to where Baron was standing, taking advantage of his raised pack that blocked me from his view. I administered a sharp upward heel thrust with my hand to his chin while scything a leg out from under him. I intended on giving a swift kick to his ribs after he was on the ground, but as he toppled over, he grabbed my wrist and I tumbled down too.
We rolled over but I had no chance against him in wrestling—he was far heavier. Baron had, wisely on his part, flung his pack away from our struggle so I would have no way to retrieve my knife. Within seconds, he had me pinned. I struggled with all my might, trying to kick, hit, bite, anything that would give me an advantage. But it was as useless as water slapping against a solid stone wall. All of my best maneuvers were useless. Baron was simply too strong.
Finally, my energy waned and I stopped my one-sided attack against Baron, who wasn’t fighting back at all. He just used his considerable weight to keep me immobilized on the ground. “How about best two out of three?” I suggested weakly.
Baron laughed. “No, I don’t think so. Come on now.” He hoisted me to my feet. I tried in vain to squirm free, but to no avail. Baron seemed to anticipate each of my movements and countered with catlike reflexes. I clenched my fists tight when he went to tie my hands. I hoped to have some wiggle room to escape my bonds later, but Baron was wise to that trick as well. “None of that,” he said, and poked at my wrists until I relaxed them and he bound them tightly.
“It was worth a try.”
He pulled my knife out of his pack and flung it away. “Where do you keep getting all these from?” he wondered aloud.
He rummaged through my pack and discarded anything that could be considered a weapon, but to my surprise, he secured my pack alongside his own belongings. I’d expected that he would throw away anything I possessed. He then pulled me over to where his horse was waiting, lifted me onto the saddle, and tied my feet loosely to the stirrups so I couldn’t run away. “Well fought, Laurel. It was a noble effort.”
“You smell,” I told him spitefully. It wasn’t true anymore; he must have recently bathed. But at that moment, I hated Baron with every fiber of my being.
“I noticed you don’t smell anymore.” He eyed my clothes as he tied my hands onto the saddle’s horn again. “And your clothes are different. You’re wearing a dress.”
“I’m magical,” I told him sarcastically.
For some reason, this made Baron really laugh. Tears welled up in his eyes as his deep, booming guffaws rang out. “It wasn’tthatfunny,” I said, nonplussed.
“Yes, it was!” Baron said as he swung up behind me. “After you escapedagain, Sneeds told everyone how you managed it.”
My curiosity was piqued. As far as I knew, he hadn’t seen anything at all. “What did he say?”
“He says you must be a witch that uses black magic. That your kisses have the mystical ability to render any man unconscious. He claims you kissed him and he was instantly out cold.”
I didn’t respond, and Baron gasped, “You aren’t telling me youdidkiss him? I thought he was just blustering to make up an excuse for falling asleep.” Baron clucked to his horse and we trotted away from Sherwood Forest.
I smirked. “Poor bloke. He wasn’t such a bad fellow. Just stupid and in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“You mean he was no match for the infamous Laurel of Locksley. I knew you had been plotting something; I just knew it! I suppose I should be grateful for the few hours of sleep I did get before I was dragged out of bed and sent on yet another wild goose chase after you.”
“You could have said no. Then you could actually sleep at night and I could go home. Everyone wins.”
“Great, so I would have slept until the sheriff took my head off for failing in my duties.”
“Dorian, Sneeds, and the other three failed, but I don’t think any of them are headless yet,” I pointed out.
“Nor are they senior officers.”
“No one would blame you. After all, I have the kiss ofdeath!”
Baron chuckled. “And here I was thinking you had no sense of humor.”
“I only joke with my friends.”
“Is that what we are?”
Of course Baron wasn’t my friend. He had just managed to capture me for a third time and was returning me to myfoe’s campsite. He didn’t trust me at all and wouldn’t sleep in my presence. The kind gestures he had made—keeping me fed, lending me blankets—were only part of his duties as my assigned caretaker.
“Nope. We’redefinitelystill enemies!” I leaned forward, away from Baron, then smacked my shoulder backward so it dug into Baron’s side. He wrapped one of his thick arms around me, squeezing around my middle so I was forced back against his chest and couldn’t move anymore.
“Just checking,” Baron said. “It’s probably for the best—I wouldn’t want to compete with that rascal Sneeds for your affections. I noticed that someone had scratched out your names in a big heart by the campfire. Sneeds said you and he had a strong connection.”
