Page 51 of The Marquess’s Masked Archer

He tilted his head, giving her a view of the twinkle in his eyes. “I think it’s past time people in the area learned more about the marvelous Lady Robin and her sidekick. It will benefit your show in the future, if you choose to continue it.”

Sylvie’s heart warmed. There was no trepidation, no fear of consequences for having their names attached to the show. Together, they could face the world undisguised.

Miles’s grin widened as he took in the joy that was surely written on her face. “Are you ready for one last performance?”

At one time, those words would have sent a tremor through Sylvie. But now she had a life of real freedom to look forward to. The freedom of trusting that God had her future in His hands. The freedom of knowing she was His. And the freedom of being in love with a man who valued her for who she was, not for her money or family. She would be fine, with or without this show. “I am. Let me get my hood.”

Once she was prepared and Mr. Miller had announced the start of the show, Sylvie and Miles walked out together. The size of the crowd made Sylvie smile. Their energy and excitement boosted her desire to give them the best performance possible. She even caught unexpected glimpses of the Loftons and the Moreau sisters in the audience.

Then it was time for the first shot. Sylvie put everything else out of her mind. All the hours practicing with her bow when Miles had been away in an effort to keep from losing heart had been beneficial in other ways too. She was more than ready to impress the spectators.

With sure movements, Sylvie raised her bow and sent an arrow flying straight and true into the center of a target. She moved through two more, which were placed progressively farther away from her. While Mr. Miller reset the targets in between Sylvie’s shots, Miles gave demonstrations as Will Scarlet with his rapier. All the time, the crowd cheered and applauded.

Finally, Mr. Miller set up their finale. Miles took a moment to approach Sylvie, tipping his head down to meet her gaze under the hood. “I’ve made a small change to the program. Mr. Miller knows about it, so just go along with it.”

“What does that mean?” Sylvie attempted to grab Miles’s arm as he slipped away, but she missed, and he kept walking while grinning over his shoulder. What on earth was he up to?

Anticipation lit up Sylvie’s nerves. She ignored the tingles racing through her limbs as she took her place for the final shot, her back turned to Miles. What if his change caused her to miss?

Holding her bow pointed toward the ground with an arrow notched and ready, Sylvie let several deep breaths wash away the questions. He wouldn’t have planned anything that would throw off her shot. He knew how precise it had to be. She would follow his lead.

When the crowd went silent, Sylvie knew it was time. She raised her bow over her head and spun, releasing the arrow at the exact moment for it to fly in a perfect arc around the screen, through the hoop Mr. Miller threw and the apple on Miles’s head, and into the target. While she couldn’t see any of it happen through the screen, the shot felt perfect.

The crowd’s response, however, sent a wave of dizziness over her. Gasps and cries echoed across the lawn, followed by terrible silence. Sylvie dropped her bow and raced around the screen.

Miles lay on the ground, his stool overturned next to him. Sylvie tripped over her feet in her rush to get to him as her hands began to shake. Why wasn’t Mr. Miller moving, helping in some way?

It felt like forever before she reached Miles, but when she did, the urge to smack him hard overcame fear. He’d propped himself up on his elbows and lay there grinning at her as if proud of himself. Sylvie halted mid-step and planted her fists on her hips. “How dare you frighten me like that?”

“I needed to get you over here somehow.” He rose, dusting himself off while the crowd cheered. Then he walked straight to her, pushed up his mask, and held out his hands. Unable to help herself when he watched her with such love in his eyes, Sylvie slid her hands into his grasp, savoring his touch.

“Miss Robin, lady archer, Sylvie—the most amazing woman on earth, regardless of what name you’re known by.” As he spoke, Miles raised his voice loud enough so the entire crowd could hear. Sylvie went still. What was he doing? She’d talked about not wanting to hide her identity anymore, but this felt like more than revealing her name. “I’ve said it before, but I need you to be sure you know how much I love you. I’ve loved you since I first saw that hood drop down your back. None of my plans are worth pursuing if I don’t have you at my side. Will you marry me so we never have to be apart?”

Sylvie swallowed hard against a rising tide of emotions. He loved her enough to put his feelings and their relationship on display this way? Neither of them was hiding anymore, not from each other, from the public, or from people they knew. Thanks to God’s leading, they had a future that would be full of hope, joy, and peace, no matter what came their way.

With a trembling hand, Sylvie reached up and pushed her hood back, then tugged off her mask. The crowd murmured in the background, but she didn’t care. Her eyes remained glued on the hopeful expression of the man she’d never expected to love. “Yes. Always yes, Miles.”

The words barely left her lips before he caught her up in an embrace and kissed her for everyone to see. Sylvie laughed when they finally broke apart. The freedom that came with both her love for Miles and her renewed relationship with the Lord far exceeded anything she could have imagined. Wild applause rose from the crowd, and together they turned and bowed to their audience, finally facing a future they could embrace without secrets or hiding.

EPILOGUE

July 1912

Miles stretched his aching back and put down the scientific journal he’d been reading since arriving home. It was easy to get consumed by the work involved in running the Cedar Point laboratory. He loved heading up all the research programs. But now it was past time he put it aside for the day so he could join his family in enjoying a warm summer evening.

At the back door of the modest house several blocks from the lakeshore in Sandusky, Miles paused, leaning against the doorframe to watch his family. Sylvie was in the yard with their oldest, four-year-old Cora. Nearby, three-year-old Oliver—named after Miles’s brother—used a stick to draw designs in the dirt that might be his attempt at letters.

It was all so perfect that Miles almost couldn’t believe it was real.

Sylvie rubbed at her back, her expanded belly no doubt putting pressure on it. While his wife was healthy and strong, he would be glad when the baby arrived safely and Sylvie didn’t have to handle as much physical discomfort.

“Now raise your elbow. Yes, just like that.” Sylvie’s voice drifted over to where he stood. She leaned over little Cora, correcting the way their daughter held a miniature bow Mr. Bryce had given her at Christmas. Sylvie had held off teaching Cora to use it, not wanting to push her own passions on their children unless they were also interested. But Cora had begged every day for a month until Sylvie finally relented. And as the new archery instructor at Cedar Point during the summer seasons, there was no better person than Sylvie to teach her.

Scuffling drew his attention to Oliver, who had noticed his presence and was half running, half skipping over. “Papa!”

Miles reached down to swing his son up high in the air before settling the boy on his hip. Oliver squealed in delight, drawing a glance and a smile from Cora. Sylvie, however, called over her shoulder without turning, “Dinner will be a bit late. We got distracted by this fine weather.”

Turning to Oliver, Miles lowered his voice. “Should we hurry Mama and Cora along?”