The Rebels of Cordovia (11 page)

“You’re our guest. Would you like to thank God
for our meal?”

This announcement took her by surprise. She
hadn’t expected this from such rough looking men.

She gently bit her lip and then said, “Of
course.”

The men bowed their heads and all was quiet. She
smiled at them, realizing they were “God-fearing” men. Why had she
underestimated them so?

Daniel raised his head and peeked at her. He
noticed how she was looking at his men and he was pleased. After
the blessing was said, everyone dished up their food and then began
talking all at once. Daniel finally banged his cup on the
table.

“I can tell you’re curious about Robin. I
usually call her Marie, but tonight I’ll call her Robin. While we
eat, you may ask any question of her that you like.”

Jonas raised his hand and said, “I have a
question.”

Robin nodded toward him. She remembered how well
he played against her father in the competition. “All right, Jonas.
What’s your question?”

He grinned. “How old are you?”

She laughed. “Twenty-one. And my father says I’m
going to be an old maid if I don’t settle down soon.”

The men laughed. After that, they began asking
one question after another.

Simon finally raised his hand and said, “I have
a question.”

Daniel pointed to him and said, “What’s your
question?”

“Do you go pheasant hunting?”

She nodded. “Yes. With my father. We go quite
often.”

He nodded. “Well, lately we’ve been having a
heck of a time finding out where they roost. It took me all day to
get these birds here. Do you have a special place you go? Just
a-wonderin’.”

Everyone burst into laughter. Simon grinned from
ear to ear. He thought he was quite clever.

“Well, the next time I go,” she said. “I’ll take
you along.”

Simon gave a nod. “That’s a deal.”

Miles stood as he raised his hand and said, “I
have a question. Do you do much cookin’? Being a woman and all, I
figured you might but then I began thinkin’. Maybe you were too
busy defendin’ your town and never learned much cookin’
skills.”

The men chuckled.

She smiled. “That’s a fair question. My father
took me out daily to practice archery and sword fighting while my
sisters did the womanly things. He told me that one day I would use
my abilities to defend our home and country. I listened to him but
didn’t realize that one day his prophecy would come true like it
has now.” Robin shrugged. “I’m afraid I don’t know much about
cooking. Although, I can cook stew. It’s simple. I just throw
everything in that’s edible.”

Miles winced. “Edible?”

That made Simon laugh, since he was the
professional cook each night. He prided himself for how delicious
the food was.

A nice looking young man stood and said, “My
name is Giles. I was wonderin’…” He hesitated. “Well, do you
dance?”

She looked at the tall lean man at the end of
the table and smiled. “Yes, I do.”

“Then would you give me the pleasure to dance
with you after supper? We always have music at the end of the
day.”

Robin looked at Daniel and he nodded. “That’s
right. Every night.”

With a nod, she agreed. “I’d be happy to dance
with you.”

“How about me?” asked a rough-cut man.

“And me, too?” asked a tall heavy-set man.

Robin laughed and said, “I’ll dance with anyone
as long as we have some cheerful music. Is that a deal?”

Everyone cheered as three young men got up, went
to their wooden shacks and got their instruments. One held a flute
in his hand, another a Mandolin, and the third held a bow and
fiddle.

When they began playing an upbeat song, Giles
took Robin’s hand and led her to an open area. Holding Robin by the
waist, they began dancing. As they danced, he chatted with her and
made her laugh.

As the men watched, they began forming a long
line, waiting to have their turn. There were those who didn’t know
how to dance and stood on the sidelines, cheering and clapping with
the music. Some even stomped to the beat. A few ran to their shacks
and got their instruments and joined in. When the music stopped,
Giles took her to the line so the next man could dance with
her.

Robin hadn’t noticed the men lining up and she
was surprised. Her eyes widened and then she laughed as she took
her next partner’s hand. Each man had his own little style when it
came to dancing. Giles had danced very smooth, Jonas was quick with
his steps, and Simon took large steps. She was so afraid he was
going to step on her toes.

Daniel sat against a tree with one leg bent,
watching her dance. He smiled as he saw her laugh and joke around
with his men. This was exactly what she needed. He knew deep down
that was the very reason she had not included them on the attack of
the taxman.

As Robin danced and twirled in
the arms of her partner, Daniel noticed how her delightful laughter
rang through the forest.
Her long black
tresses softly bounced against her shoulders with each movement.
The activity even made her cheeks flush a rosy hue. She was having
a great time.

Daniel smiled when he saw Miles standing next in
line. He was only five feet tall and she was about five foot eight,
quite tall for a young woman. She took after her father. When her
partner led her to the lineup, Daniel noticed how Miles grinned
from ear to ear.

“Make this a slow one,” yelled Miles. “I’m not
as fast on my feet.”

Everyone snickered. They knew he wasn’t as slow
as he pretended and was quite agile. He just wanted a slow dance
with the loveliest lady of Cordovia. When Daniel noticed that she
was slowing down and the men were lining up for a second and third
dance, he intervened.

“I think it’s about time I take Miss Robin home.
She’s had a great time but I’ve noticed she’s not as light on her
feet anymore. She needs rest.”

The men groaned while Miles climbed upon the
table to say his farewell. He took her hand and gave it a kiss.
Then he said, “You may rest in my shack if you want, fair lady. The
bed’s warm and…”

All the men burst into laughter and then told
Miles that was not the way to speak to a lady. After the joking
stopped, each one told her they were proud to have her in their
group.

Daniel helped her upon her horse and she waved
to everyone as they rode away.

“Farewell, dear lady,” called Miles as he waved
goodbye.

The following day the rebels met at the
designated spot and waited for Polly to arrive with the carriage.
They were getting ready to rob the tax collector once again. That
morning, Robin had taken Polly aside and told her what to say for
their signal. Everything needed to be well timed. Polly had
laughed, saying, “Why would I say that?”

“Because you’re going to hold up the taxman and
he’ll be anxious to continue on his way. I’ve gotten to know him.
He’s a real grouch. So when you’re ready, and everyone seems quite
relaxed and off guard, just repeat these words nice and loud:
You’re grouchy for an old man.”

While waiting for Polly, the men joked around
with Robin, telling her how much fun they had last night and they
wished she would return once again. But next time she should bring
a few of her lady friends. Daniel watched how his men had taken to
her and he was very pleased. It took all his control not to take
her in his arms and give her a squeeze.

When Polly arrived, they quickly took her horse
from the carriage and hid it in the forest. As they waited for the
tax collector, Polly sat on the edge of the carriage while the
rebels found hiding spots behind shrubs and tree trunks. Some
climbed into the tall trees and hid among the limbs. The reason
everyone was instructed to wear brown or forest green was because
they could blend into the scenery.

Robin chose to sit on a branch with her bow and
arrow ready. Daniel shook his head as he looked up at her in such a
precarious position. She had told him that she always chose a spot
that was high so she could see what was going on and make sure her
men were safe.

When Giles came riding at a fast speed, he held
his hand in the air, giving the signal that the taxman was on his
way. Then he slid to a stop and led his horse into the woods. He
quickly prepared his bow and arrow and waited.

Polly got down from her seat and stood in the
middle of the road beside her carriage. She thought it was best to
begin crying her eyes out before the soldiers arrived so her face
would look a little red. All she had to do was think about the
little children that she and Robin had given food and clothes to.
Their thin clothes barely kept the children warm. That brought the
tears on quite easily.

When the soldiers and taxman finally arrived,
they were leery and had their hands on their muskets, ready to
defend themselves.

As Polly cried, the captain climbed down from
his horse and walked up to her, asking what had happened.

“I… I was robbed,” she stammered.

“Who were they?”

“Some thieves,” she said as she wiped the tears
from her cheeks. “They took my money and my horse. I was going to
visit my aunt when they stopped me.”

“Where did they go?” asked the captain.

“Toward Charlottesville.”

The captain still seemed a little guarded. So
she broke into tears all over again, hoping for more sympathy.

Seeing her distressed situation, the captain
finally let out a sigh and took her in his arms to comfort her. He
patted her back and said, “It’s all right. We’ll take you where you
need to go. What’s your name?”

“Polly,” she said as she clung to his
jacket.

He smiled at her. “Well, Polly, lately these
woods haven’t been safe for anyone to travel. There are a lot of
rebel groups that are roaming about, so you might not want to
travel without someone escorting you from now on.”

She nodded and sniffled a little. When he got
his handkerchief out for her to use, the taxman yelled with
frustration, “Get that woman out of our way. We have no time for
this. We’re on the king’s business.”

Polly could see this annoyed the captain quite a
bit. He had pursed his lips as if trying to hold back his temper.
Apparently, he didn’t like the taxman anymore than she did.
Noticing how the soldiers had relaxed, she decided it was time to
give the signal.

“Oh my!” Polly called out. “You’re grouchy for
an old man!”

The soldiers snickered and the captain grinned
as the taxman turned red with anger.

Just at that moment, seventy-five arrows flew
through the air with the sound of buzzing bees and burrowed into
the taxman’s coach. Instantly, Daniel called out his message.

“Drop your muskets and scat! I’ll give you one
second to consider it.”

When the soldiers hesitated, seventy-five more
arrows covered the rest of the coach just like a pincushion. With
that, the soldiers dropped their muskets, kicked their horses, and
took off running. The captain, although, was quite chivalrous. He
quickly picked up Polly and placed her on his horse and then took
off at great speed.

Robin hadn’t expected that. She smiled as she
climbed down from the tree. When she and all the men walked out
from the woods, the taxman knew the procedure. He climbed out of
the coach with a disgruntled look on his face and stood beside the
coach. His eyes looked like daggers as he stared at Robin. She
thanked him and took all the bags of money from under the seat.

“For a mere boy, you sure have a good
following,” said the taxman. “But no matter… I’ll have more
soldiers next time, but ones that aren’t so easily distracted.”

“By the way,” said Robin. “Your cravat is
crooked.”

That night another meeting was called which
included Daniel. After everyone settled down, Robin handed Daniel
the money and said, “Would you please count it out evenly for each
of the villages and assign your men to distribute food for the
needy and clothes for the children? You can give the portion for
Charlottesville to me or Polly. We’re going to distribute the
clothes and food ourselves.”

Daniel nodded. He was pleased she had included
him in this manner.

Merek chuckled as he looked at Polly. “So what
happened after the Captain took off with you?”

Polly sighed. “He was such a gentleman. His
name’s Nathaniel. After we arrived in the next village, he told his
men to go back to the palace. Then he bought me some pastries and
we talked and talked. It was great. Then he dropped me off at my
aunt’s house. I might see him again tomorrow.”

Merek’s eyes widened. “Really?” Then he burst
into laughter. This had been so unexpected.

The following day, Daniel dropped the money by
for Robin to buy food and clothes for the needy in Charlottesville.
When she went shopping, he went along and helped her pick up
everything that was needed. Robin didn’t realize how much fun it
would be to have Daniel help. He wanted to pick out clothes for the
boys. When he was done, he helped her choose some play dresses for
the girls. He even wanted to choose the colors. He liked the peach
colored dresses more than the green ones. This made her laugh.

“You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you?”

He nodded with a smile. “Peach seems to be the
real fashion now days. Red-flowered print dresses are popular, too.
Have you noticed? Let’s get one of those for that little girl that
gave you those wild flowers. She was so sweet. Do you remember
Amy?”

She nodded.

“What do you say?”

Robin was taken aback. This man standing before
her, who considered himself a rogue and had the body of the Greek
God Zeus, was enjoying shopping for clothes.

She smiled. “Yes, I think she would love
it.”