Sherwood by S. E. Roberts Page B

...Henry,
Enders, Candor, Elwin, and Rawley,” She raised an eyebrow, taking
her eyes off Enders and directing them to Robin, who smiled at
her.
    “ I want to
see some intense battles out there, men!” Robin yelled as the men
started to gather into their teams. He narrowed his eyes to Harlow
who stood, looking to him for instruction. “McBride! I want to see
you utilize the other strategies your father has taught
you!”
    Harlow nodded, wanting to
roll her eyes in annoyance. Yes, she was tired, and that was
probably why she was so annoyed, but everything seemed to revolve
around her father: what he would think, what he would do, where he
would send her. If he had known where she was, she was certain he'd
send her away immediately, wanting her anywhere but here mingling
with these men.
    “ Go!” Robin
shouted to the men.
    Harlow sighed, walking
toward Enders, who'd already started in the opposite direction. She
jogged a bit to catch up with him.
    “ Enders,” She
greeted him when she reached him.
    “ McBride. You
ready for the impending battle of the flags?” Enders smirked in a
way that caused Harlow's' heart to sink.
    Harlow raised an eyebrow at
him and gave a small smile. “Aye.”
    The group of five had come
together, walking in silence for close to ten minutes, their feet
dragging through the forest floor.
    Candor yawned and sighed
loudly, looking around the dark forest. “Why would Robin wake us so
early for this?” He looked to Elwin, who kept a slow, almost uneven
pace. “It's still dark out.”
    Harlow tilted her head to
the side slightly to address him. “That's exactly why he woke us
this early. He wants us to be able to hide ourselves in the forest
when it's dark out.” She sighed, stepping over an old, rotting log
on the forest floor. “It's a strategic exercise. My father used to
tell me about it.”
    Elwin and Rawley nodded
slightly, keeping quiet as they walked on. Candor didn't care for
the conversation, simply trying to keep himself awake as he trudged
on.
    Harlow took the opportunity
to look over to Enders, who carried the flag sluggishly as he
dragged himself through the forest.
    Harlow noted that he didn't
look bothered. In fact, he looked motivated, although clearly
exhausted. His eyes seemed to look completely different than what
his body was showing.
    Her eyes scanned over his
behavior, catching the small limp that he walked with at the
moment.
    Snap.
    The breaking of a twig rang
out and echoed through the forest.
    Harlow started to slow her
walking, as did the rest of the men. She perked her ears up, trying
to listen for any other movement, any other sound of
life.
    Just as she was about to
start walking again, the sound of harsh whispers sounded from a far
off tree to her left.
    She quickly turned her
attention to the whispers, scanning the tree tops and the forest
floor for clues.
    “ We should
run.” Elwin suggested from behind her and Enders.
    “ No.” She
snapped quickly, shaking her head, and holding up a hand. She kept
her eyes scanning the forest as she continued. “If we start
running, they'll know we're onto them. They could have men up
ahead, and by the sound of it, it looks like they're not quite in
formation yet. If we start panicking, we'd be setting ourselves up
for an ambush.”
    Harlow turned around,
looking at Enders and then behind him to the trees beyond. “Enders,
how many people are in the trees behind me?”
    Enders took his eyes off of
her and glared into the treetops as inconspicuously as possible.
“As far as I can tell, there's only one person.” He whispered to
her, looking around to his left and his right. “Looks like Harlan
to me.”
    Harlow nodded. “Looks like
there's another one ahead of me.” She whispered to Enders and the
others.
    Candor sighed, looking
ahead and staring through the treetops. “What are we doing then?
Standing here and doing nothing is setting ourselves up for
ambush!” He whispered harshly.
    Harlow turned to him
calmly,