You once promised to remove your hood if I ever discovered your identity.”
Robyn still stood with her back turned to him. Her shoulders gathered in a tense line. Oh, she remembered the promise she had so carelessly made to him. She had hoped he would not remember it or hold her to it. But, Agent Chaplen’s mind was like a steel trap.
Sheathing her sword with a “shhhk,” she turned to face him. With trembling hands, the Shadow Fox reached up and lowered the hood. Immediately, terror flooded her veins. Her hood was supposed to remain over her face, not around her neck. She felt very venerable and very exposed. However, she kept her features expressionless, her eyes searching his.
Chaplen studied her for several seconds. He realized he was looking at the true person. He was looking at neither the Shadow Fox, nor the Robyn Rivers he had come to know. He was looking at the girl who was neither, yet both of them. He assumed her personality was a mix—the cunning of the Shadow Fox, yet the kindness of Robyn.
He had always wondered about her hair. He know saw that it was short and cut unevenly.“What happened to your hair?”
She stared at him, apparently confused. Then, she shook herself. “Oh,” she whistled, and the black mare trotted over to her. As she stroked the mare’s nose, she responded, “Midnight’s previous owner tried to kill her by burning the whole barn down. I rushed in and saved her, but my hair caught fire. I had to cut it off. It is growing back, but it will take time.”
Her voice was different, too. It was higher than the Shadow Fox’s, but lower that Robyn’s. The firelight played off the left side of her face, and he could see the scar. He had sat across from her—the scar right there—for months. He chuckled.
“What?” she asked, turning to look at him. “What amuses you?”
He smirked. “You do, and that stupid idiot mask you hid behind.”
She huffed indignantly. “Well, it worked, Mr. Chaplen. You told me everything I needed to know while I stood directly in front of you.”
Nodding, he conceded the point. “Where did you learn to sword fight and those acrobatics?”
“My grandfather, Daniel Dale. He thought every girl should learn.”
“Did Sovay learn from him as well?”
After a pause, she nodded. “Yes.”
The conversation lolled, each lost in his or her own thoughts.
“What gave the game away?”
It was Agent Chaplen’s turn to be slightly confused. “Ah, well, a number of things.”
“I know I turned careless over the past few weeks.”
He nodded. “Yes, that, and your love for Ben. That was the main one. I suppose everything just fell into place once I stopped ruling you out as a possibility.” He gestured. “Your familiar connections, your initials, the horse, how you always seemed to know everything that was going on, your stature, and,” he paused and smirked, “Those eyes, I told you they would be your undoing. I finally realized where I had seen them before.”
She blew a strand of hair from her face. Crossing her arms, she leaned against her horse. “So, now what?”
He clasped his hands behind his back and approached her. “Now, I go back to England.”
She arched an eyebrow. “You are just going to leave? That does not sound like the Agent Chaplen I know.”
Stopping several feet from her, he shrugged. “What else can I do, Robyn? I refuse to hang you.”
“Why? I thought you would want the satisfaction of finally hanging the Shadow Fox.”
Shaking his head, he looked down at her. “There is no satisfaction in hanging a lass, even if she is a traitor to the crown and a thorn in the side of the British Army. The satisfaction comes from knowing that in the end, I won.”
“Besides, you would have to let everyone know that you had been out-foxed by a girl.”
The Shadow Fox’s smile could not have a more perfect home on Robyn’s face. Her eyes lit up with a mischievous glint. She pushed herself off of the mare and led her back to her stall. Then strode for the barn door.
“True,” he conceded, “But my original reason is still because I will not hang a girl.”
Robyn paused, one hand on the door. Looking back at him, she said, “Then you have more honor than I have ever given you credit for.”
With that, she was gone.
~~~~~~
The ship swayed with the rise and fall of the water. Men streamed up and down the gangplanks like ants carrying supplies. They would sail in a few minutes. It would be good to see England again, and, in time, they would forget he had failed to hang the Shadow Fox.
Agent Chaplen stepped onto the gang plank. After taking a few steps, he paused. Someone was whistling “Yankee Doodle.” He looked over the side. Six youths, one dog, and one horse stood next to the gangplank. The group waved—all except one. The cloaked one just smiled at him. Then, she tugged her hood far enough back from her face so that he could see her eyes. The Shadow Fox smiled her signature smile, black eyes dancing with mischief. With a flourish, she bowed.
He nodded back, smiling, then boarded the ship. Agent Chaplen knew what the Shadow Fox was saying, because he was thinking the same thing. “Farewell, my friend. You were a worthy opponent.”
-----
I have to say, I love, love, LOVE this chapter. I've been trying to figure out how to end this thing for YEARS. I am satisfied. What are your opinions on the ending? Did I end it well? Was it anti-climatic? I planned all along for Agent Chaplen to refuse to hang Robyn, however, did it work for you guys? Really, I want your opinions.
Well, I close this book and open another. Once I get the first few chapters to my Beta reader (coughSorryBabscough), I'll begin posting. (If she finds it acceptable.) I'm trying something a little different with this next book.
A. My main character is a guy.
B. I'm writing in first person, from his view. (Yikes! Hopefully I can represent a guy well!)
C. It's a fantasy story! I'm excited.
I think it will be fun. I'm kind of basing the main character off my brother(s). Also, we can play spot the author. I'm in all my books somewhere--in other words, there's always a character that represents me. Robyn, in this one, and Zann (thanks to mah Babs for pointing this out, I couldn't find myself, lol) in the last one. We'll see if you guys can spot me in this next one. ^.^
C.P. out!
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