Robyn and the Hoodettes by Ebony McKenna Read Free Book Online Page A

Mother Eleanor, this is probably the safest place to be,”
Marion said as he got to his feet. He was soaked from top to
bottom. His long shirt clung to his body, highlighting the muscles
and planes of his torso. “Littleton is on fire.”
    “ We noticed,” Joan said, then she winked at Marion and said,
“You should stay wet.”
    Marion snorted as he pulled the soaking fabric away from his
skin.
    Heat raced up Robyn’s face, so she splashed herself to hide
her embarrassment. Did Marion know she was looking at him? Weighed
down by her wet clothes, she dragged herself to the banks and
looked at the desolation.
    “ Sorry Joan.” Remorse churned her stomach. Here they were,
surrounded by water, yet they had no way of dousing it on the fire
to save the village. The wind gusted in the opposite direction,
blowing smoke away from them. It afforded a great view of what
remained of Littleton.
    Precious little. The stone tower stood there like a
chimney, but the cottages were nothing but smouldering timber and
clay shells. Their thatched roofs, made from dried straw, had never
stood a chance.
    “ Wait a minute,” Robyn said as she sloshed her way to the river
bank. “Is that another horse?”
    “ Oh, yes,” Eleanor said, “She was already by the river when we
got here. Very friendly. Won’t leave Shadow’s side.”
    Must have been the other one Robyn had let loose when she’d
stolen Shadow. They’d lost a village but gained a horse.
    Shivers took hold as the breeze rolled around her sodden
clothes. “Right, let’s dry out.” Slosh, slosh, slosh, she walked
towards the closest ruined cottage, holding her wet tunic over her
nose to keep the smoke out of her lungs.
    There was nothing left to salvage in the cottage. Sunlight
streamed in where the roof should have been. The walls were still
standing, but the wattle and daub mud had cracked from the heat. A
radiant heat, which helped dry her out a little.
    Everything not currently smoking had burned to black
coals.
    “ Hey, it’s not so bad,” Joan said as she gave Robyn a
hug.
    Robyn snuggled in to the hug and returned it with equal
sympathy and love, dreading to think what might be left of
Loxley.
    “ We’re alive, yeah? That’s always a bonus,” Joan
said.
    “ Since you put it that way,” Robyn said, surveying the
destruction all around them.
    “ Let’s check the well. My parents were always throwing things
down there, whenever strangers came into town. Who knows,” Joan
added with a shrug, “We might find something useful.”
    Four humans and two horses peered into the well.
    “ Is there any water in it?” Marion asked.
    Joan shrugged. “Doesn’t need to be. The river’s always
reliable.
    “ I can’t see the bottom though.” Marion’s knuckles whitened as
he held on to the stones around the top of the well.
    Robyn swallowed, recognising his fear. “I can climb down,
but I don’t know how I’ll carry anything out.”
    “ Smart thinking.” Eleanor took off her apron and ripped it into
strips, then tied each strip together to make a rope. “It won’t be
strong enough for you, but whatever you find you can tie at the end
and we’ll haul it up.”
    Robyn began to climb, feet first, down the well. The diameter
was narrow enough for her to anchor her feet and hands either side
to support her weight as she shuffled down. It became darker and
darker, so she had to stop a while and let her eyes
adjust.
    Breathe, it’s not scary, everything is OK.
    Her breaths echoed off the stone walls. Her thighs cramped
with effort and she wanted to jump the rest of the way, but she
still couldn’t see the bottom. If she let go of the walls, how far
would she fall before she hit the floor?
    And what would be on the floor to break her fall?
    The answer came a minute later when her foot squelched into
soft mud.
    “ I’m at the bottom,” She called up to the faces looking down at
her.
    It stank something putrid down here, but she had a job to do
so she felt her