“For the crime of shooting the king’s deer, he will lose his hand.”
“Criminal,” Hannah muttered next to her. Marian glanced at her sideways before looking back at the scaffold.
The tanner was barely more than a boy. His face was spotted, his hair was greasy, and his eyes were bloodshot as though he’d been crying. He was thin as the saplings she’d seen when they’d first arrived in Nottingham.
“Please,” she heard a woman cry—the boy’s mother if she had to guess. “Oh, please for pity’s sake. We were starving. Have mercy!”
“Silence,” commanded the sheriff, a wide man with blond hair and watery blue eyes. He looked quite the way a king’s deputy should look, except that his hair was perhaps a little greasier than the solemnity of his office called for. “He broke the king’s law and will know the king’s justice.”
Marian watched as the boy’s arm was extended over a block and the executioner took out an axe. She did not watch as his hand was cleaved from his body but she did hear the cry of pain that ripped out of his throat and the mutterings of the crowd.
When she could bring herself to look again, the block was a bit wetter, a bit redder, and the boy was being dragged away, leaving a ribbon of blood trailing on the ground behind him. He had clearly fainted.
—
Today’sStory Spotlight by Lemon & Lime Creator Celia.
Liyotte may not have expected love in her marriage, but she at least had thought she wouldn’t wish to murder her husband in earnest. Six years after starting to dream of it, the stars were aligning and it was time to fly.
Maid Marian walks a delicate balance between what is expected and what she craves, and the arrival of her childhood friend, Robin, Lady Huntington, does nothing to simplify matters. Marian must decide where her loyalties lie—to the absent king, to the one who sits the throne in the King’s place, to the husband who has been chosen for her, or to the woods, and to freedom, and to the dreams she’d almost forgotten. And all the while, bandits haunt the woods around Nottingham, and Marian suspects that their leader is closer to her than anyone might suspect.
Becks Kaplan didn’t have a good high school experience. Outed by her step-sisters at an all girls school that purported more progressive politics than she ever experienced there, all she wanted to do was get away from New York City forever. But it’s been ten years, and there’s a reunion, and she wants to show everyone that she’s not that frightened baby dyke anymore. And maybe catch the eye of the former classmate she always wished she’d known better.
1 small fresh pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1-2 inch chunks
1 bottle white wine
½ c white rum
¾ c pineapple juice
4 c lemon lime soda
mint leaves and pineapple wedges for garnish
In a heavy pitcher, muddle together the lime slices, peppermint leaves, and sugar. Add the pineapple and add wine, rum, and pineapple juice over the top. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 4-5 hours. Top with lemon lime soda. Add ice, pineapple chunks, and mint for garnish.
