Thaine Sheridan did not know the depth of the pit of deceit and corruption he stepped into in his quest for the elusive Crimson Arrow. He stared ahead at the shadowy, crimson cloaked figure who led the way on his black horse ahead of him on the faint trail. The moonlight glowed dully off the undergrowth and the hooded head of his silent companion he finally found. He wondered what the mystery man’s identity was who he had gone to such lengths to find since he had first set foot in Wyndham. His lips tightened slightly as he patted his steed’s neck reassuringly. The calculating, gold eyes softened almost imperceptibly as he thought about Catherine Falkner, the blond beauty with the green eyes who had captured his heart and then hardened as he remembered the secrets he knew she held, yet had not volunteered. As he drew closer to the ever wary woman, he found himself deeper in the mystery of who the Crimson Arrow was, why he refused to draw blood against the Blacks even though that same courtesy was not extended to him, and why he was so determined to tweak the Blacks’ noses every chance he could.
The Crimson Arrow absently fingered the reins with a darkly gloved hand. The path through the woods they followed was barely discernible in the moonlight and the smell of damp earth hung in the night air. Crimson glanced rearward and found the tall figure in the midnight blue cloak still followed patiently on his own horse. The faceless hood turned forward once more and the hidden eyes narrowed as the gruesome images flashed before him of all the bloody and maimed bodies he had seen strewn carelessly by the roadside at the order of Lord Nicodemus Black and carried out by his son, Marcus. A hint of sadness crept over the disguised face as he remembered Catherine Falkner, whose parents were the first to fall to the Blacks. Crimson took a resolute breath, held it for a moment, and then released it slowly. He felt the reassuring weight of his loaded double crossbow in his free hand as he raised it in preparation of another stealth raid against the Blacks encampment of henchmen. No matter what the cost, the Blacks must pay for what they have done.
