Marcus was furious. Not about the afternoon he spent with Philip. It had actually been a really nice afternoon and he felt like he and Philip had become friends. But when he found out the truth about Will...
How dare he lie to him like that? And here he thought they were friends and that Will was honest. Turns out he really had only been a thief all this time. A thief and a liar. And he had believed him. How could he have been so blind?
Marcus should have known. The way he had always hesitated to give him information. The way he got nervous when they met the second time. It hadn't been all because he was the son of a Grand Duke, no it was mainly because he was scared to get caught up in his lies.
But then again Marcus wondered why he had stayed to chat with him for so long. Why he had asked him questions about his travels. Had he honestly been interested in that? Or was it just for cover and to prevent him from asking more questions about him? Probably it was the latter.
Oh, Marcus would teach that thief a lesson. That was for sure. They had arranged to meet up again tonight on the spot where their first encounter had happened. And Marcus would be there and he would get some answers. Some honest answers.
But what if Will, or whatever his name really was, really turned out to be a lying thief, which was to be expected? Would he turn him in? But it would be the middle of the night... Should he keep him captive till the morning and then turn him in? He'd have to. And he also deserved it!
Just in case Marcus took not only his pistol with him but also some rope to tie that "stable boy" down if needed. Feeling somewhat prepared Marcus got on his horse and rode off into the night, towards the woods behind the Cornwall Estate. He was still fuming. If there was one thing that he hated, it was liars. And whoever that person was, they surely had lied to him a great deal.
Arriving at their meeting point, Marcus bound his horse to one of the trees so he could focus all his attention on Will. The pistol tucked away under his coat within easy reach if needed and the rope in his saddle bag, he waited. He had made sure to be there early enough so he could be the first one there.
Meanwhile Willow had once again changed from girl to boy and was all too excited to see Marcus again. She had planned to take him to the small lake in the woods tonight. For some reason she really wanted to share that special place with him. And it was surely one of the things that she could freely tell him, without having to worry about lying or having to sidestep any questions. She would be able to show him something of herself - her real self - without being in danger of him finding out who she really was.
It wasn't that Willow was worried that he would tell his brother about her nightly trips anymore. She felt like he wasn't someone to do something like that. But she was worried that it would change things between them. It was just the way that society was. One doesn't talk to boys the same way one talks to girls. She was worried that it would push him away if he found out she was actually a duchess. That he would all of a sudden feel the need to be all formal around her. That they wouldn't be able to have those free, open and honest conversations anymore. And that's what she so loved about him and talking to him. It felt free.
When she was talking to her brother it always felt forced and half of the time one of them wasn't even paying proper attention. There were so many lies and restrictions, when talking to Philip. It was saying what she knew he wanted to hear and not what she wanted to say. But with Marcus it couldn't have been more different.
There was no need for any of that. Marcus didn't feel the need for formalities and that was surely partly because he was just talking to a stable boy. And Willow felt free to speak her mind as Marcus seemed more amused than anything else by the cheeky stable boy that he thought he was talking to. Willow just always had to keep in mind not to spill too much information and keep her voice somewhat low. But that had been rather easy for the most part so far.
A smile was playing on Willow's lips as she made her way through the gardens. She was so looking forward to tonight. She wondered, where their conversation would lead them. If Marcus would tell her more about his travels.
She would love that. She wanted to know every single detail of every single place that he had visited and she would make sure to guide their conversation into that direction if it was possible. At the same time Willow wondered if he had made a decision about the arranged marriage that he was faced with. She'd make sure to ask him about that as well.
Climbing up the old oak tree, she wondered if he was already there. She tried to make out any noises, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Making her way down the other tree, Willow landed on the other side safely only moments later.
The moment her feet hit the ground on the other side of the wall though, my body was slammed into that very wall as all air was knocked out of her. Panic rose within Willow in a matter of seconds. This was surely not what she had expected. Her face was pressed against the rough brick as two strong hands were painfully locked around her upper arms, keeping her in place.
"I visited the Duke of Cornwall today." Marcus voice hissed into Willow's ear. He was fuming. "We strolled around the Estate a bit and guess what he said, when I asked him about his stable boy Will?"
Willow's heart was racing by then and her breaths came out quick and short. This was bad. Really bad.
"He said they had never had a stable boy called Will. And the stable boy that was working there surely looks nothing like you." The painful grip on her arms seemed to tighten even more as Willow bit her lip, trying to figure out what to say or do.
"I can explain." she finally pressed out, her lungs barely had enough air to form the words and by now the pain in her arms was getting hard to bear. Willow praid that Marcus would give her a chance to explain. And release her from that deadly grip.
"You can explain?" He questioned a dry laugh escaping his lips. "I don't think there is any explaining needed. Clearly you have been lying to me from our first encounter. I cannot believe that I let you fool me into thinking that you weren't a thief in the first place."
This was going from bad to worse. Not only did he think that she lied to him, which was understandable, no, he was also convinced that she was a thief, which as a matter of fact she was not.
"I bet you just went back there today to steal some more things, didn't you?" Marcus accused, pressing Willow impossibly more up against the wall, the rough edges of the brick boring into the skin of her right cheek.
"Please," Willow pressed out in clear despair, "I swear I didn't steal a single thing." She knew she had to convince him that she wasn't a thief or he would never let her go.
"And why should I believe that?" Marcus challenged, leaving Willow at a loss of words for a moment.
"Search my pockets if you must." Willow closed her eyes as those words left her mouth. She knew this was the only way to convince him. Nothing she would say would be enough. The trust that had formed between them was gone. It was replaced with hatred on Marcus' side and hurt on Willow's side. A single tear slipped down Willow's cheek, not only because of the pain that his iron-like grip induced on her body, but more so because she knew that it would never be the same between them.
For a moment Marcus seemed taken aback by that. He had quickly recovered from that though and changed his way of holding Willow in place. The grip on her arms loosened and only a moment later, she felt his left hand between her shoulder blades, pressing her against the brick wall thighly again. That was not really any more comfortable than before, but Willow was glad he at least let go of her arms. At this point she had been worried about the possibility of bruises forming on her upper arms.
She could feel Marcus' right hand roaming around her body, searching every single pocket for something she might have stolen.
"Fine." He finally declared after a few minutes of hasty searching that had obviously left him with nothing. "If you're not a thief, what were you doing at the Cornwall grounds? Clearly you are not the stable boy."
"Please," Willow could only plead again, having to take another breath after that word as her breathing was still restricted by Marcus's hand on her back, keeping her pressed to the wall tightly, "I promise I'll explain. I didn't do anything wrong."
To Willow's luck Marcus eased his grip on her a little and in one swift motion spun her around on her shoulders, so they were now facing each other. He left his hands on her shoulders to prevent her from running away though.
Willow glanced up at the man in front of her. At this closeness the fury was evident in his face, even though the night was dark. Fixing her gaze on the ground beneath them instead, Willow tried to figure out what to say. How much should she tell him? How much could she tell him?
"I'm waiting." Marcus was getting impatient, as Willow didn't reply right away. This better be good.
"Would you please let go of me first?" Willow asked in a sigh, her voice as small as she felt in that moment. She had figured out what she was going to say - or much more do, but she would need at least a little space.
"So you can run away? I don't think so!" Marcus denied the request in a firm voice, obviously not taking any chances whatsoever. All the closeness and trust that he had in the person in front of him had vanished the moment he found out about him lying.
"I won't run, I promise." The duchess pleaded, meaning every word she said and lifting her gaze to meet his eyes. She had to make him believe her.
Marcus wasn't fully convinced, but was willing to give in to the request as he was sure that he could outrun the boy in front of him if it were needed and he also still had that revolver hidden away under his belt. There really was no chance for the boy to escape him.
So he dropped his arms from Willow's shoulders and took a small step back. Willow lowered her gaze to the floor again. Taking a deep breath, trying to collect all the courage within her. What she was about to do was risky. But she knew in order to convince him and still keep her real identity hidden to at least have a chance of them continuing their friendship and their conversations as free and jaunty as they had been, she would have to tell at least a part of the truth. Trust could only be restored with honesty.
She lifted her right hand to her cap ever so slowly and pulled it off in one swift motion. As her long dark brown hair fell down, she could hear Marcus sucking in a breath of surprise, taking a step back in the progress. Hesitantly Willow lifted her gaze to meet his.
"You..." Marcus started, but trailed off, clearly still trying to wrap his head around what just happened. "You're a girl?" Not being able to believe his eyes just yet, he couldn't help but stare at Willow bluntly.
"As you can see," Willow started her explanation, "I am not the stable boy of Lord Cornwall. I am - in fact - not a boy at all." Throwing another glance at Marcus, she continued "But I am not a thief either. I didn't do anything wrong other than sneaking off of the grounds that I am not supposed to leave." Marcus still seemed at a loss of words, so Willow decided to do some more explaining while she was at it. "I promise I didn't lie to you. I am not the stable boy, as you thought, but I am helping out in the stables and spending a lot of time there, as I said the night we met."
Marcus seemed to have finally regained his composure.
"I errrhhh... I apologize for my rude behavior." He started off a little unsure, as it seemed. "It was just... When the Duke of Cornwall said he had never had a stable boy called Will it all just seemed so clear to me. The only explanation seemed to be that you lied to me and that just made me furious."
"There is no need for you to apologize, your Grace." Willow didn't want him to apologize, there really was no need for that. "You couldn't have known. And I must apologize for misleading you in that matter." She lowered her gaze to the floor again, subconsciously letting her left hand wander over her right upper arm. There was still a dull pain from his tight grip on her upper arms.
Marcus noticed the movement and felt a pang of guilt hit him. He hadn't meant to hurt her.
"I hope I didn't hurt you?" It came out more like a question than a statement.
"It's fine." Willow brushed it off, forcing a smile on her face. "No need to worry, your Grace."
An uncomfortable silence settled between them, as neither one seemed to know where to go from here.
"I would really like to show you something." Willow finally got herself to speak up again once the silence had gotten unbearable and gestured towards a small pathway to her right, that would lead them to the small lake.
"After you." Marcus replied, a small smile starting to form on his lips. Now that he had digested this whole thing, he was even more mesmerized by- Wait. Was her name really Will? It surely was more of a boy's name than a girl's.
Willow had already made a few steps away in the direction of the lake, when Marcus' voice made her stop. "Pardon me, but I just need to know. Is your name really Will?"
A small chuckle escaped Willow's lips, before she turned around to face Marcus again and answer his question. "My brother used to call me that, when we were only kids. But most people actually call me Willow."
A smile spread on Marcus' face, how smart she was to come up with something like that. She had managed to make him think that she was a stable boy without even really lying to him even just once. Good, she had the dark of the night in her favor, as well as the fact, that humans tended to see what they expected to see. But it was still rather impressive to Marcus.
The two of them made their way through the dark woods quietly and Marcus made sure to follow up closely as he wouldn't want to get lost here. They couldn't have walked more than ten minutes when Willow came to a halt in front of him. And when he looked up they were standing at the edge of what had to be the most beautiful clearing in the whole world. It was absolutely breathtaking.
As Willow glanced up at Marcus, the full moon was illuminating her face, showing off all her features to Marcus for the first time. The cool light of the moon seemed to make her skin glow and underlined the contrast between her light skin and her dark hair.
Willow felt her cheeks turning hot, as Marcus was staring down at her like that and quickly averted her gaze towards the lake that was shimmering in the moonlight. She made a few steps out into the clearing and sat down on the tree trunk, that was laying across the grass all by itself for as long as Willow could remember. She couldn't help but wonder what Marcus was thinking of her now. He probably thought she was weird for dressing up like a boy. But then again he had seemed more amused about it than anything else, once he had wrapped his head around it all.
Out of the corner off her eye Willow noticed that Marcus was sitting down next to her. At a reasonable distance. Not as close as they might have sat if he had still thought her to be a boy, but also not as far as he would have sat if he had realized that she was a duchess. That had been what Willow had been most scared about. That he would somehow place two and two together and figure that out too. She had hoped that by revealing that she was a girl he would just forget to ask what her position at the Cornwall Estate really was. And it must have worked.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Willow asked, without looking at Marcus, but keeping her gaze on the lake in front of them instead.
"It really is." Marcus replied, a small smile still playing around his lips. "However did you find this place?"
Willow bit her lip, wanting to tell him the story, but also a little worried that it would involve her brother again. She really didn't want to bring him up, as she didn't want Marcus to find out about her being the duchess.
"When I was just a little girl I and my brother sneaked off the Cornwall grounds for the first time and we found this place. We were playing pirates and we were searching for a treasure and found this instead. And I guess it is a treasure, even if it's not made of gold and silver." Willow told the story in its short version. Leaving out the terrible weather and the scolding they got once they returned back home.
Marcus just nodded in reply and glanced at Willow once more. It was hard to believe how he had not noticed that she was a girl and not a boy. Chuckling he shook his head and returned his gaze to the water.
"What is it?" Willow wanted to know the reason for his chuckling, looking at him curiously.
"It's just... I am quite impressed at how easily you made me think you were a boy. The first encounter - yes. I had a lot of other things on my mind, it has been really dark and we really didn't talk all that much. But yesterday? We were standing right beneath a street lamp and I would never have guessed it." Marcus laughed, looking back at the girl beside him now.
"Believe me, it hasn't been as easy as you might be thinking. I had to make sure to keep my voice low and when we were standing right beneath that street lamp..." Willow trailed off, thinking back to that moment. "I felt like I had not even the slightest clue what to do to make me seem like a legit boy."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Marcus just had to ask. It was just not making any sense in his head whatsoever.
At this question Willow freed her gaze from Marcus' and looked down at her hands that were folded in her lap.
"I guess I was just scared." She replied after a while. "I mean, the first time we met I had no idea who you were so it just felt safer to make you believe I was a boy. For all I knew you could have been kidnapping girls. No offense, your Grace."
"None taken. And please," Marcus replied in the blink of an eye smirking a little at that thought, "there is no need for formalities like that."
A smile appeared on Willow's lips again now too, glad that they seemed just as close - if not even closer - than they had been before this night.
"And the second time we met," she continued, "I was just scared that things would be different if you knew I am a girl. And I really liked things the way they were between us. The way they are. I didn't want to risk messing that up."
"I am not some that would treat women as any less than an equal to any men, Willow." Marcus spoke up after a little pause. Her name still felt a little foreign, when he said it for the first time. "I hope you realize that."
"I do now." She reassured him, lifting her gaze towards his once more. Willow felt impossibly happy in that moment. Relieved that the anger that she was faced with in the beginning of the night, had completely left and that the trust between them was restored. She felt lucky for running into Marcus that night. He was such a genuine person and he understood her in a way that no one else had before.
They stared at each other, both caught up in their one thoughts. Wondering how this relationship between them would continue and what the future would bring. It felt like this was just the beginning. And there was so much more to come.
"We should be heading back soon." Marcus declared after they had spent at least another hour sitting on that trunk talking about whatnot.
Willow's face fell a little at the statement. She knew that Marcus was right, but she didn't want this to end, not just yet. Couldn't they just stay a little longer?
"Alright." She finally agreed with a sigh and got up from the tree trunk. Marcus was quick to follow and they were back on their way towards the Cornwall Estate a moment later. Marcus was walking in front this time and Willow was following close behind him. Once again they were walking in complete silence. But not an uncomfortable one at that. They were each just too caught up in their thoughts to say anything.
Willow wondered when they would meet again. The if was not a question, as it was quite clear that they both enjoyed each other's company.
Not too much later they came to a halt in front of the brick wall that surrounded the Cornwall Estate. Willow didn't want to leave and once again she was wishing that the night didn't have to end just yet.
"So..." Marcus spoke up, clearly not really knowing what he had actually wanted to say just yet. "I don't think I'll be able to meet you again tomorrow night, but maybe we could agree on the night after tomorrow's?" The hope in his voice was clear as the light of day.
Willow was happy to accept and they agreed on meeting here at this very spot again at midnight, after Willow made him promise that he would refrain from accusing her of theft and lying again the next time they met.
"I promise." Marcus reassured her, the embarrassment painting his cheeks a light red, that he hoped the darkness of the night would cover from Willow's sight.
"Good night then." Willow smiled up at Marcus.
"Good night. Until we shall see each other again." He replied and disappeared into the darkness of the night a moment later, leaving Willow by herself. The smile on her face didn't vanish when she was climbing back over the wall again. Not when she made her way through the gardens and not even when she had finally reached her room again.
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