heart sink
within him like that of the fox that hears the hounds at his heels and
finds his den blocked with earth so that there is no hiding for him.
But presently Sir Richard spoke again, saying, "One thing thou canst do,
Robin, and one only. Go back to London and throw thyself upon the mercy
of our good Queen Eleanor. Come with me straightway to my castle. Doff
these clothes and put on such as my retainers wear. Then I will hie me
to London Town with a troop of men behind me, and thou shalt mingle with
them, and thus will I bring thee to where thou mayst see and speak with
the Queen. Thy only hope is to get to Sherwood, for there none can
reach thee, and thou wilt never get to Sherwood but in this way."

So Robin went with Sir Richard of the Lea, and did as he said, for he
saw the wisdom of that which the knight advised, and that this was his
only chance of safety.

Queen Eleanor walked in her royal garden, amid the roses that bloomed
sweetly, and with her walked six of her ladies-in-waiting, chattering
blithely together. Of a sudden a man leaped up to the top of the wall
from the other side, and then, hanging for a moment, dropped lightly
upon the grass within. All the ladies-in-waiting shrieked at the
suddenness of his coming, but the man ran to the Queen and kneeled at
her feet, and she saw that it was Robin Hood.

"Why, how now, Robin!" cried she, "dost thou dare to come into the very
jaws of the raging lion? Alas, poor fellow! Thou art lost indeed if the
King finds thee here. Dost thou not know that he is seeking thee through
all the land?"

"Yea," quoth Robin, "I do know right well that the King seeks me, and
therefore I have come; for, surely, no ill can befall me when he hath
pledged his royal word to Your Majesty for my safety. Moreover, I know
Your Majesty's kindness and gentleness of heart, and so I lay my life
freely in your gracious hands."

"I take thy meaning, Robin Hood," said the Queen, "and that thou dost
convey reproach to me, as well thou mayst, for I know that I have not
done by thee as I ought to have done. I know right well that thou must
have been hard pressed by peril to leap so boldly into one danger to
escape another. Once more I promise thee mine aid, and will do all I can
to send thee back in safety to Sherwood Forest. Bide thou here till I
return." So saying, she left Robin in the garden of roses, and was gone
a long time.

When she came back Sir Robert Lee was with her, and