A Near Miss

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Wooden gallows. Image by Servicelinket.dk from Pixabay.

As the noose was secured around his neck James cast his eyes over the silent crowd below. A dozen farms, two tax collectors, and a bounty worth 200 pieces of silver, and this was who showed up to his execution? Three town watchmen, a few farmers and their wives, and a half-starved dog. Disappointing. He stared at the trapdoor below his feet.

He first stole when he was ten. His brother distracted a merchant while James grabbed a painted wooden soldier and ran as fast his legs would carry him. When they were older, he and his brother moved away from home and to make a living started to steal grain from farmers across the northern border. The first time they tried they were nearly caught. As they fled a farmer fired an arrow at them. It narrowly missed James, instead drawing a bloody line across his brothers’ face – a reminder that next time they wouldn’t get caught. Then last year, when the King raised the tax, they started ambushing tax collectors. That had been easy pickings - until yesterday. An inn keeper had recognised James and turned him over to the town watchmen.

The executioner grunted as he yanked the gallows lever back. The floor below James fell away. As he was falling he caught a glare of sunlight reflecting off an arrowhead. It flew a fingers width above his head, shredding the rope that would have brought his death. His body briefly tumbled through the air. An instant before his feet hit the ground he was swept up and thrown onto a horse. With what was left of the noose trailing from his neck he looked back into the rider’s scarred face and asked, “What took you so long?”