Royal Courtship Page 4

  She could not dismiss the memory of his cold look as she helped prepare the Lady Mary for bed, and only belatedly realised Amy was not there.

  'Where is Amy?' she asked another girl.

  'She said she had a fever. She was sent to bed.'

  Bella knew her own fever had been of the mind rather than the body, but all kinds of agues and fevers were commonplace in summer, by the river. As soon as she could escape from her duties, she hurried up to the room they shared.

  Amy might want a drink of wine, if she were still awake.

  The candle still burned, and Bella could see Amy's pink gown discarded with uncharacteristic carelessness along with her other clothes, littering the small space on the floor between their beds. Amy herself lay still, her back turned towards Bella, and did not reply when Bella whispered to her.

  Bella quietly folded the gown and placed it on top of the chest, then prepared herself for bed. But she could not sleep. The Comte was angry with her. He had been so abrupt and hadn't spoken, when normally he was the most charming of men. Why? But she did not care. He was perfidious, a spy. He was nothing to her. How could he be?

  ***

  Chapter 4

  The ride the following morning had none of the enjoyment of that stolen expedition with the Comte. For one thing Bella was deeply concerned about Amy. And the King kept Bella at his side for the first hour, everyone else remaining discreetly out of earshot.

  The Comte, Bella saw from the corner of her eye, was riding with one of the young Prince's attendants, a lively young widow whose husband had been some connection of the Seymour family. She tried not to watch them laughing and clearly enjoying one another's company. It was none of her business whom he was with, and he was a deceitful, untrustworthy man who had tried to use her to spy on her mistress. She wanted no more to do with him. Yet she could not prevent her gaze from turning in his direction.

  Amy, pale and clearly unhappy, had declined to tell Bella what the trouble was. She refused to get up, saying she was too ill.

  'But, Amy, can I get you anything? You must eat.'

  Amy shook her head.

  'Leave me alone, Bella. I am not hungry. I do not want anything.'

  'Can you not tell me what is wrong? Is there nothing I can do?'

  'You cannot stop men being despicable,' Amy whispered, and a wave of sobs shook her.

  'Who? What has he done?' Bella demanded, but Amy shook her head and refused to say any more about what had caused her distress.

  'I just want to die!' she wept. 'What else is there for me?'

  Bella was anxious to return and try to comfort her friend. She couldn't miss the ride after the King's express command, but worry about Amy doing something silly made her fretful, so she had to struggle to avoid sharp remarks which would offend the King.

  Sir John Talbot and Pedro were riding as near to Bella as was comfortable with royal etiquette, and she was aware of their close regard whenever she glanced round. In a strange way it increased her uneasiness rather than comforting her.

  'My dear young lady, I must not monopolise you,' King Henry said at last with a deep sigh. He leered at her and Bella shrank inwardly. 'Tonight, at supper, I feel like being alone, apart from a few friends and gentle, pleasant company. It is a penalty of kingship that one can so rarely be away from crowds of people. Will you come and comfort an old man? And afterwards, now you are recovered from your fever, we can plan our escape to Oatlands.'

  Somehow Bella made an appropriate reply, and was then permitted to drop back while the King called forward one of his gentlemen. Sir John and Pedro immediately joined her.

  'You look pale,' Sir John said in concern.

  'I feel rather ill!' she replied, wondering when she could steal a word with Pedro and beg for his help. It was becoming obvious that very soon she would have to commit herself to marriage with him in order to escape the King. There could be no more hesitation, no more maidenly qualms. Before she could say any more her brother rode up on the other side.

  'Well done, Bella! He's clearly smitten! Do you not think so, Pedro?'

  'He hardly ever keeps anyone with him for so long,' Pedro agreed, 'except when he's considering dalliance.'

  Sir John looked at Bella with a strange expression in his eyes. 'I have heard the rumours, Bella. Are you going to be the next lady favoured?'

  'You call it a favour?' she demanded hotly, and both her brother and Pedro swiftly hushed her.

  'It would be a marvellous opportunity for your family,' Sir John went on.

  'For Thomas, perhaps, but not for my head!' she retorted.

  Sir John laughed unconvincingly. 'Come, my dear, he daren't get rid of any more wives! He is already a laughing-stock in European courts. And he is ill. He cannot last many years. Then, you could make your own choice. Eh, Pedro?'

  Bella looked at the three men in astonishment. Thomas was looking smug. Sir John seemed to be doing some difficult calculation in his head, and even Pedro, who had vowed to rescue her, was smiling warmly at her, approbation in his eyes. Hysterical laughter threatened to overwhelm her, and the men, misunderstanding, looked gratified at her shining eyes.

  At length, Thomas and Sir John rode off to talk to other people, and Bella turned to Pedro.

  'If I go to Oatlands the King will think I welcome his attentions. I do not!'

  'You must keep him uncertain,' Pedro replied blandly. 'It will intrigue him, make him more determined to possess you.'

  Bella stared at him in dismay.

  'Pedro! Are you in league with Thomas? Do you wish to gain family advantage by sacrificing me? I thought you wanted to marry me. Rescue me from the King?'

  'Bella, of course I want to marry you, my love! But I have been thinking more deeply about the matter. At first I could not bear the thought of you submitting to him. That was the response of the heart. Then I began to see the advantages Thomas has already discerned.'

  'You mean to desert me! Betray me!'

  'Bella, my dearest love, think of your duty to your family – your whole family! Do not forget your mother was Spanish. It would be of inestimable advantage to all Europe, indeed the world, to have a half-Spanish queen influencing Henry. There is no possibility of a Spanish princess agreeing to marry him, or his winning any other European bride '

  'And with good reason!' Bella declared bitterly.

  'But he needs heirs, so he has to marry another English girl. With anyone else my master would have no chance of exerting influence. Believe me, Bella, if you worked with us to secure the peace of Europe the Emperor would be grateful. And afterwards, my love, you could come to me.'

  'If I hadn't died in childbed or on the block!' she flung at him as, heedless of comment, she spurred her mare into a gallop towards the trees.

  She rode until she was exhausted, and then turned and found her way back to the palace. She was alternately furious and terrified. Had she really believed she was in love with Pedro? Had she been swayed merely by his kisses? Were all men so base, self-seeking and false?

  It was now clear neither Thomas nor Pedro would help her, and she dared not ask anyone else. Both had betrayed her, and she would have to depend on her own wits to escape from this intolerable situation.

  She could not avoid supper with the King that evening, but she would never go with him to Oatlands and the intimacy he would expect there. As she rode, she firmly dismissed all regrets about Pedro from her mind and concentrated on making her plans.

  She would ride secretly to her grandmother's home, and beg her aid. Perhaps if she kept away from Court the King would forget her and turn to some other unfortunate. If she left soon, before he could feel too humiliated by her defection and therefore eager for revenge, she might be saved and bring no harm to old Lady Davenport. But she must go within days.

  Absorbed in these reflections as she walked back from the stables, she was unaware of the Comte's approach until he spoke.

  'Mistress Bella, I hope you took no harm from your fall yesterday?' />
  'My fall?' Bella flushed, recalling how warm and comforting it had been to have his arms about her. 'It was nothing,' she added.

  'I saw you dancing last night, and hoped it put no strain on any weakness,' he went on. 'May I hope for the pleasure of dancing with you myself tonight?'

  'I – ' Bella paused. How could she mention the King's command to this man? Would he understand she had no choice? Would he think she was throwing herself in the King's way, ambitious for position? Then she wondered why she cared. What was he but a spy for the French King, asking impertinent questions about Lady Mary?

  'Is there to be no dancing? I understood the masque was to be in a few days, but am I mistaken?' the Comte went on, misunderstanding her silence.

  'No, it is for two days hence. If you ask me, of course I will dance with you,' she added.

  The Comte merely smiled, and as they crossed the moat and passed through the Great Gate he glanced up at the huge, five-storeyed gatehouse.

  'This was a magnificent palace for a mere cardinal,' he murmured.

  'It has been changed and extended a great deal, I believe, since Wolsey gave it to the King,' Bella replied. 'He is still making alterations to the apartments. I must go and change. Goodbye.'

  She crossed the Base Court swiftly, and passed along the gallery to where she and Amy shared one of the old lodgings the cardinal had built for his guests. She was reminded of Amy's misery, and felt ashamed that, beset by her own problems, she had forgotten her friend's unhappiness.

  When she reached their room, however, Amy was not there. Bella sank on to a stool and remained deep in thought for several minutes, making no attempt to change her gown.

  The Comte's mention of the masque had given her an idea. If she meant to ride for home, she dared not go alone. Yet she could trust no one to go with her. If she were attired as a boy, however, she would be safe. And many times she had borrowed some of Thomas's old clothes and ridden astride at home.

  This notion had been drifting hazily at the back of her mind for some while, but until today's events she had dismissed it, believing Pedro would rescue her. Now she could no longer trust him, the idea was resurrected. Firmly she thrust away her misery at Pedro's betrayal, and concentrated on practical matters.

  Until now she had made no conscious effort to plan how to acquire male clothing. The costumes for the masque, however, were stored in a small closet near the Great Hall, at the top of the stairs which led down to the kitchens.

  Bella shivered with excitement. She could creep there at dawn the following day, for it was too late to set out now. Her mare was tired and there were too many people about. She could change into suitable male clothing, then make her way through the kitchens. She would be unrecognised, thought of probably as a page on some errand. From the kitchens she could reach the stables.

  The prospect of escape gave her courage to endure the rest of the day. Even the King's hints that he wished for a closer relationship caused her merely to smile. When she finally retired to her room, Amy, who had been missing all day, was there, in bed but awake.

  Bella looked at her closely. She was pale with red-rimmed eyes, but otherwise calm, and seemed anxious to talk.

  'How was it?' Amy asked as Bella was preparing for bed. 'Did he – well, say anything?'

  'He implied he dared not marry again, whatever his private inclinations, unless he was certain his wife could produce children,' Bella replied, and giggled. Suddenly, her plans for escape made, she felt carefree once more.

  'So he will try them out first?' Amy gasped. 'How awful! Did he suggest – '

  'Only that I might prefer to have a room closer to his own lodgings, a bigger, more comfortable room I need not share,' Bella told her.

  'So he means to suggest it!'

  'I suppose he could hardly ask a foreign princess to undergo such an experiment!'

  'You do not seem concerned,' Amy said slowly. 'I'd be utterly terrified.'

  'I am,' Bella confessed, 'but I mean to escape. First, though, what about you? What is causing you such unhappiness?'

  Amy shrugged. 'A man. What else!' she said bitterly.

  'Who is it?'

  'It would not be fair to tell you. It is over now, and I have accepted there can never be anything. He made me think he loved me, but now he says there is no possibility of marriage, and I will not accept anything else. I mean to go home when Lady Mary will release me. Only – I do not think I can bear being about the Court and – and seeing him all the time! I wish I could leave straight away!'

  Bella stared at her, plans whirling in her head.

  'You live in the West, don't you?'

  'Yes, near Evesham. Why?'

  'I plan to leave for my home early in the morning,' she said slowly. 'It is in Oxfordshire, almost on the direct road to Evesham. Let us go together. We could both dress as men, and we'd be much safer together than alone.'

  Amy, her gloom vanishing, demanded details and Bella explained.

  'After we reach my home, Grandmother would send a man with you the rest of the way. It will solve both our problems.'

  'But Lady Mary? We can't tell her! We can't ask permission.'

  'You can send a message after you reach home and crave her pardon.'

  'They will look for us when we are missed.'

  'They will look for two girls,' Bella replied briskly. 'I am going in any event.'

  'Then I will come, too! How shall we get the horses? Shall we ride out as if for an early ride?'

  'They would want to send a groom with us. At least one of us must dress as a man first. Then they would imagine it an assignation and take little notice.'

  They discussed various possibilities, and eventually decided that as Bella was taller, she would find the clothes and change into boy's attire, while Amy went openly straight to the stables. They would be more likely to escape notice separately than if they went together. Bella would bring the second set of boy's clothing and Amy could change once they had left the palace behind.

  At dawn Bella slipped out of bed. It was very early, before the sun rose, but she had been restless all night and afraid of oversleeping. She woke Amy and they silently began to dress. Bella pulled on a simple gown and flung her cloak around her shoulders, covering her head with a shawl. Giving Amy a hug and a confident smile she slipped out of the room. Amy would follow in a few minutes, as she didn't want to have to wait alone in the stables and arouse suspicion.

  At the far side of the Base Court, Bella could gain entrance to the enormous range of kitchens and storerooms, close to the stairs leading to the Great Hall. She entered the low passageway past the buttery, and was for a moment unable to see in the darkness. Then she heard a footfall and hesitated, suppressing a startled exclamation.

  'Bella! What are you doing in the kitchens?'

  Her eyes had grown accustomed to the gloom, and she stared in dismay at the Comte de Nerac.

  'I – I came to get a posset, for Amy. She is unwell,' she stammered. 'What are you doing here?'

  'It is a quick way to the stables from my lodging,' he replied.

  'But – it is far too early for the King to ride.'

  'I like to escape for an hour as we did that day. Would you not join me one morning?'

  'I – thank you, yes, perhaps I might. But Amy – the posset – I must go.'

  He stood aside courteously and Bella, chafing at the misfortune of meeting him, passed him and went into the servery. She knew he was still watching her, and had to ask one of the busy scullions for the posset. By the time he returned with it the Comte had gone, and Bella prayed he would be away from the stables before Amy reached them. She could do nothing about it, though, so she scurried up the stairs and into the closet where the costumes were stored.

  She rummaged amongst the clothes and soon found a dark-blue velvet doublet which fitted her, and matching trunk hose.

  There was a short cloak, and a bonnet under which she was able to thrust her hair. She would have to wear her own shoes, b
ut she had on her stoutest pair and warm stockings.

  She selected another doublet of dark green, with brown trunk hose, a cloak and a bonnet.

  Thrusting her old gown to the back of the heap, she rolled the clothes for Amy in her own cloak, making a bundle which she carried under her arm. Then she poked her head cautiously out into the gallery.

  No one was around. As she strolled down the stairs once more and through the series of small courtyards, she was ignored. People bustled around, carrying sides of beef and haunches of venison from the storerooms towards the great kitchens, heaving sacks of flour into the pastry rooms, and wheeling carts piled high with huge logs which were consumed voraciously by the enormous fireplaces.At length she reached the stables. To her relief she saw the Comte riding away through the tiltyard on his black stallion. Amy was waiting in her own mare's stall, and to Bella's relief said she had been able to hide from view while the Comte waited for his horse to be saddled. The grooms were busy and took no notice of Bella as she abstracted saddles and bridles, and went to where her own mare was tethered.

  Five minutes later the two girls, Bella looking dashing in her male attire, rode out of the stables.

  ***

  Chapter 5

  A mile from the palace, Bella and Amy turned away from the river they had been following. It wound and twisted through innumerable loops, taking them far out of their way. It was easier to strike across country towards Windsor, and providing they kept the sun behind them they could not lose their way.

  The going proved more difficult than Bella expected. It was low-lying ground, often marshy, and the girls had to make so many detours they ought, Bella thought more than once, to have remained with the river.

  It was about twelve miles as the crow flew, half as far again by river, but it was three hours before Bella saw the ramparts of Windsor Castle looming ahead of them.

  Cautiously they skirted the town on the far side of the river, and set off on the much better road northwards. From here Bella had a better knowledge of the road. To avoid the enormous loop of the river they needed to keep well to the north, then cut through the Chiltern Hills westwards for Oxford.