Deception (17 page)

“Your words demean you, sir,” the Queen said coldly. “Your actions are unforgivable. You would have debased my coin and ruined our fine standing in Europe in one fell swoop. That is treachery in my eyes. And you have made two wives into widows. Murder and treachery carry a heavy penalty.”

She motioned to the guards. “Take this base wretch from my sight,” she commanded.

And Sir Edward Latimer was led away. It was strange to think he would likely be going back to the Tower which he knew so well—although I doubt he was familiar with the chamber he would now be housed in.

Sir Thomas Gresham fell to his knees in front of the Queen. He looked heartsick and I felt most sorry for him. “Pray forgive me, my liege,” he said in broken tones. “For I unwittingly put this viper amongst us.”

“To your feet, Sir Thomas,” said the Queen kindly, extending her hand for him to kiss. “I know you to be a loyal and faithful servant. We have
worked hard together in the past to make our currency good and true.”

“Then let us make haste to distribute your new coin without delay,” Sir Thomas said eagerly.

The Queen shook her head. “I have done with this coin,” she said. “It has brought nothing but misery. I would that you give orders for all the existing griffin coins, counterfeit and genuine, to be melted down forthwith. And we will not speak of it further.”

I was relieved to hear this. The Queen's griffins have caused me to be out in the cold night air, imprisoned, and almost killed. But worse than that, the Queen has been in a foul temper throughout, which makes everyone's life a misery!

Her Majesty then insisted I rest further after my ordeal and ordered me back to her chamber. She would have had me back to bed, but I begged to be allowed to sit up, and that is when I was tucked into this chair and under the mink.

As I sit here and write I still find it hard to credit that Sir Edward “Dainty Ways” Latimer was behind the counterfeiting and murders. But a good Lady Pursuivant must keep it in mind that villains come in all shapes and demeanours.

And now I am almost dying from the heat of this cloak and must tactfully find an excuse to be rid of it.

Perhaps I should urgently need the privy, which would not be surprising after all the possets Her Majesty has kindly forced down my throat.

Lady Sarah is most put out. She refuses to speak to me, so the air in our chamber is not only cold on account of the dampened fire, but also frosty on account of my lady's grumpy mood. But I mustn't run ahead of myself.

The Queen was finally convinced that I could be freed, and Mrs. Champernowne brought me back to my chamber. Word must have got round, for on the way, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Court stopped to gawp at my bruise and to admire my courage. I will be the talk of Whitehall until a new diversion occurs. I hope it is soon. If I were Lady Jane I would be making the most of it, but in truth I was beginning to tire of my fame by the time we reached my bedchamber. And I would have people forget it, for I may be needed as Lady Pursuivant again and I wish to appear as an ordinary Maid of Honour.

Once back in my chamber, I had to endure endless questions from Lady Sarah about what I had been
doing. (She was still talking to me then.) Mary Shelton guessed I could say little of whatever I had been up to, and kindly distracted Sarah as we made ourselves ready for the evening revels.

I think I would have had a tantrum like one of the Queen's if I had been put to bed early, for Mr. Will Somers had announced that to raise Her Majesty's spirits there would be an impromptu acrobatic display—with fire-eating besides—and the kitchens were ordered to prepare a fine feast. I was looking forward to seeing Masou and hoped he'd had enough rest.

Tomorrow I will make an excuse and visit Ellie. I will repay her three times the money she spent on the leaky boat and I will bid her hide it well. And I will make sure that the coins I give her are good and true!

Hell's teeth! Lady Sarah has just stamped past me, jogging my elbow. Now I will have to write round the wiggly line that my quill has produced. But no matter—I have long given up any idea of keeping this daybooke neat as I first intended.

As usual, Mary Shelton and I were ready and waiting while Lady Sarah deliberated between silk sleeves with French lace and ones embroidered with lilies.

Mrs. Champernowne put her head round our door. She was out of breath. “Girls!” she panted. “Come quickly, look you. The Queen … is calling for you all … to process with her … into the Great Hall and she will brook no delay.” She stopped to wipe her brow. “Hurry now, Grace, no dillydallying!”

I would have liked to remind her that I was actually ready and it was Lady Sarah who deserved her reprimand, but no one kept the Queen waiting. And poor Lady Sarah picked up her sleeves in such a rush that she ended up wearing one of each!

The Queen was waiting for us, surrounded as always by Ladies and Gentlemen of the Court. “Lady Grace Cavendish!” she said, and she did not sound pleased. I wondered what in heaven I had done. I had solved her mystery—and within the days she had given me, if only by the skin of my teeth!

“I would have words with you,” she went on. “Come walk with me.” And she took my arm and pulled me away from the others until we were out of earshot. “Your kirtle last night was a disgrace! It was ill-fitting and you looked as if you had been in the bear pit.”

I didn't know how to reply. Her Majesty knew exactly what I had been up to, so why was she astonished
about my clothes? In fact it was a surprise that my kirtle had ended up in one piece! Then I looked at her face and found there was a twinkle in her eye.

“Dear Grace,” she said, laughing and taking my hand, “tomorrow you will be fitted for a new gown and I will insist that the bodice and sleeves are decorated with ruby and diamond brooches!” Then she added in a much lower voice, “I am very grateful to my Lady Pursuivant. Your dear mother, God rest her soul, would have been so proud. Yet I pray I will not have to call upon you again too soon.”

“I am ever at your service, Your Majesty,” I promised, “for now I have the taste for traitors!” And I bared my teeth like a dog.

The Queen threw her head back and laughed heartily and I felt a warm glow of happiness.

Lady Sarah has scattered her clothes all about, pulled on her nightgown, and flounced into bed without even a goodnight. She does not like the attention I have had today, but most of all, she has found out that I am to have a new gown when she is not. She says she will never speak to me again.

I think I shall survive.

GLOSSARY

apothecary
—an Elizabethan chemist

Bedlam
—the major asylum for the insane in London during Elizabethan times—the name came from the Hospital of St. Mary of Bethlehem

blank
—a rough square of metal, ready to be turned into a coin

bleeding
—when a vein is opened to allow blood to flow out of the body. In Elizabethan times, this was actually thought to be beneficial to one's health! bodice—the top part of a woman's dress

Bridewell
—an infamous London prison

bumroll
—a sausage-shaped piece of padding worn round the hips to make them look bigger

copper
—usually a copper saucepan or cauldron used for cooking

cups
—in one's cups—drunk, intoxicated by alcohol

daybooke
—a book in which you would record your sins each day so that you could pray about them. The idea of keeping a diary or journal grew out of this. Grace uses her daybooke as a journal.

die
—a coining tool bearing the design of one side of a coin. This tool would be carefully positioned over a metal blank (see above) and then struck hard so that its design would be pressed into the blank. Two dies would be needed for one coin—one for each side.

duds
—clothing

flagon
—a large, juglike vessel often used to hold wine flax-wench—an insulting term for a woman

gunwale
—the upper edge of a boat's side

halberd
—a weapon consisting of a battle-axe and pike mounted on a long handle

heresy
—a religious opinion contradicting the established views of the church

hose
—tight-fitting cloth trousers worn by men humours—the fluids of the body, which were thought to control health and temperament

Inns of Court
—the collective name for four buildings in London where schools of law were held

jerkin
—a close-fitting, hip-length, usually sleeveless jacket

kirtle
—the skirt of an Elizabethan dress

Lady-in-Waiting
—one of the ladies who helped to look after the Queen and kept her company

litter; littermen
—a covered and curtained seat for carrying passengers, supported on long wooden poles; the men who carried the litter through the streets

Maid of Honour
—a younger girl who helped to look after the Queen like a Lady-in-Waiting

manchet rolls
—whole white bread

Mary Shelton
—one of Queen Elizabeth's Maids of Honour (a Maid of Honour of this name really did exist; see below). Most Maids of Honour were not officially “Ladies” (like Lady Grace), but they had to be of born of gentry.

masque
—a masquerade, a masked ball

mead
—an alcoholic drink made with honey

moneyer
—an authorized coin maker

mullioned glass
—small pieces of glass held together by strips of lead to form a window

penner
—a small leather case that would attach to a belt. It was used for holding quills, ink, knife, and any other equipment needed for writing. pike, pikestaff—a spearlike weapon

pile
—one of the coin-making dies (see above)—the one bearing the Queen's image

pillion seat
—a saddle for a woman that included a soft cushion

poppy tincture
—a medicine for inducing sleep

posset
—a hot drink made from sweetened and spiced milk curdled with ale or wine

Presence Chamber
—the room where Queen Elizabeth received people