Falling For Henry (20 page)

“Where is his father?” asked Kate, feigning ignorance.

“Where all traitors should be,” said Henry. “Except it is possible he will receive a light sentence when my father has the time to consider it.”

“Will that be soon?” asked Kate, hopefully.

“Not likely,” said Henry. “There is a lot of business involved in running a country. My father is extremely occupied.”

Too busy to release an innocent man
? thought Kate. She couldn't imagine having a father who was that busy. Her own dad had always been available, home whenever she was and always ready with a story or a joke. She thought again of the roughness of his cheek, of the woodsy scent of his aftershave, and longed to be with him. There was so much to ask, so many details of his life she hadn't explored. But of course, she would never have a second chance. Instead of allowing the sadness to fill her like an empty glass, she willed the curtain to drop, masking unpleasant thoughts.
Time to reach for joy
, she thought, and smiled at Henry.

“Does the water we drink come from another well?” Kate asked brightly, trying to distract the Prince from the idea of going out to see the garden. If he poked around the garden, he'd surely discover the wolf cub hidden there. And if the Prince saw the cub, it would surely mean its death and possibly a severe penalty for William Fitzroy.

“My goodness, you ask odd questions,” said Henry. “Two wells closer to the castle serve most of our needs—however the water there tastes, I have heard, of mice.”

“But the Thames is close by,” Kate went on. “Why don't people just drink from it?”

“Did Arthur not talk to you about anything?” Henry asked.

Kate blushed.

“Not … not really,” she said. “We did not … you know Arthur had a lengthy illness and even before that, he—”

Here she stopped, but Henry said, “Go on.”

“Well, as you know, we were married only a few months. He was very kind. But not really a husband, if you know what I mean.”

“Ah,” said Henry delicately. “I had wondered about that.” After a small silence, he went on. “The Thames is made putrid from the refuse flowing out of the garderobes.” Kate almost laughed aloud at his change of subject, but she contained herself and listened further.

“Well water is much preferable,” Henry went on, “when one has to drink water at all. I have an idea for persuading water to climb stairs,” he said, obviously pleased with himself, “and when I have a chance, I am going to build a model to see if the pressure is satisfactory. One can always improve on current practice, don't you think?” She nodded. “And surely there must be a better way to equip the toilets with some sort of constant cleaning system! Avoid the stink that carries the corrupt vapors.”

“Germs aren't carried through smells but through person-to-person contact,” contradicted Kate. Henry's eyes flashed.

“You don't know what you're talking about!” he said and his cheeks flushed with impending temper. “Everyone knows that foul air breeds illness due to poisonous fumes.”

“I'm not wrong,” Kate retorted, disregarding the warning signs. “Sickness can also be contracted by touching surfaces that have been contaminated. But it's not caught simply by breathing bad smells.”

The Prince grabbed her arm.

“Stop talking about something you don't know enough about!” he said hotly.

“Maybe I know more than you think!” answered Kate.

“No girl knows as much as I do,” said Henry bluntly, his mouth in a firm line. “Although I expect they wish they did.”

Kate stopped herself from another retort. Henry's face was almost purple it was so red, and she could see a muscle throbbing in his neck. She was glad when the jester appeared, as if by magic, to break the tension. Even Kate offered a faint smile at the motley attire of the fellow—brightly colored patchwork clothes with bells tied around the knees, and a horned hat.

“Sir, what say ye with your fat face?” quipped the Fool.

The line of Henry's mouth hardened even further and Kate wondered if he were going to fight this bold clown. Then the prince grinned and it appeared the storm had passed.

“Have you forgotten it's ale tasting day, your royal head? Chase me down the stairs and I'll ask you a riddle.”

“Tournament day? I had forgotten!” said Henry delightedly. “What's the riddle, Patch? Tell me now for I'll not be forestalled.”

“What walks on no legs at dawn, then four legs at noon, two legs at dusk, and then finally back to none at night?” cried the fellow, swinging something on a pointed stick that Kate thought looked suspiciously like the internal organ of some deceased animal.

“Hmm, let me think,” said the Prince.

“Man,” said Kate. Her father had told her this one and she'd had to work out that the description referred to a baby, then a crawling child, an adult, and finally an old person in bed. Patch shot her a wary look, and Henry paused for just a moment before nodding rather sheepishly.

“A point for Katherine, surely. But now we must prepare for the tournament! Patch, please walk the princess back to her chambers, for I have things to do!” Without waiting for a reply, Henry strode off, and the Fool looked blandly at Kate.

“Come along then,” he sang. “One, two, nine!”

Running ahead of her, he executed three back flips and then walked on his hands until they'd reached the door to her rooms. One of the maids, scurrying about with linens, laughed uproariously at the sight of Patch.

“Everyone come and look!” she cried. “'Is arms and legs 'ave changed places!” Other servants ran over to share the fun.

Flipping right way up, the jester bowed low to all the ladies and then scurried off down the corridor.

“Patch!” called a young voice. “Come here! I want you to play mumchance with me!” It was Princess Mary.

Kate knew how to play this game. You shuffled the cards and then laid the pack face down. Each player called out the name of a card and you took turns turning cards over until that card was exposed, earning a point for the first to have predicted it. Then you began again and the game was over when someone reached ten points.

“It isn't fair!” she heard Mary cry. “Patch won't play with me! No one wants to play with me!”

Kate called after her, “Princess, come here and I'll play the game.” The golden-haired child appeared, smiling again, and the two of them sat over cards by the fire for an hour or so. Doña Elvira watched with a curious expression, and Kate wondered if Katherine had played much with Mary. Kate's heart went out to the lonely little girl. No mother, a father occupied with foreign affairs, an older brother too busy to play, and an older sister already married off to a Scottish King who was sixteen years older than she was! What did life have in store for this child? Kate wished she had paid more attention in history class.

“I have to use the garderobe,” said Mary after a while. She skipped off and Kate looked at the fire burning in the grate. She didn't want to think about those toilets, smelly as they were in spite of the green cloth that covered the stone holes until removed by the user. Henry's plans to make the facilities more sanitary would come none too soon.

The sound of festivities outside brought Doña Elvira to Kate's side. “We shall be attending,” said the nurse. “Dress in something finer than that old blue gown. Or at least wear one of your good cloaks. The one with the nice miniver lining.”

“I'm going to go and change,” announced Mary, dancing back into the room. “I always wear my best things to tournaments. But I don't have the yellow sleeves. How can I go without my good sleeves?” Her voice rose to a loud wail and Kate knew she had to act quickly.

“Your white sleeves are better because they won't distract the horses. Horses always look at yellow, and the riders might not go as fast if the horses are always looking your way.”

“Really?” asked Mary, considering.

“Really!” said Kate. “Just like bulls always go after red.”

“I marvel much at that,” said Mary slowly. “I had heard about the bulls, of course. But the horses. That's something new.”

“Come see my nice cloak,” Kate went on, pulling the younger girl toward her closet. “So soft and warm, you'll never guess what it is made of.” She herself didn't know what miniver was, but no matter—the girl was already stroking the soft fur.

“It would take a lot of squirrels to make this,” said Mary. “How many, do you think? A hundred? Two hundred?”

“A hundred and fifty,” said Kate, gently guiding Mary toward the passage. “Come on, we don't want to be late.” Doña Elvira followed and when they got outside, the old nurse told Mary all about what they were going to see.

It's handy to have a child around,
thought Kate
. People explain things to children, and that can be useful!
Her head was spinning with all the new information as she prepared to watch the fair. It didn't sound particularly fun but, in spite of her predictions, the day turned out to be interesting. First, they watched the jousting. Heralded by trumpeteers announcing the beginning of the match, two armored knights rode against each other and used their lances to try and dismount their opponent.

Kate's complete attention was drawn by a fellow in red and black. He was graceful and quick, broke numerous lances as onlookers cheered, and earned many points by dislodging riders. When at the end, he removed his helmet to receive the first-prize ribbon, she saw with surprise Henry's flaming red hair. He turned and gave her a wave, which she self-consciously returned.

“Tsk, tsk, I thought his father, the King, did not allow him at the joust,” said Doña Elvira disparagingly. “Well, young people these days have not the same respect for their elders that once was had, that is certain.”

Eating and drinking went on all day. There were jugglers, acrobats, jesters, and minstrels, and Kate was impressed at their dexterity and skill. One musician in particular caught her eye, as he looked and carried himself a lot like Henry. Perhaps the two were somehow related. She gazed around for William but did not see him.

The Prince located her a couple of times to retell his triumphs and make sure she was watching his progress through the events. “This temporary seating is inadequate,” he said, looking at the wooden planks on which she sat. “When I am King, I shall build a permanent tiltyard here, overlooked by a viewing gallery.” Kate merely smiled and drew her cloak more tightly around her shoulders. A young page, bearing away Henry's ribbons, dropped the handful on the ground.

“Clumsy oaf!” cried Henry, cuffing him on the ear so hard that the lad toppled and fell. “Take better care or you will find yourself in the stocks!” The boy scrambled to his feet, holding his hand to his head and mumbled apologies that Henry did not acknowledge.

Kate saw fear on the child's face as well as hurt, and she frowned.
The little boy should have been more careful,
she thought
. That is, after all, his job. To be careful. Better he learn that sooner rather than later, when the stakes are higher. Still … he is just a lad.
She noticed how skinny and pale his arms were as he picked himself up and stumbled away.

By nightfall, she was exhausted and hoped for nothing more than sleep. Instead, she had to undergo the bath, an embarrassing ordeal as there was absolutely no privacy. Servants brought in a large wooden bathtub and set it by the fire. It was filled with hot water carried in buckets and poured on top of the white sheets that Doña Elvira had used to line the tub. Finally, scented salts were poured in, and then Kate was told to disrobe in front of them all and enter the water. When she pointedly looked around at the maids bustling about, Doña Elvira simply clicked her tongue. “Get on with it!” she said, sharply. “You looked quite pale today. The warm water will do your complexion good.”

The worst came when she'd gotten settled in the hot water and Doña Elvira shuffled over with a pail. She used a long handled wooden spoon to fish out a slimy looking black lump which she deposited on Kate's right arm.

“Ugh!” cried Kate. “What is that!”

“Hush!” admonished the nurse. “A leech, of course. We'll just use two tonight.” By this time, a second lump was expanding near the first.

Kate felt the eyes of the maids on her and stifled a scream. She turned her head and splashed a little with her free hand, trying not to think about the activity on her arm. When Doña Elvira thought the leeches had taken enough blood, she used a thin piece of wood to scrape them off. Then back into the pail they went.

“Now,” said the nurse. “We'll scrub your hair and you'll be done!”

Kate lay in the lukewarm water, trying not to think about anything. She realized she was hungry, and what rose up in her mind was a visit to London's West End when she and Willow had spent an afternoon at Covent Garden, going through shops and listening to street performers. London was really quite exciting when you gave it a chance. She had admired a little heart necklace and Willow had bought it for her. The trip had culminated with the purchase of two jacket potatoes, hot inside their foil and topped with sour cream, onions, bacon, and mushrooms. Kate's mouth watered, thinking about how good hers had tasted. She suddenly realized that they didn't ever have potatoes here.

When at last Kate gratefully escaped to her bedroom, she was so tired she could barely stand. Wearing only the white shift she had been given in which to sleep, she leaned heavily against the side of the bed.

“I'll take away the filthy gown!” said Doña Elvira, bustling in and listing tasks for the coming day. “That blue dress needs a good boiling and a mend at the hem. Now get some sleep, like a good girl.”

Kate did as she was bidden, climbing under the covers with a deep sigh. There was something she wanted to think about more, something to do with Henry, but it would have to wait. Darkness reached up to claim her and she sank reluctantly into its arms.