A Dangerous Inheritance

‘Since the day of the coronation.’

‘Indeed. Has my nephew spoken of marriage?’

‘No, Sire – only of love.’ Kate blushed. ‘But we have not known each other very long. And I have not seen him since you left Windsor.’

Her father appeared to consider the matter, as A

‘Lincoln is a fine young lord, the best servant a king could have,’ Richard said at length. ‘However, you are not the first damsel to whom he has paid court like this, although I have never heard that his behaviour has ever been dishonourable. We must wait to see if he intends marriage.’

‘And if he does?’ Kate breathed.

‘I will consider it. The idea does not displease me, but there is no haste. You are not yet fourteen, and I would keep you with me for a while longer.’

‘Then I may go and find him?’ she asked excitedly.

‘I will not forbid it, so long as, for now, you think of him only as your cousin and conduct yourself accordingly. There is to be no more talk of love, still less of marriage. Such decisions are best left to those who are older, wiser and not blinded by their passions to all good sense. So, yes, you may enjoy my lord of Lincoln’s company, but never alone. Do you heed me?’

‘Yes, Sire,’ Kate replied, a little crestfallen.

Her father smiled. ‘I am not so old that I ca

As soon as supper was over, Kate made her curtseys and sped downstairs to the great hall, which was packed with the King’s nobles and liveried retainers, carousing and singing. There was no sign of John among them, so she hurried out into the bailey and looked for him there. To her delight, she spotted him in a little garden at the foot of a grassy mound in the far corner, lounging on the sward with two other men. They were deep in conversation, and she hesitated to intrude, but when one of John’s companions – whom she recognised as the sly lawyer, Sir William Catesby, now her father’s Chancellor of the Exchequer – espied her and rose quickly to his feet, the rest followed suit. John’s face broke into a radiant smile when he beheld her, and he made a courtly bow and kissed her hand. The other man, she saw, was Lord Stanley. He was much older than the first two, with long, straggly greying hair and creased brows that made him look permanently troubled. ‘My lady,’ he said, and bowed too.

‘Come join us, Kate,’ John invited, and she sank down onto the grass, her mustard-coloured skirts spread out about her. ‘We were just enjoying the evening air – it’s hot and noisy in the hall.’ He offered her some marchpane. ‘We were saying how concerned we are about the late conspiracies,’ he said.

‘My father the King has just been telling us about them,’ she said. ‘I ca

‘Strange business, that,’ said Stanley. ‘No rhyme or reason to it.’

‘It’s possible, of course, that he was bound up in the conspiracies,’ Catesby said. ‘Before he went off to Brecon, he told us they’d tried to involve him in one of the plots, so I suppose he could have been playing a double game. But he did inform the King of the approach that had been made to him, and that information certainly led to some of the conspirators being caught. So we might wonder just why he turned on the King, after being one of his staunchest supporters.’

‘What could the conspirators offer him beyond what the King has given him?’ John asked.

‘They quarrelled over the Bohun estates,’ Stanley said. ‘The Duke accused King Richard of not keeping his promise to grant them to him.’

‘That’s strange too,’ Catesby mused. ‘The King made him a provisional grant of them last month.’

‘Maybe Buckingham didn’t like the fact it was provisional,’ John suggested. ‘Although he must have known he’d get them in the end.’

‘The fact remains that he may now make mischief for our liege lord,’ Stanley pointed out.

‘While the sons of King Edward remain in the Tower, King Richard can never be secure on his throne,’ Catesby said. ‘The late conspiracies proved that.’

‘But the Tower is a safe place,’ John chimed in. ‘They ca

‘But it’s not just a question of keeping the boys under guard,’ Catesby was saying, his voice lowered. ‘Even though the Lord Bastard is i

It was a warm evening, but Kate suddenly felt chilly.

‘What is your thrust, William?’ John asked. ‘How should my uncle deal with that threat?’

Catesby shrugged. His expression was unreadable.

Stanley spoke with some vehemence. ‘Ask yourselves what happened to other deposed monarchs. What became of Edward II and Richard II? Why it is that the Princes have not been seen since before the coronation? They were out shooting at the butts in the Lieutenant’s garden several times before that. But since then, to my knowledge, no one has seen them.’ Kate noticed, to her dismay, that Stanley was weeping.

‘Good my lord, take comfort from the fact that my uncle the King would never harm his nephews,’ John said.

‘No, he would not!’ Kate cried. ‘He was loyal to King Edward. He will be a protector to his sons.’

‘I am not the only one to voice fears for their safety,’ Stanley muttered. ‘Listen about the court; hearken in the streets. Men are asking what has become of them. I do not accuse the King of any crime, or of bearing ill will towards his nephews. I just wonder why they have been withdrawn from men’s sight. Surely his Grace has heard the rumours? He has but to show the boys to the people and they will be quelled!’

‘Rest assured I will speak to him about it,’ John said.

‘I thank you, my lord,’ Stanley replied, rising to his feet. ‘And my Lady Katherine, forgive an old man for worrying too much, and for spoiling this beautiful evening. It was intended for dalliance, not for politics.’

‘Yes, my lord, of course,’ Kate nodded, but she was still reeling from the enormity of what Stanley had implied.

‘I must go too,’ Catesby said. ‘Good evening, Lady Katherine.’

John turned to Kate and placed his arm about her shoulders. ‘Do not heed malicious gossip,’ he advised her. ‘I’ll wager Stanley’s wife has been pouring poison in his ear.’

‘He wasvery upset,’ Kate observed. ‘And it seemed that Sir William was trying to insinuate something.’

‘He’s a cold fish, and I could easily believe that he would urge the necessity of doing away with the Princes,’ John said, frowning. ‘But that the King would sanction it – that I ca

He moved closer to her. ‘Forget all this, Kate, my sweeting. Let us talk of more pleasant things. I have been saving a poem for you.’

But Kate’s mind was in a turmoil. Her mind retained that shocking image of Lord Stanley weeping; his distress had not been feigned.