To Murder a King Read online

  “Aye Captain.”

  I was weary. The ride and the combat had taken more from me than I had expected. When I reached my home, I would have earned every penny that was coming to me. We made the pyre large enough to accommodate four bodies and we used dry wood. There was plenty of it. Once it was burning well we laid the bodies upon it and then piled more dried wood on the top. When we smelled flesh burning we retired to the barn. The four horses which the fugitives had taken were in a bad way. Sir Jocelyn’s courser would not recover fully for months. It was a pity for it was a fine horse. The treasure was still in the saddlebags. We would return that to the Earl but that which was carried by the three dead men I gave to my hunters. They had earned it.

  As they divided it Roger said, “Captain, there are a large number of French coins here.”

  Stephen the Tracker said, “That is not a surprise is it?”

  Roger said, “This is for they are fresh minted. If I was to take a guess then I would say that Sir Humphrey was paid these since we reached Galicia.”

  I nodded. That made sense. A change in dynasty meant another family wished to take over England. French kings claimed England just as English kings claimed France. I had much to ponder on the ride to Ourense. It was a long day’s ride to Ourense. The rest of our chevauchée had already reached the city the day before. Henry was watching for us from the gatehouse. Henry ran to greet us when we entered the castle and stopped in the outer ward.

  “Captain, the Earl is desperate to speak with you.”

  I nodded, “Henry go with my men. Roger, take the treasure and place it with the rest of the booty. Sell the horses and weapons we captured. All save this.” I handed Sir Jocelyn’s sword to Henry. “This is yours. It is a better sword than the one your father had made for you.”

  “But he paid a great deal for it.”

  “And he was robbed. Sir Jocelyn might have been a treacherous traitor but he knew his weapons. This is as fine a sword as mine. Take it.”

  I saw that my men still guarded the chamber of the Earl. They looked pleased to see me. “I will take over now. The Earl will be safe enough.”

  Inside were the two squires and the Earl’s page. He looked up from the day bed on which he reclined, “Well?”

  “They are all dead and the treasure recovered.”

  “Thank God and thank you, Captain. The best day’s work I did was to employ you.”

  “If I might have a word?”

  He nodded. “Guard the door and Geoffrey, fetch wine and sweet meats for the Captain.” They scurried out. “Sit for I see from your face that the danger is not yet passed.”

  “No, lord.” I told him what had happened and what we had discovered. “It seems, lord, that the King’s life is also in danger.”

  Henry Bolingbroke would be king. I knew that for a certainty but he was no traitor. Regicide was not in his heart. After he became king there were rumours but I knew that they were unfounded. He showed his nobility with his next words. “Then you must ride to him now and warn him.”

  “But, lord, what of you?”

  He smiled, “I did not say you should take your men. I trust them and I will keep them about me until we reach England. Do not worry, Captain. I have done enough to please my father. He thinks the wound came from war and he does not wish me to risk my life further. I will rest for a month and then return home. You need to leave now. Rest today for I would have further conference with you. You have a mind which is most agile and I believe that we can tease out whence the threat comes. Leave on the morrow. I will have a letter drafted for you and you can prepare our ships to take us home in three or four weeks’ time.” I nodded. “Now fetch my squires and Geoffrey. I will celebrate this brief interlude of safety.”

  The Earl was easier with me now. When first I had joined him, he had been distant. It had been as though I was a new suit of armour; functional but without attachment. We had fought together and as with all warriors that made us closer.

  “My father is a ditherer. He squats here in Ourense enjoying the flattery of the Galician nobility. His army grows indolent and lazy. If he wishes Castile he should take it.”

  He was speaking to me of his father and I was uncomfortable. He was right. John of Gaunt might have been a warrior once but now he was old. I could not believe that his brother, the Black Prince, would have dallied so long. He would have struck and Castile would have been his.

  “I will be home as soon as my doctors tell me that I can travel. My wife, Mary, is with child. I know that it will be a boy and I will have an heir. England will have an heir.”

  That was the difference between the Earl and myself. He put his ambitions before his wife. I had been there when my wife gave birth.

  “Congratulations, lord. You had not spoken of this before.”

  “Perhaps I did not know you well enough to confide such matters.”

  “And where is your wife, lord?”

  “In my castle in Wales. The journey from Spain to Wales is much the same as the journey from Spain to Southampton. It will take but ten days and I shall be with them both.” He smiled at the memory of his wife and I smiled with him. He rarely smiled and it changed him when he did. “William, I have a mind to ennoble you. You deserve a knighthood for what you did. You have saved a future King of England from death.”

  “Lord, King Richard still lives.”

  “I know and I pray that it continues but…” he waved a hand so that the squires and page moved away, “you served with my cousin. Did you not see the flaw in him?”

  “Flaw lord?”

  “De Vere could not have manipulated him if he had a strong character. Sir Jocelyn tried to bend me to his will but I resisted. I do not believe the rumours that the two are lovers, as Walsingham suggests. He is vain and de Vere has appealed to that side of him. Did you know that when we grew up together Richard accused me of all manner of slights, none of which were true? I need do nothing, William. Richard has the seed of his own destruction within his own breast.”

  I had much to think about as I headed home.

  Chapter 11

  The journey through Spain was peaceful. There were just three of us and we had six horses with us. They carried the treasure we had all gained. I had the letter for the captain of the ship which would carry us home and the one to Richard from Henry Bolingbroke. My squire was delighted to be going home. “Will I soon be knighted, Captain?”

  “You are far from ready. I confess you have improved. You have been blooded but there is still much for you to learn.” I smiled, “Are you so keen to leave my service?”

  “No, Captain. I am still learning but I am impatient to be a knight. I believe I know some of the pitfalls. I would not be as Sir Jocelyn and Sir Humphrey.”

  “And I am sure that when they were your age they did not believe they would turn out that way. Life throws obstacles in your path. A real man who is a true knight learns to deal with them and emerge stronger. The two traitors chose the easier, quicker course. Be patient and you shall be a better knight for that.”

  There was just one English ship in A Coruña when we arrived. She had brought more knights for John of Gaunt’s army. The captain was more than happy to take us home especially when I told him of the impending departure of the Earl and his men. He was happy to sail to Wales. The profit would still be the same for him. The cargo was being loaded as we arrived. Wine, oil and other goods were being stored below the deck. Our horses would be the last aboard and they would have slightly more freedom than on the outward journey.

  The voyage home took longer than the one on the way out. It was ten days before we reached Southampton. On the voyage we learned that King Richard had taken an army north for the Scots were becoming active. Nothing had happened. There was neither a battle nor a skirmish. It had done the King’s reputation no good whatsoever. He had raised the levy and knights had been mustered. There had been a cost and nothing was gained. Once more the King had been badly advised. The Earl of Oxford, or as he
was now titled, the Duke of Ireland, had managed to absent himself and spent the time in Ireland. Thus, he was not tainted by the ignominy. I now saw the plot in all its fullness. The King was under de Vere’s spell. De Vere was working with others, probably the King of France, to bring about the fall of King Richard. With murderers seeking the cousins and the Duke of Ireland able to use the revenue from that land to fund an army, he would be able to take power when Henry and Richard were dead. I was uncertain if I could persuade the King of the veracity of my words but I would have to try. I had been ousted from court by de Vere. I hoped that in his absence I might help the King to see a little more clearly.

  It was past the end of English summer by the time we reached Southampton. We had only been away for a few months and yet I detected the first fingers of autumn gripping the land. Leaves had begun to fall and the harvest had been collected. There was a chill in the air. We had to get to Windsor quickly and so I just allowed our horses one day of rest. We now had more and we could afford to change them if we had to.

  We took it slowly and stopped in Basingstoke at an inn. We had coin to spare and I paid for two rooms. Peter was happier since returning to England. He preferred English ale to Spanish ale and he was not fond of their wine. He also liked the English style of cooking. The Galicians cooked dishes such as octopus and heavily spiced it. The only food he approved of was the mutton and lamb.

  Replete after the meal we sat in the largely empty inn and watched the fire flicker. Henry asked the question which had been on his mind since we had left Ourense. “Is our service to the Earl done, Captain?”

  “I fear not. There is still danger to his person but I hope we can have a month at home at the very least. He still has to recover and then he will sail to Wales to be with his new born. Do not forget, young Henry, that we still have much training if you are to progress and become a knight.” He nodded. “You have acquitted yourself with honour. The Earl both values and trusts you. He has learned his lesson. He will judge his household knights more carefully from now on. If you wish more land and power then you could do worse than ally yourself to the Earl. He will go far. A household knight of Henry Bolingbroke, if he is true, has a bright future.”

  “Richard and Edward said he would be King of England one day.” The squires had spent much time together and shared secrets.

  “He might well be for King Richard and the Queen have been married for four years and there are yet no children.”

  “They are both young, Captain.”

  “And they need an heir. Even as we speak I suspect that the Earl will be a father. He and King Richard are the same age and yet the Earl has managed to get his wife with child.” As the first King Henry had discovered not having enough male children could be disastrous.

  There was a squall as we headed to Windsor the next morning. It was the first rain we had witnessed since we had landed in Spain. It was a sign we were home. As we neared the castle I wondered if I would be admitted. No doubt de Vere had ensured that the guards at the castle were loyal to him. When we reached the castle, I saw that there was no standard fluttering there. There were few guards but, luckily, I recognised the sergeant at arms who was at the gate. He had been one of the guards at the Tower during the Peasants’ Revolt. He was happy to volunteer information. “The King and Queen are in London, sir, at the Palace of Eltham.”

  “Trouble?”

  “Not for me to say, sir, but I daresay he will be pleased to see you.” His response was guarded. De Vere would have men planted to report back to him.

  There was a hidden message in the sergeant’s words. We hurried east. I knew that we would not reach Eltham Castle in a day and so we rode to London first. We stayed in ‘The Blue Company’. We knew that we would be safe there and that John and Tom would be able to furnish us with the information we needed.

  We did not talk but we listened. This was not a quiet little alehouse in Basingstoke. This was a tavern in the heart of the capital. Men here knew when was going on in the world. I learned much from Tom and John. The King was in trouble. He needed money for the French were not only threatening to invade they had renewed their alliance with Scotland. That explained the King’s abortive visit to the borderlands. His Chancellor was in Parliament trying to get the Commons and the Lords to approve taxes. Taxes were always unpopular. When they were for a King who had yet to win anything then they were doubly hated. The alehouse became busy and Tom and John had to serve customers. We drank and listened. I heard John of Gaunt’s name spoken. Men wondered why he was in Castile and not supporting his nephew. Had I spoken it would have fuelled their suspicions for John of Gaunt was delaying in his attempt to reclaim his kingdom. Had he abandoned his nephew? My opinion of the Henry Bolingbroke rose. I had a letter in my possession which allied him to the King. It seemed to me that most people were doing the opposite. King Richard was being abandoned.

  When the alehouse had emptied John and Tom were able to speak more freely. “You see, Captain, they are holding the Parliament in Oxfordshire. Clever move that is. The King would have to leave the protection of his guards. Between you and me his uncle, the Duke of Gloucester wants to be regent. John of Gaunt isn’t here to oppose him.”

  “What do you know of the King’s guards?”

  “Little, Captain. When they are at the Tower then they drink in ‘The Earl Marshal’. He has household knights but they are men like Sir Simon Burley. If you remember he was the one upset the folk in Kent so much they began the Peasant’s Revolt. If you don’t mind me saying so he needs someone who has common sense close by him. He needs someone like you.”

  I shook my head, “Those days are gone for I was dismissed. I serve the Earl of Northampton now but I will use what little influence I have with the King. I owe him that much.” I did not mention that the Earl had threatened me with losing my land and my farm. The title I had been given was a shackle. I was tied to the Earl and my family tied me to the land. I was no longer the young warrior who could go wherever he pleased.

  We left the inn as soon as the gates to the city were opened and rode hard for Eltham Palace. It was to the south of the Thames and had been given by the Bishop of Durham to the crown. It was more luxurious than the Tower and also further from the unpredictable London mob. When we reached Eltham we were not recognised and there was a heightened tension amongst the guards. I had been one of Richard’s guards and I understood their predicament. They did not know me and knew that there was a mob close by who would wish the King harm. The Peasants’ Revolt had scarred King Richard. “Just tell the King that William Strongstaff, gentleman, brings a letter from the Earl of Derby and Northampton.”

  “Then give me the letter!”

  “Sir! I am a gentleman and I will take no insult from you. The letter is to be delivered to the King by me personally.” I smiled but it was a cold humourless smile, “Of course I can leave and not deliver the letter but when the King discovers that the man who was his Captain of the Guard was denied admittance then I fear you will not be one of his guards for much longer. I will wait here!”

  I saw the sergeant chew his lip. His companion appeared amused. Eventually the sergeant left. “He is new sir. The Earl of Oxford sent him three months since. I do not think the Queen likes him. I have heard your name, sir. My father served with the White Company.”

  “And you chose this life?”

  “I had little choice, sir. The Free Companies are not what they were and this post pays good money. I fear we will earn it now.”

  “How so?”

  He lowered his voice, “The King and Parliament, sir. They cannot agree. Some speak of the Lords and Commons ordering the King to speak to them. It will not happen, sir. I am just grateful that the Queen is here. She offers him good advice.” He suddenly looked shocked, “I am sorry, sir. My father always told me that my tongue would get me in trouble. I should not have spoken.”

  “And you should know that I never betray anyone. Your words are safe with me and I am honoured th
at you should trust me.”

  The sergeant returned and he looked a little abashed. “The King will see you. Tom, take him to the King. Your servant and squire can wait in the guard room, sir.”

  I smiled, “He remembered me then?”

  “Aye sir and sorry for any misunderstanding.” I knew there was no misunderstanding. He was just trying to use the little power he had.

  I was taken to the hall where there were clerks and clerics along with the King, a lady I took to be the Queen and then a grandly dressed lord. I knew without being introduced that he was the Earl of Suffolk, Michael de la Pole. He was no knight. A wool merchant elevated to rule the finances of England he had misjudged the mood of the land. I knew that from my travels from Southampton.

  When the King saw me, he leapt to his feet, “Will Strongstaff! You have not abandoned me!”

  I dropped to my knee. “My liege as I recall I was dismissed but I am ever at your beck and call.”

  “Rise.” He turned to the Queen. “Anne, this is the man who saved my life and helped me to become the warrior I am.”

  Anne of Bohemia was a lovely young thing. When I met her, she was but nineteen. She was stunningly beautiful and had a quality of inner peace. She was a calming influence upon her husband. Although the marriage had been arranged I never saw a couple more in love. The King held his wife’s hand and looked adoringly at her. He held her other hand for me to kiss. “Majesty, I am honoured.”

  “Rise, William Strongstaff, I have heard much about you. I beg that you stay with us here.” She glanced nervously at de la Pole.

  The King said, “A splendid idea. Have you brought people with you?”

  “A squire and a servant.”

  “Excellent!” He clapped his hands and a herald stepped forward, “Ralph see my Steward and have rooms made available for my guests.” He, too, glanced at the Chancellor who nodded.