The King's Courtesan (10 page)

He wandered closer to the maypole and leaned against a tree, his arms folded, curious but not inclined to join the dance. Several ladies were on the edges of the clearing, rustling in the brushes on hands and knees and crawling in the grass. He cocked his head and watched with bemusement.

“They are col ecting the dew,” de Veres said from beside him. “Surely you’ve heard the nursery rhyme….

“‘The fair maid who, the first of May

Goes to the fields at break of day

And washes in dew from the hawthorn tree Wil ever after handsome be.’

“’Tis also said it wil help her capture the heart of the man of her choosing. Are you annoyed with Lizzy? She seems to think so.”

Robert took his eyes off his fiancée regretful y and glanced cool y at de Veres. “I’ve yet to decide. When I know I’l be sure to inform you. I take it she’s curious as to what comes from her meddling. You can tel her she’l see for herself soon enough.”

He returned his attention to the dancers in the glade, stiffening when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Robert didn’t look back when he spoke. “For reasons I can’t fathom she seems fond of you. But if you don’t remove your hand…” Wil iam opened his hand and lifted it, then straightened the back of Robert’s coat. He spoke close to his ear, his voice a combination of amusement and warning. “Anything that concerns Lizzy is my affair, Captain. A thing you’d be wise to remember.”

Robert shrugged and a moment later the poet was gone.

He smiled to himself. Good for Elizabeth. It seemed her courtier poet was more of a man than he’d thought.

A SOUNDING OF HORNS and the ringing of bel s marked the arrival of a tal man wearing a sun mask of beaten gold.

His left hand held a gilded staff wrapped with flowers and ivy. He bent his knee and held his right hand out to Hope.

She took it with a jubilant smile. He rose and turned to face the crowd and led her out, presenting her. “Lords and ladies, fel ow revelers…

“‘Hail, bounteous May, that dost inspire Mirth, and youth, and warm desire!

Woods and groves are of thy dressing;

Hil and dale doth boast thy blessing.

Thus we salute thee with our early song, And welcome thee, and wish thee long.’

“I present to you our lovely May Queen!”

“Oh, Charles! What a wonderful surprise!” Hope almost had to shout for him to hear above the cheering, so she threw her arms round his neck. “It’s a night I wil always remember. Thank you!” It was a great honor to be chosen Queen of the May. In vil ages and towns and cities across Britain al the unmarried women vied for that prize. Yet Charles had chosen her over a bevy of noble beauties.

Her eyes were shining as bright as any star as Charles gently extricated himself from her embrace and placed the leafy staff in her hands. “Your scepter, my lady. And now…” Charles slowly circled the glade, his finger dipping and rising as if he were counting each man that he passed.

“The May Queen—” there was a hush of anticipation “—

must have…a May King!” His finger tapped Robert’s shoulder.

“Why not me?” the Duke of Buckingham shouted to roars of laughter.

Ignoring him, Charles drew Hope and Robert to stand in front of the Maypole. “It is my decree that Miss Mathews be the Queen of May, and Lord Newport, Baron Nichols, be her consort.” The announcement generated excited whispers as wel as applause. “I cal now for a priest of the wood to step forward, to bestow a blessing on the joining of the Lord and Lady of May.”

Hope was a little surprised at this turn of events, but she grinned and tried to straighten the flower wreath that was sliding over her brow, then gave up and turned to give her towering consort a winsome smile. Buckingham would have been a more comfortable choice, but the captain made her heart beat faster, and she supposed it might be fun continuing the game she’d started earlier, trying to make him smile.

Bright red roses were thrown at their feet and Hope was adorned with a necklace of wil ow and ivy entwined with flowers matching those strewn through her curls. Robert felt himself grow impatient when he was crowned with a wreath of flowers and draped with a rainbow-hued scarf, but Hope was glowing, her smile was contagious and she looked so delightful with her flowered crown that he couldn’t play the churl. He felt a pang, keen as a blade, for innocence lost.

He was a child once, and it seemed that she stil shone with the innocence of joy and youth.
She’s aptly named. I wish
the past held no sway and we both stood here unspoiled. I
wish this night was real and we were lovers joined in truth
.

The merry din around them rose as the crowd made way for a corpulent man in the robes of a priest, except for a green mask, a chaplet of leaves and a mantle made of flowers. “I wil perform the blessing, great lord,” he said with a deep bow. He went to stand between Hope and Robert. The crowd hushed, straining to hear him. “Children of the maypole! The woods have echoed with joy and mirth and now the hour is at hand. The winter is put behind us, and before us the joys of summer await.” He made a sweeping gesture to the king. “Sweet May has returned, and awaits the dawning of the sun.” The sun bowed graciously to wild cheers as the priest took Robert and Hope by the hand.

“To honor this gentlest, merriest month, fertile and sweet and toward lovers inclined, here stand the Lord and Lady of the May, whom I shal join in marriage. Up with you now and to the dance. Join us in laughter and song, and wish a toast on the marriage of the Lord and Lady of the May!” Suddenly jack-in-the-greens were everywhere, bearing trays of wine. The guests surged forward to join the May King and Queen in a toast, and several barrels of mead were broken open. A fiddler started up and a piper joined in and a ring of animal men encircled them. As the morris men resumed their bel ringing and drumming, the heathen priest led them through some surprisingly traditional vows.

The game being over and stil an hour before dawn, Hope curtsied to her consort then rose to her toes, looking for Charles, ready to dance. But despite his height she couldn’t find him. Ah, wait! There to the left. A flash of gold mask from beside a leafy bower. His head was bent. He was engrossed in conversation with a tal auburn-haired woman masked like the moon to his sun.

A physical pain like a blow to the gut forced the wind from her lungs and almost doubled her over, and though a glacial chil froze her blood, her cheeks burned hot and she blinked back scalding tears. A resplendent Lady Castlemaine was holding court, surrounded by sycophants, her waist encircled by the king.

TAKING SEVERAL DEEP BREATHS,
Hope clenched her fists, tamping her fury. Even so, as she crossed the glade with a cool smile pasted on her face and her head held high, her limbs felt so weak she almost stumbled, and the aching in her throat made her fear she couldn’t speak.

“Lady Castlemaine.” She refused to give her nod or curtsy.

“Charles.”

Charles looked only vaguely uncomfortable. “Ah! ’Tis the Queen of the May! Are you enjoying yourself, my dear?

You’ve done a splendid job. Everything is going marvelously wel .”

Few had noticed Lady Castlemaine’s presence yet, but now they al did. Conversation died as people strained to hear. It had been a wonderful night, and to have it end with a brawl between two of His Majesty’s mistresses would surely make it the best entertainment of the year so far.

Hope’s voice rang out, carrying through the glade. “Surely even as il ustrious a whoremonger as you needs only one of us at a time. Tel her to leave.”

Lady Castlemaine gasped in outrage. “Charles! Wil you al ow your guttersnipe to address me this way? If she were one of my servants I’d have her whipped. She needs to be taught respect for her betters!”

Robert sighed, and downed his drink. For a short while he had been glamoured, caught in a dark enchantment of glitter and gaiety and sweet summer’s night, but the spel was broken, exposing the cruel deception that lurked beneath.
And I am part of it now
. Should he play his part?

Step forward as husband and defender?
She’s not really
mine. Why should I step between them? Let His Majesty
sort it out himself.

Yet despite his new wife’s seething anger, there was an aura about her of a wounded child. She was clearly in distress and there was no one else to come to her aid. He tossed his empty goblet to a passing footman and stepped forward. “Forgive me, Lady Castlemaine. We met earlier this evening. No doubt you speak in jest and mean no insult to the countess. Lady Nichols is neither guttersnipe nor servant, madam. She is my wife.”

“Quite so, Barbara. You remember meeting Captain Nichols earlier. He is also Earl of Newport and has married our May Queen. She is a countess now like you, so you must be polite.” England’s king favored them al with his most charming smile. “Off you go a-maying, then, Lord Newport, and congratulations to you and your lovely bride.” Robert went to take Hope’s arm but she tore it from his grasp. “This game is over! I am not playing anymore.” She tore off her crown of flowers and flung it at Charles’s feet.

“How could you do this? After al the work I put into it. To please you! This night was supposed to be ours! Not hers!

Yours and mine.”

“Don’t make a scene, Hope. Lord Nichols, it is time for you to take your wife home. You may borrow my coach.” Charles motioned to a footman, who came running over, nodded and then hurried away.

“Come, sweetheart.” Robert reached for her elbow.

Hope whirled on him. “
Don’t…
put your hands on me. I don’t even know who you are! I have
not
given you permission to touch me. Mind your own business, this is not your affair.” He released her immediately, stepping wel back as if he’d been stung. It was then she saw the jol y priest puffing toward them, one hand holding his cumbersome robes as he walked, the other clutching the green mask he’d been wearing just minutes before. She recognized him instantly.

She had seen him earlier in the evening and before at court. There was a very sick feeling building inside her.

He approached them, smiling and wheezing, completely oblivious to the tension around them waiting only for a spark to explode. “Your Majesty! I come to pay my respects before taking my leave. I trust al was to your satisfaction?”

“Indeed it was, sir. Lord and Lady Newport, might I introduce the Right Reverend Edward Durham. You have him to thank for your happiness.”

“Oh, Charles, you didn’t! You couldn’t have!” Hope’s face drained of al color as the depths of his perfidy sank in. She had thought the marriage ceremony part of an elaborate pageant and nothing more. Charles’s surprise contribution to the elaborate entertainment she had arranged. But in one cruel moment her fairy tale came crashing to the ground and her dreams of an independent life, just within her grasp, were cruel y yanked away.
Trust me,
he kept saying.
Trust me
. And then he had tricked her into marrying some hungry fortune hunter, new-come to court. A judgmental Puritan soldier who had looked at her with thinly veiled distaste from the moment they had met.

“Al of you! Leave us. Now. That means you, too, Barbara.” Charles took Hope by the arm and, too stunned to resist, she fol owed him to the far side of the glade where curious listeners couldn’t hear their words, only her angry voice and his soothing one.

Robert watched it al , his face grim. The king had hurt and humiliated her by bringing his senior mistress. This he understood. But the chit’s outraged scorn at his own attempt to help her left him mightily offended and was a very poor sign for what was to come. Clearly the change from monarch to newly minted earl was so far beneath her she felt no need for courtesy.
Imagine what she’ll think
when she sees my country home. How have I come to
marry such a venal creature. How have I fallen so low?
Al his sympathy as wel as his budding admiration for her were gone.

He stood amongst the spectators, ordered to leave his bride and wait like a servant as the king and his courtesan put on a show.
He rebuffs her in public with his high-born
whore, at the same time showing the world that she is his
and not mine. And she abets him in it.
He was tempted to leave her and the king and his titles behind. It seemed a travesty to al ow this shal ow grasping creature to walk Cressly’s hal s.
She may reside there as a guest but I’ll be
damned if she’ll ever be its mistress
. He stopped a passing jack-in-the-green and reached for another drink.

“’Tis my wedding day,” he quipped with a sardonic smile.

He downed it in one swal ow, plucked another from the tray before the man could leave, and settled in to watch the show.

Across the meadow, Hope tried to put her feelings into words. Charles had broken a bond that to her was sacred, and he’d blithely stolen her free wil . She would never return to his arms again, but she was determined to speak her piece. “How could you do this, Charles? What in God’s name have I ever done to you but be a faithful companion and friend? I would rather return to the stage than let you turn me into that dul slave cal ed wife.”

“It is for your own protection, sweetheart. A husband wil —”

“A husband wil what? Mind me? Rule me? Protect me from rich, entitled, dishonest, faithless, heartless, deceiving, oversexed men?” She hurled each word like a stone.

He had the grace to redden slightly. “Hope, I—”

“How much did you pay him to take me off your hands? Is that what you were doing with him in your study?

Discussing me as if I were a fine joint of meat? And neither of you had the decency or courtesy to tel me? Neither of you even asked? What right have either of you to decide my fate without consulting me?” The last was said on a plaintive note. She was perilously close to tears.

The king avoided conflict as assiduously as his courtiers and women seemed to seek it, though Hope had never been a problem before this day. He was becoming uncomfortable and vaguely annoyed. “I am your king, Hope.