The Unconventional Maiden (16 page)

Beth and Jane followed him more slowly. ‘We suspect it was arson, you know, Jane. I don’t suppose you’ve had a chance to start tidying up?’

‘Aye, I have made a start,’ said Jane, ‘but there’s that much to do, Mistress Beth, and I don’t know what you want to get rid of and what you want to be laundered and kept.’

They went indoors and Beth asked Jane if she could prepare some breakfast for them. Whilst the maid was busy in the kitchen, Beth went upstairs to her bedchamber. She was only there a few moments when she heard Gawain coming along the passage. She popped her head out of her door and instantly she knew there was something wrong.

‘What is it?’ she asked.

‘Someone has been in my bedchamber,’ he said grimly. ‘They have rifled through my possessions and taken the dagger that I had stowed in the chest under my clothes.’

Beth gasped. ‘You—you mean they’ve taken the murder weapon?’

‘Aye! You know what this means, Beth—that the fire really was started deliberately not just to destroy your
business, but to get us out of the house so as to search for the weapon?’

Beth paled. ‘How did they know it was there?’

‘They took a risk,’ said Gawain, his eyes glinting with anger. ‘You have to leave London without delay, Beth!’

She did not argue with him. ‘Do you deem it possible that Cedric and the arsonist are in league together? That one caused the fire and the other stole the weapon?’

‘I really don’t know,’ said Gawain, ‘although I am of a mind that such a plan demands a ruthlessness and cunning that I do not believe he possesses.’

‘But he is the only one who knows you had the dagger.’

‘Unless he has already spoken to its owner,’ said Gawain, his blue eyes darkening.

‘Maybe Sam has discovered his whereabouts and that is why he wishes to speak to you,’ said Beth.

Gawain agreed. ‘I will await his return, but in the meantime, Beth, you must make your preparations to leave for Raventon Hall. Your servants will accompany you to Kent. I will hire a boatman for you as I might have need of mine. Once there you will stay put until you hear from me.’

Beth thought of the passion and conversation they had shared earlier that day and she was still not of a mind to be packed off into the country, but she could see that if she stayed, he would only worry about her and that could limit his activities. For now she had to obey him, pray that the murderer would be traced and she and Gawain would soon be together again.

B
eth was weary by the time they reached Raventon Hall. Yet she was glad to set eyes on the building that she now regarded as a second home. She only wished that Gawain was at her side. Sam helped her down from the saddle before turning to Jane.

As they walked towards the house the door opened and a woman dressed in black stood there with two young girls. ‘Who are you?’ she demanded.

Beth was stiff from the ride, but now her knees began to tremble. She did not need to ask that question of the pale haired woman in front of her. The taller of the girls was dark like Gawain and she had eyes the same colour as his, so she could only be his daughter, but the younger was similar in colouring to her mother.

With a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, Beth replied, ‘I am Mistress Elizabeth Llewellyn. Sir Gawain is my guardian. Tell me, is Mistress Ashbourne
at home?’ She was amazed at how calm her voice sounded when she felt as if she might fall to pieces.

The woman’s icy-blue eyes narrowed. ‘So you are she! How is it that Gawain became your guardian? Aunt Catherine does not appear to know.’

Beth had no intention of telling this woman all her business. ‘Sir Gawain was a trusted business acquaintance of my father. My half-brother, Jonathan, drowned and since my father feared he had not many more years left to live, he asked Sir Gawain to be my guardian if some ill fate should overtake him,’ she replied coolly. ‘Which it did. He was murdered in France.’

Mary’s frown deepened. ‘That is unfortunate and I can see why Gawain should want to help you. He always was a man ready to help lame dogs and beggars. Where is my husband now?’

Beth was tempted to say
Oh, so he is your husband now? Why is that?
Instead, she said, ‘You must be Mary?’ She’d be damned if she was going to say his wife.

‘Of course! Lady Mary Raventon,’ said Mary sharply. ‘You have not answered my question.’

Beth decided that she would tell her as little as possible. ‘I left Sir Gawain in London,’ she said, removing a glove. ‘He had business to attend to.’

Mary pouted. ‘I heard from an acquaintance that he had met Gawain at Bartholomew Fair. I had hoped he would immediately come in search of us, but when he did not I decided to come home. Why can’t Gawain get anything right?’

Beth’s stomach clenched. ‘From what I have heard, it is you who is in the wrong, madam!’ she blurted out.

Mary’s jaw dropped. ‘How dare you speak to me so!’ she hissed.

The words had hardly left her lips when Catherine appeared at her shoulder. ‘Beth, you are back so soon! Is something wrong?’

‘An arsonist set fire to my business, so Gawain insisted that I return here,’ she replied, a tremor in her voice. ‘He was concerned for my safety.’

‘Oh, my dear!’ cried Catherine, brushing past Mary and the girls and hurrying towards Beth with outstretched arms. She kissed her on both cheeks and hugged her to her bosom. ‘Mary and the girls arrived but two hours ago,’ she whispered in Beth’s ear. ‘And she has told me that her aunt is dead.’

Beth gave a startled gasp. ‘But Gawain told me that there is no aunt, so why has she lied to you?’

‘Because she met Matilda on the way here and she asked after her aunt,’ whispered Catherine. ‘Mary is no lackwit and realised instantly the tale that Gawain had spread to prevent folk from guessing the truth. She told Matilda that she is mourning for her and glad to return home to her wonderful patient husband.’

‘By all that is holy, what are we to do?’ muttered Beth. ‘What of the man she told him was her true husband?’

‘So you know about him, too,’ murmured Catherine. ‘My nephew obviously thinks much of you to be so honest with you. Mary has not mentioned him, but Lydia has told me that he has died of a fever and his
family did not want them to stay. It seems to me that the children were never welcome there and he was not averse to hitting them or their mother for that matter. Anyway, Gawain will have the whole truth out of Mary.’ She paused. ‘Now tell me, how is my nephew?’ she asked loudly.

Beth cleared her throat and said, ‘Your nephew is unharmed, but the house is in a bad state. There is much to do to make it habitable again and he must visit Cardinal Wolsey, too.’

‘I am relieved to hear that he is well but you, my dear Beth, look like you are in need of good country air,’ said Catherine. ‘I am so sorry about what has befallen you now. As if you had not suffered enough with losing your menfolk.’

‘It is indeed a calamity,’ said Beth, aware that Mary was listening. ‘I would have remained in London if Sir Gawain had not insisted in my coming here.’ She wondered if even now he was making his way to Winchelsea in the hope of finding Mary and the girls. What would he do when he found them missing? Come here or return to London?

A girl’s voice said, ‘Can we go to London, Mama? I want to see my real papa.’

‘Do not bother me with such questions, Lydia,’ said Mary, blinking down at her daughter. ‘If your father has business to tend to, then he will have no time for you. Remember my telling you how the king and Cardinal Wolsey, who is the king’s advisor, would often request his company? Besides, I am too exhausted to
make such a journey. We will send a messenger telling him that we are home.’

‘You said you would send a messenger when we first arrived at Winchelsea, but you never did,’ said Lydia sullenly.

‘Hush, daughter!’ scolded Mary. ‘Must you be forever arguing with me? You know how it brings on my megrim. I will go inside now and rest. You will stay with Aunt Catherine. Now we have returned home, you must learn not to be always clinging to me.’ With a glance in Beth’s direction she hurried inside the house.

The two girls looked at Beth and Lydia said, ‘When do you deem that Papa will come home?’

‘I cannot say. He has gone to Winchelsea in search of you after discovering your whereabouts. He spoke of you to me and told me he was concerned about you both and missed you very much,’ said Beth, bringing down her head to the girls’ level.

‘Mama should never have taken us away,’ said Lydia, shaking her dark head. ‘When Papa did not come she told us that he didn’t want us any more. She said that the man with the long fingers and sharp nails was our father.’ Her eyes clouded and she shivered. ‘I was glad when he died and we were told to leave and never come back. I didn’t know what was going to happen to us, but Mama changed her mind about Papa and told me that he really was our father.’

Beth darted a glance at Catherine. ‘It seems Mary is determined to worm her way back into Gawain’s graces,’ she said. ‘But I deem she will find he is not prepared to take her back.’

‘You could be right,’ said Catherine. ‘But come, Beth, you must be weary and in need of refreshment. Come inside.’

‘May we have some refreshments, too?’ asked the younger girl.

‘Of course you may, Tabitha,’ said Catherine, smiling down at her and taking both girls by the hand.

Beth followed them inside. Oh, why had Mary returned, obviously determined to resume her former position as his wife, making matters even more difficult than they were already? For the first time ever she felt an intruder in this house and she did not want to remain under this roof whilst Mary was there.

‘Jane, take Mistress Beth’s baggage up to her bedchamber,’ said Catherine. ‘Girls, you go to the kitchen and tell cook that Mistress Beth has arrived home and she is in need of refreshment. You may ask her to provide you with wafers and small ale, too.’ She hugged them both and they hurried from the hall. Catherine bid Beth to sit down and sat opposite her.

Catherine took a deep breath, kneading the folds in her gown with unsteady fingers. ‘It is possible that, although Gawain no longer cares for Mary, he will not rob the girls of their mother as she would their father. You must be prepared for that, Beth.’

Beth felt as if ice were forming about her heart. ‘I would have been a mother to them if she were not here!’ she said, placing a clenched hand against her breast.

Catherine nodded. ‘I understand how you feel. What will you do?’

Beth stared at her for a long time before saying, ‘I
cannot stay here right now. I will return to London and hopefully I will see Gawain and he can sort out this tangle. I will remain there until it is done.’

Catherine touched her hand. ‘I would dearly love you to stay, but in these difficult circumstances you must do what you feel is right.’

‘I am not as sure as I might sound,’ said Beth. ‘But I will leave early in the morning with Jane and Sam. I do not know when I will return.’

Two days later Beth arrived back in London and went straight to the house, to find not only that her master printer and her other employees had set up business on the ground floor, but that Gawain had gone to Hampton Court, the country home of Cardinal Wolsey, who had sent for him.

‘He did not visit Winchelsea first?’ asked Beth.

‘No,’ said the master printer, looking surprised by the question.

Beth wondered if she could get a message to Gawain, but decided that what she had to say would be so difficult to write that she would wait for a day or two. Perhaps he would return to London before going anywhere else and she could speak to him then. In the meantime there was plenty to be done sorting out the first floor of the house to be used as ordinary everyday living space. She also spent time in the printing workshop and went and spoke to the craftsman employed to do woodcuts for any illustrations. Fortunately, with Nicholas Hurst’s journal having survived the fire and the work that she and his brother had done on it, there
was much to think about. She presumed that Gawain would still be willing to buy shares in her business; it would not survive without his help and, without it or a dowry he would not be able to find a husband for her. If it was as his aunt believed and he would not rob his daughters of their mother, then her heart ached at the thought of relinquishing her dream of not only being his wife, but of being the owner of a successful business. Surely there must be a way for her to achieve both. In the meantime whilst she waited for him, she decided to write her thoughts down about the fire, intending to print it in her news sheet before Gawain returned.

But when he returned, one look at his grim visage was enough to cause her to fling down her quill and rise to her feet. ‘What are you doing back here?’ he asked, before she could get a word out.

‘You are angry with me for returning here, but I had no choice,’ she cried, stretching out a hand to him. ‘Mary and the children have returned to Raventon Hall!’

‘What!’ Gawain was stunned.

She went over to the fire and placed a log on it. ‘You look cold,’ she said. ‘Come and warm yourself by the fire.’

‘In a moment.’ He cleared his throat. ‘I have to tell you that Cedric was found dead a week ago, killed with the dagger that was stolen from here the night of the fire.’

Beth gasped and sat down hastily. ‘Is—is that why the Cardinal sent for you?’

‘Aye. I should have spoken to him earlier about Cedric, but I explained my reasons and told him about the fire and how I believed it to be arson.’

‘You told him of the theft of the dagger?’

‘Aye, and we both agreed that he most likely did attempt blackmail and sealed his own fate.’

Beth said, ‘He does not believe you to be the guilty party, then?’

‘No.’ He ran a hand through his hair. ‘I mentioned Mary and an annulment to him and he gave me hope.’

‘That is good, but what will he say now that Mary and the children have returned to Raventon Hall? She is saying now that you are her husband. Apparently this other man has died.’ Beth could not control her voice, which shook with nerves. ‘There is no doubt that she is expecting you to forgive her for the children’s sake and to take her back.’

Gawain swore savagely before sinking on to a chair and washing his face with his hands. ‘I will not have her back! I will not allow her to remain under my roof. She can go into a nunnery. My aunt will care for the children until we can wed.’

‘If only Mary would go willingly,’ cried Beth, kneeling in front of him. ‘But I think you will find that she will dig in her heels. She knows that you told people that she had gone to tend her aunt and now she is pretending to mourn her.’

Gawain groaned. ‘I should never have lied, but I wanted to protect the girls from scandal, as well as not have people know that she cuckolded me.’ He lifted his head. ‘The girls—they are well?’

‘They have missed you, but they look well enough.’ Beth hugged herself as she felt a shiver go through her.

He drew her into his arms. ‘You must not fret. I showed the Cardinal the missive she sent me. I am certain he will take my side. I refuse to fall in with Mary’s plan. We will be together, Beth.’ He crushed her lips with his own.

She clung to him, but after a few moments drew away from him. ‘There will be a terrible scandal if the truth comes out—how will it affect your daughters? Besides, the Cardinal might see matters differently if she is repentant and denies the truth of what she wrote in the missive.’

Gawain frowned. ‘You are looking on the dark side. Why can’t you have faith that I will make all well? I admit that there is bound to be a scandal, but I doubt folk will speak of it to the girls. As for myself, I no longer care what folk think of me. I do not doubt that when most know the truth, they will be sympathetic towards me and the children.’

‘But perhaps not to me. All will depend on the tales she might spread. What if folk say that I have come between husband and wife and ruined your marriage? At the moment I cannot see how there can be a future for us together.’ Beth’s voice wobbled.

‘Do not give up hope,’ said Gawain roughly, bringing her against him once more and kissing her gently whilst stroking her hair with such tenderness that she thought she would die if she was never to be held by him again. Tears trickled down her cheeks, dampening his shoulder. ‘Do not weep, love!’ he said. ‘I will
speak to her and make her see that there is no chance that she and I will ever live together again as man and wife.’ He wiped Beth’s tears away with an unsteady hand and brushed her lips with his own before releasing her.