Threads of Treason (12 page)

There was no choice. In the same way Bishop Odon de Bayeux had plucked her from her flaming village, she was obliged to care for Eric. Bending down she wrapped her arms about him and picked him up. She ran back to the priory against the rain and with the child weighting her steps. She thought her will might break until she reached the sanctuary of the church. The structure held a physical strength she needed. The boy was quiet now. She let him slip down as she clutched a nearby pillar and held it till she caught her breath. She wanted to enter the church quietly.

Eric pulled at her habit. Therese looked down.

‘
Is it my fault?’ asked the boy in English. The four words were spoken like a ballad, almost sung.

She wiped her face with her sleeve, and said, ‘No.’

‘
What has happened to Michael?’ he asked. Eric faltered over what, to him, was clearly a foreign language.

‘
I don’t know,’ she replied. Composing herself, she took him into the church and to the tower. She counted the steps and stopped below the hole. ‘Climb on my shoulders,’ she instructed, bracing her hands to form a stirrup for him. The tower was almost completely black with the rain clouds still covering the moon. He felt for her hands. His fingers were small but strong and his leather-clad foot made a firm purchase and soon the boy was on her shoulders.

‘
There’s a hole in the wall up on the left. Can you see it?’ she asked.

‘
I can feel something,’ he said. ‘A metal thing, a light holder.’

‘
It’s higher and on your left.’

‘
Found it.’

‘
Climb in,’ said Therese, ‘but be careful. I do not know what is in there.’ The weight on her shoulders pushed her down on one side and then it was gone. He made no sound, so she called to him, ‘Are you all right?’

‘
Yes,’ said Eric poking his head out. ‘I only just fit in the hole. It’s like a hay-loft up here.’ He sounded excited, but there was little in his voice to indicate a Norman father. He seemed more like Michael.

‘
Do you need any food?’ she asked.

‘
I’ve eaten, thank you.’

‘
Good, but wait.’ Therese went down stairs into the kitchen yard and collected a pot. She returned and gave it to him with the words: ‘There are no hedges up there so use this.’ He reached down to collect it and disappeared into his hideaway.

‘
You will look after me, won’t you, Sister?’ he asked, peeping out again.

‘
Yes, of course,’ said Therese. Her heart sank with the burden of his little life.

Chapter 9

Abbess Eleanor left the refectory at St Augustine’s Abbey. She had eaten more than she had intended and she felt slightly uncomfortable. She decided to take a walk in the grounds and see if she could gain a casual audience with Abbot Scotland. She saw him walking with his head bowed, the sun shining on his tonsure. It made him look as if he might have a tight fitting halo, but she banished this thought from her mind. This was a practical man, not a saint. She approached cautiously, not wanting to disturb any private prayers he may be making, but as she got closer it was clear he was inspecting the plants.

After a few moments discussing the progress of the herbs growing in the border Eleanor tried to sound conversational as she broached the subject of the neighbouring abbey inside the city walls of Canterbury. ‘How do two such important abbeys cope running along beside each other as they do?’ she asked.

‘
You know, Abbess, that we come under the rule of the Pope here?’ replied Scotland.

‘
I do now,’ she said. The thought of Agid challenging her in the alley provoked her. She had to know what the conflict was between Bishop Odon and Archbishop Lanfranc. And if Abbot Scotland was neutral she may get her answer from him. ‘So you have very little to do with Christ Church Abbey?’

‘
Very little directly,’ said Scotland. ‘I’m so busy with the rebuilding of this place. But I shall soon have it in good order.’ He sighed with satisfaction. ‘It was virtually falling down when I came. We have the very best builders here. Bishop Gundulf is organising much of it.’

‘
I hear his name mentioned a lot,’ said Eleanor. She thought for a moment. The conversation had drifted from her original intention, but this seemed a suitable area to explore. Bishop Gundulf was involved with all this building – the whole country seemed to be a building site, perhaps there might be some falling out among them? ‘I wonder,’ she asked, ‘if there might be some jealousy between the builders, some competitiveness that might cause problems to develop? Not all the masons are from Normandy.’

Abbot Scotland rounded on her, his face red. ‘The masons are sworn to secrecy and allegiance. They have to behave with honour. I am offended on their behalf.’

‘
I apologise for any offence, but none was intended,’ said Eleanor stiffly.

‘
This amounts to gossip, Abbess, and I will not gossip.’

‘
I do not intend to gossip. I see us as equals, exchanging views for the benefit of our respective communities.’

‘
Then you will know, perhaps, that Bishop Odon has been making that priory, which is under your control, St Thomas the Apostle, a little safer.’

‘
I have not heard, Abbot Scotland.’ Her blood ran cold and she bowed her head to hide her fear.

‘
Bishop Odon has had people arrested. I hear that it was at the command of Prince Rufus.’

‘
I thought you didn’t gossip?’ said Eleanor. She regretted annoying him over the masons especially as she couldn’t see that they were in any way relevant, but his reaction had brought a fire to her temper.

‘
This is just a frank exchange,’ said Scotland sharply.

‘
Who has been arrested?’ She tried to keep the tremble from her voice.

‘
A Welsh merchant from Montgomery. I believe his name is Michael.’

Eleanor kept her sigh of relief hidden. Michael the merchant may have saved herself and Therese, but he was not important to her in the same way as Alfred and at least Scotland had not mentioned him. Hopefully he was still there for Therese. Eleanor went to take her leave – she wanted to check what had happened – but the Abbot continued,

‘
So for now the balance of power between the King’s sons seems to be with Prince Rufus. So what do you think the elder brother, Robert, would think of that?’

Eleanor managed a Gallic shrug. She did not wish this conversation to continue any longer, yet he’d thrown up another possibility. Could the Princes be trying to destroy the embroidery in some kind of power game? She could not believe that they would destroy something that was intended to honour their father. Yet could that be any stranger than Ursula’s idea of warring bishops.

Abbot Scotland’s face softened. ‘You are concerned for your priory. I understand.’ He laid a hand over hers touching Odon’s ring. He looked into her eyes and said, ‘Take care, Abbess. I speak to you as equal to equal. Such things go on in Canterbury even I cannot keep a check on. I warn you, do not pry. It can be dangerous.’

Eleanor bowed and started to walk away.

‘
Oh, Abbess,’ he called after her. ‘There was someone else arrested with the merchant’s group, an East Anglian man called Alfred. We had some dealings with him ourselves over wool, so my prior tells me.’

She bowed again and hurried away. Therese was without protection. She could not bear the thought of that child at risk. What had she been doing allowing Therese and Ursula to talk her into such nonsense?

She looked up. Her footsteps had brought her, without conscious thought to the kitchens. She would have to tell Ursula about her brother’s arrest. She opened the door. The kitchen was quiet. Clearing up after the meal was complete and the servants had taken themselves off for a break. Only one remained poking the hearth.

‘
Ursula,’ said Eleanor. The ex-prioress looked up. Her broad face was pink and tearful. ‘You know about Alfred?’ she asked.

Ursula nodded. ‘And he was worried about what we were getting ourselves into!’

‘
It means that Therese is at St Thomas’s on her own.’

‘
Sister Agnes will help her.’

‘
She can do little against someone prepared to murder.’

‘
They will not try to murder her.’

‘
Why not? They tried to murder you.’

‘
I knew too much.’ Ursula was going to ask her a question, but Eleanor did not have time for it.

‘
But Sister Therese might already know too much,’ said Eleanor. ‘We should get her out of St Thomas’s.’ Ursula turned away. There was such sadness in her movement Eleanor put her arm out and touched her hand, red raw with scrubbing and peeling. ‘What is it, Ursula?’

‘
We need to act quickly. We must leave Sister Therese there. She is the one person who can find something out. Your knight, Sir Gilbert, must be able to replace my brother as her protector.’

‘
I will check on his health.’

‘
But I need to find a way of freeing Alfred. And the only way to do that is to resolve this issue at the Priory.’

‘
What do you mean?

‘
I hear Rufus has been to visit Lanfranc as well as your employer.’ Ursula’s tone had hardened. Eleanor winced at her leaving out the titles of these important people, but she forgave her – after all her bishop had just arrested her brother.

‘
Look,’ said Eleanor, ‘I was at Christ Church when Prince Rufus was there with his guard. I was sent to the scriptorium out of the way. I am concerned about Archbishop Lanfranc. I find it hard, however, to believe that he would have the embroidery destroyed just to get at Bishop Odon, but right now I can’t be sure.’

‘
Then I will go and get employment in the kitchen,’ said Ursula.

‘
No, Ursula you’ve done enough. I have not been in any danger so far. I cannot leave it all to you and Sister Therese. I will go. But the kitchen is too far away, I will only hear gossip there. I need to be inside the monastery.’

Ursula dried her eyes on her sleeve. ‘I can get you a monk’s habit and as no new monks are let in without a letter of commendation I can get one of those too.’

‘
You know a forger?’ Eleanor looked at her old friend aghast.

‘
I know someone with the right skills. All letters are written by scribes. There is just the matter of the signature and seal.’

‘
What of my voice?’ asked Eleanor.

‘
There are many monks with high voices!’ Ursula smiled reassuringly and Eleanor smiled back with dawning confidence.

As Eleanor walked down the corridor to her room, she could see a page waiting by her door. She stopped in front of him and he presented her with a note. She looked at the seal. It was from Bishop Odon.

‘
I am to return with a reply, Abbess,’ said the lad, bowing.

‘
Wait here and you shall have one,’ she replied. She entered her room and broke the seal. Her hands seemed chilled. She did not want any interference; she had too much to do. The words she read felt as if they were building a high wall around her. He was summoning her to meet him at Dover Castle. She could not refuse and yet she did not wish to find herself in the position of having to explain her actions since arriving in England.

She wrote her reply and returned it to the page in the corridor. She would follow him to Dover within the day. So before going to Christ Church infirmary she decided to call on Ursula to explain where and why she was going.

‘
Instructions have already been received to put together a retinue for your journey,’ said Ursula as they stood in the kitchen yard. She rubbed her hands on her skirts. ‘Old friend, I must ask you…’ Her voice faltered.

‘
What?’ asked Eleanor.

‘
There is another way to get my brother released and that is for you to intercede on his behalf.’

Eleanor looked into Ursula’s eyes. The dark anguish that lurked there disturbed her. ‘I will try, but I cannot promise anything.’

‘
But do not tell him about your investigations. Not yet. And don’t tell him about me. It could all look so wrong.’

‘
What do you mean, Ursula?’

‘
If he suspects Alfred then he could suspect me, and it could look as if we were tricking you into believing that we are innocent.’

‘
But you are innocent, aren’t you?’

‘
Yes, of course we are.’

‘
You do not sound very sure,’ said Eleanor.

‘
I am sure of my heart, Abbess Eleanor. I beseech you to intercede on his behalf.’

‘
Then I shall try. Now I must see Sir Gilbert before I leave. Hopefully I will be able to return directly.’

‘
Everything will be ready for you,’ said Ursula with a knowing grin.

* * *

Brother Matthew met Eleanor at the infirmary door. She introduced herself more formally this time and Brother Matthew bowed. As she lowered her head to go through a second doorway, he pulled his large knobbly sandaled feet away to allow her to pass first.

‘
I wasn’t on duty in the infirmary when you came before,’ he said, showing her through to Sir Gilbert’s bed.