The Forbidden Queen

by Anne O'Brien

  ‘Is Edmund Beaufort here?’

  ‘Why, yes. Yes, he is.’

  ‘Was he with you at Leeds Castle?’

  Now I saw the direction of her questioning. ‘Yes.’ I raised my chin at the first trickle of apprehension that tightened just a little round my heart. But I was not perturbed. Perhaps she did not truly understand, and when she did—for surely Edmund would have no compunction about my telling Madam Joanna—why, then, she would wish me well for she had nothing but my happiness at heart. ‘Yes,’ I repeated, ‘he was at Leeds.’

  Startling me, she raised her hands to cup my cheeks as if I were a child to be cosseted, shielded from some unpleasantness. Then let them fall into her lap and her words drove straight through all my new-found happiness.

  ‘Oh, Katherine! Will you take some advice from an old woman who has seen much and suffered grievously at the hands of ambitious men?’ And for the first time I saw that her lack of ease was more than swollen and aching joints. She was sick to her soul, and my suspicions were grave. ‘I am not your mother to give you advice, but I’m the nearest you’ve got. I think you should be wary of too close a friendship with Edmund Beaufort.’

  I kept my reply even, though my heart quaked. ‘Do you not like him?’

  ‘Liking him or otherwise is not the issue. It is a dangerous liaison, Katherine.’ How gentle her voice, how compassionate her eyes, but how ominous her choice of words.

  ‘You do not approve of our friendship.’

  ‘It is not wise.’

  ‘How can it not be wise?’ My replies were becoming more and more icy. ‘He is cousin to my son.’

  ‘If friendship is all it is, then I must ask your pardon.’ She tilted her chin, as if she could read my mind. ‘But I suspect it to be more than that, my dear girl.’

  I looked away, quick to dissemble, fearing her displeasure, as I had always feared the displeasure of those around me. ‘I don’t understand.’

  ‘Be honest with me, Katherine. How much is between you?’

  I looked down at my clasped fingers, white with tension.

  ‘He makes me happy.’

  ‘Happy?’

  Abruptly I stood and walked across the room until I came to a halt in the centre, keeping my back to her. I could not bear to see the reproof in her face. I concentrated on the leaping flames in the hearth as I chose my words to express all that I thought and felt from this miracle that was Edmund Beaufort.

  ‘Yes, Edmund makes me happy. Is that a sin, Madam Joanna? I think it is not. Do you know? He makes me smile and laugh and enjoy all that life can offer. He makes my heart sing for joy. He has lifted a weight from my shoulders so that I feel young again. No one has ever done that for me. No one ever cared enough about me. Before I knew him, after Henry’s death I was dragged down by loneliness and misery. I felt so old and superfluous. I was wretched indeed. Perhaps I should be despised for lack of will, of character. But so it was.’

  I drew in a breath. Joanna waited, sensing that I still had things I needed to say.

  ‘Then Edmund Beaufort came into my life with such energy, such immeasurable elation. Such skill in forcing me to see what I might be if I was brave enough to take the steps. I have never known anyone like him. He has saved me from my black humours, he has dragged me back into life. Can you understand that?’

  ‘I too know what it is to be lonely, Katherine.’

  And guilt flooded through me. Spinning round, I flung back to kneel at her feet, searching her face for some understanding.

  ‘Forgive me. Forgive me. Of course you do—but then you must know how much I value…’

  ‘Katherine! How much is between you?’ she repeated.

  ‘He loves me,’ I replied simply.

  ‘He has told you this, has he?’

  ‘Yes. And I love him.’

  ‘Damn the boy! He would, of course.’ She touched my hair, tucking a wayward strand beneath my veil, and her question was soft but I heard the bite. ‘I hear he seduced you in the heat of Twelfth Night revels.’

  ‘Who told you that?’ I demanded, displeased.

  ‘It doesn’t matter. James should have warned you, but I expect he was too taken up with his freedom and his new bride.’ She eyed me. ‘How unfortunate that he has gone back to Scotland. He’s an astute young man and you might listen to his advice before you listen to mine.’

  ‘But they are friends,’ I objected. ‘Why would he warn me against Edmund?’

  ‘So they might be friends. But James has a keen nose for self-preservation and power-brokering.’ For a moment she paused. ‘Have you been foolish enough to be intimate with him?’

  I flushed to the roots of my hair.

  ‘Have you?’

  ‘No. I have not.’

  ‘Did he try to persuade you? I wager he did.’

  I shook my head, turning my face away. ‘I would not,’ I whispered.

  ‘Then you are fortunate. The Beauforts have more charm than is good for them, and Edmund more than most, while you are beautiful and lonely and…vulnerable.’

  ‘Am I vulnerable? You make it sound as if Edmund tried to persuade me against my will. He did not. When I refused, he did not pressure me. He understood my reticence.’ My voice became sharp as anger flamed. ‘And you have no right to take me to task.’

  ‘Is that what I was doing?’ Her lips curved into what might have been a smile but there was a weight of sadness over her. ‘Perhaps so. But I must speak out before you become even more entangled in this relationship. It will bring you nothing but grief. Has he asked you to wed him yet?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘What did you say?’

  I smiled from the pure delight of it. This would surely make her understand. That Edmund was serious in his intent. ‘I said I would.’

  ‘My child, it cannot be.’

  ‘I love him,’ I said. Could she not see how right it was?

  ‘As if love makes all right with the world. And you have been starved of it for so long. I am so very sorry.’ She leaned awkwardly to place a kiss between my brows. ‘They’ll not let you wed, you know. They’ll move heaven and earth to prevent it.’

  Was I not Queen Dowager? I would not accept such interference. ‘I cannot believe that anyone would deny me my right to choose the man I wish to wed.’

  ‘Then you are a fool, Katherine,’ she announced. ‘You have not thought this through at all. And what Edmund Beaufort is planning! Gloucester will object, for sure. Bedford too when he returns from France. Even Warwick. Bishop Henry might be persuaded to give some lukewarm support if he sees an interest for himself in your union, but even he might have qualms.’

  ‘They cannot stop me.’

  Joanna sighed. ‘Tell me this, Katherine,’ she ordered, stern at my wilful intransigence, and leaned forward, willing me to listen and accept. ‘Has he asked you to keep his proposal secret?’

  ‘Yes, but only for a short time until—’

  ‘Until when?’

  ‘I don’t know.’ I sounded sullen even to my own ears, because it echoed my own fears.

  ‘Use your wits, my dear.’ She looked frustrated rather than angry. ‘I’m the last woman to condemn you to a sterile widowhood. Do I not know better than most? And God knows you had little pleasure in your marriage to my stepson. He would have tried the patience of a saint. But Edmund Beaufort cannot be the man for you. Even he does not quite see his way forward, so he orders you not to speak of it.’ She took a painful breath. ‘You can’t rely on this proposal, Katherine.’

  ‘But why not?’ I asked, suddenly thinking that Joanna’s reasoning might be political. ‘Am I wrong in my understanding of this very English situation? Has Edmund’s family not been fully legitimised?’

  ‘Yes, yes.’ Joanna brushed aside my question with an impatient gesture. ‘But have you thought about the possible repercussions from your marriage to this boy? Haven’t you thought at all beyond Edmund’s ability to seduce your senses? If you wed—what then?’ Her brows drew
together in a sharp winging angle. ‘If you carried a legitimate child of your union, such a child—particularly if a boy—would have a volatile mix of Valois and Plantagenet blood in his veins. Anyone with an eye for mischief might consider his claim to the English throne to be as good as Young Henry’s.’

  ‘No!’ My thoughts whirled. ‘That cannot be. Young Henry is his father’s heir.’

  ‘And children die young, far too many of them.’

  ‘It will not happen. Henry is strong and well cared for.’

  ‘Still, a child borne by you from Beaufort’s loins would be a risky proposition for the stability of this country. Any man with rebellion in mind might consider such a child a useful pawn in a very dangerous political game.’

  I thought about this. Then shook my head. ‘No!’

  ‘Very well. Then consider this as a reason for your match being anathema to many: how much power would it give Edmund Beaufort, to wed you and become stepfather to the King?’

  Horror washed over me. I felt as if I were sinking into a quagmire. My breathing was difficult, a constriction tightening around my lungs. Were there so many obstacles in my way that I, in my innocence and ignorance, had never considered? But then, knowing what I did of Edmund, I pushed them aside.

  ‘He would wish no harm to my son,’ I stated firmly. ‘How could you suggest that?’

  ‘Of course he would not. That was not my meaning. But such a position would allow him to make a bid to control the reins of power. Could he not demand to be made Regent in the Young King’s name, with you at his side as Queen Mother? Could he not demand to be appointed the child’s Governor in Warwick’s place? Of course he could. And how much power would that invest in Edmund Beaufort, a young man not yet into his third decade, if I read it right. And don’t, Katherine…’ Her lips almost curled. ‘Don’t tell me that that young man is not ambitious.’

  The accusations drove deep, but I drew on all my self-possession.

  ‘I know he is ambitious. I expect he might demand a role in Young Henry’s upbringing. But would that necessarily be a bad thing? Is not Gloucester too ambitious?’

  ‘Yes—and therein lies the danger for you. Gloucester wishes he had been born the eldest son. He resents having to share power with Bedford. For sure he will not willingly hand over even an inch of his power to Edmund Beaufort!’ I sat at Joanna’s feet, eyes wide, absorbing all that she said, as she stroked my hand. ‘It is not good for you to be seen in a liaison with a young man who has so vast an amount of power in his own right.’

  My thoughts were awry.

  ‘Think about it, my child. The Beauforts have thrust themselves into every nook and cranny of state and church. Who would have thought it possible, descended as they are from an illicit liaison between John of Lancaster and the Swynford woman? And yet it is so. Now they are legitimate: they are gifted, with a distinct presence at court. But they will never be satisfied and their ambition is a force to be reckoned with. It means that they are not to be trusted.’

  ‘I don’t know that.’ It was a cry that came from my heart. ‘I can trust Edmund. I am certain of it.’

  Madam Joanna struggled to her feet, as if delivering her final thrust at my happiness had robbed her of all her energy. At the door she stopped to look back over her shoulder to where I still sat.

  ‘You are a very desirable woman, Katherine. And not only for your looks. You cannot put too high a price on your connection with both the English and the French crowns. Your Valois bloodline and your position with the Young King are inestimable. Never forget that. Not that you will ever be allowed to. They will beat you about the head with it for the rest of your days, I’m afraid. As for Edmund…’

  She lifted her shoulders in a painful little shrug.

  ‘You don’t like him.’ I sounded like a child.

  And at the last a smile lit her face, giving life to the beauty she had once had. ‘Actually, I do. He’s difficult to dislike, and he knows how to get into the good graces of an elderly woman. But I’d still be wary of him.’ She lifted the latch of the door. ‘Before you pin all your hopes on him, ask yourself this. Are you so certain that he…?’

  Footsteps approached. Young Henry, I thought, at last bearing the wine that we no longer needed.

  But it was Edmund who appeared in the doorway.

  ‘Madam Joanna.’

  He bowed as she turned, and saluted her hand. They exchanged smiles, greetings, both excruciatingly polite, before Joanna made her excuses. ‘Think about what I said.’ And she was gone.

  Edmund grimaced, having read all that had not been said. ‘So she knows.’

  ‘Yes. I told her, but she already suspected.’

  ‘Has she been warning you about me?’ For a moment he frowned after her departing figure.

  ‘Yes.’ I could not lie when my very soul cried out for reassurance in the face of such a deluge of warnings. ‘She warned me about the difficulties of our marriage. About Gloucester and Warwick and…’ I felt tears of weakness, of disappointment, prickle behind my lids.

  ‘You must not weep, my golden Queen.’ Immediately he was across the chamber to my side, lifting me with strong hands so that I stood within the circle of his arms.

  ‘She implied that you do not love me,’ I remarked flatly.

  Madam Joanna’s final unfinished question remained in my mind. Are you so certain that he…? And I knew what she would have asked. Are you so certain that Edmund wants you more than he wants power? Are you sure he loves you, or does he have an eye to the door you can open for him, to allow him a supreme position in the kingdom?

  ‘How would she know?’

  ‘She does not.’

  ‘Did she tell you that I seduced you so that your rank would enhance my own status?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Do you believe her?’

  I looked into his eyes, so full of understanding, of light and love for me.

  ‘Have I not sworn that my devotion to you outranks all earthly power? How can power weigh in the balance with the overwhelming love that I feel for you?’

  And there was all the reassurance I desired. Madam Joanna did not understand. His love for me was true. Nothing could undermine my certainty. As if he read it in my face, Edmund pressed his lips tenderly to my brow, and when he spoke, his words held the reverence of a vow.

  ‘I know you have faith in me. As I have in you. We will win this battle. I will bring happiness and fulfilment into your life, such as you have never known.’ The strength of his arms, the vibrant assurance in his face, the shower of kisses across my cheeks chased away my fears. ‘I’ll speak with my uncle.’ Edmund’s smile lit all the dark corners of my heart; delight bloomed as the reverence vanished and his lively humour returned. ‘Bishop Henry will enjoy putting a spoke in Gloucester’s wheel, if nothing else. Have I convinced you?’

  ‘Yes.’ I sighed. ‘Forgive me my lack of faith.’

  ‘It is not easy for you,’ he murmured against my lips. ‘But always remember. I worship at your feet, my dearest love.’

  And there was Young Henry, carrying a flagon of wine with fierce concentration. While Edmund accepted his enthusiastic greeting and poured the wine, Madam Joanna’s warnings dissipated as matters of no moment. Happiness settled on my shoulders and my mind quietened.

  My conversation with Warwick was far shorter and more to the point than that with Madam Joanna. He did not mince his words. He did not even make an excuse for seeking me out, merely drawing me away from my damsels in the interest of privacy.

  ‘I don’t like to see Edmund Beaufort prowling around Windsor like a cat on heat.’

  ‘Edmund does not prowl,’ I replied, stiffening at the implication.

  ‘A matter of opinion. He has a predatory air, Katherine. And a possessive one, so I’m told.’

  He bent his stern gaze on me. He was Warwick today, not Richard. I drew myself up to my full height so that our eyes were on a level. ‘He is here at my invitation.’

  ‘I
know.’ The lines on Warwick’s face, instead of being amiable and smiling, resembled the carvings achieved by a stonemason’s chisel.

  ‘We cannot forbid him to visit his cousin. My son enjoys his company.’

  ‘I know that too,’ Warwick snapped. ‘And I don’t like that either.’

  ‘Edmund Beaufort is welcome in my household, and will continue to be so,’ I stated.

  ‘And I cannot stop you. But take some advice.’ Warwick was as brusque as I had ever heard him. ‘Don’t become embroiled in a predicament that will bring you more pain than pleasure.’

  I raised my chin. I would not listen.

  ‘I am going to Westminster,’ Edmund announced the next day.

  ‘Don’t go,’ I pleaded.

  ‘You know I must.’ Although he smiled, I read raw impatience in his eyes, in the set of his jaw. ‘The sooner I see Bishop Henry, the sooner we can be wed.’

  He kissed my hand with admirably restrained courtesy since we were in my solar under the eagle eye of Beatrice. All my fears were smoothed out, like a length of faultless silk, and I accompanied him down to the main door, where my Master of Household waited with Edmund’s outer garments.

  ‘Look for me within the week,’ Edmund promised me, shrugging into his coat and drawing on his gloves, before leaping down the steps two at a time to where his groom held his horse.

  ‘Thank you, Master Owen,’ I said, as Edmund in his hunger to be gone had not.

  ‘My pleasure, my lady,’ he replied, watching Edmund ride from the courtyard with a jaunty gesture, hat in hand. But Master Tudor’s tone caused me to glance up at him, and the dark reproach—or perhaps even contempt—in the gaze that followed Edmund startled me. Then it was gone, a mere shadow, as the Master bowed to me. ‘Do you require anything, my lady?’

  I shook my head. Only that Edmund return soon with a date for our marriage.

  ‘Are you entirely witless, woman?’

  It was not Edmund but Gloucester.

  How I wished that Edmund stood beside me. As it was, I was forced to face the battering ram of Gloucester’s wrath alone. He arrived within two days of Edmund’s departure, a virulent tempest, raining invective down on my unprotected head when he marched into my private chamber as if about to do battle. At his side came Bishop Henry in clerical splendour, stolid and smiling despite the uneasy flicker of his eye away from mine when I raised my brows. At least Edmund’s uncle bowed, kissed my hand and asked after my health. All Gloucester could do was glower and fume as he launched his first tirade.