by Candace Robb
It was with weary mind and body that Ravenser at last passed under the statue of St Leonard and into the hospital liberty. Here the mood felt more normal, with folk going about their business and the orphans shouting at play. Ravenser’s servants had been summoned and quickly surrounded the travellers, seeing to their horses and baggage. As Ravenser crossed the yard towards the master’s house behind the church, his eyes were drawn to the blackened remains of a small building against the north wall. The roof of the house beside it had been singed. All about was the pungent odour of damp ashes.
‘There was a fire?’ Ravenser paused, trying to remember what had stood there. A house, he thought.
Topas conferred with a servant. ‘Aye, Sir Richard. It was the house of the corrodian, Laurence de Warrene. Your chess partner. He died in the fire.’
‘Laurence de Warrene.’ Ravenser frowned as he paced round the remains of the house, taking care to keep his hem away from the charred fragments. Behind the burned out shell lay the garden, dappled with ashes, waterlogged, the plants wilted, some trampled. The ruined garden, with its warring scents of life and death, struck Ravenser as more piteous than the destroyed house. ‘This was Mistress Warrene’s garden. She took great pride in it.’
‘She was taken by the pestilence,’ Topas said. ‘A fortnight ago.’
‘So I heard at Bishopthorpe. But I had not heard about the fire.’ Ravenser turned away. ‘Bring Don Cuthbert to me at once, Topas.’ He headed to his house.
In his bedchamber, Ravenser stripped off his travel clothes and sponged off the dirt of the road and, he hoped, the stench of death he must carry on his person. Then he retired to his parlour, where a servant had set out brandywine and fruit. He settled into his favourite chair with a full cup, gazing round with satisfaction. It was a pleasant room, not as lovely as his parlour in Beverley, but comfortable, with good light. The brandywine soon eased the muscles cramped by the day’s hot ride. But he did not have long to rest. A servant announced the arrival of Don Cuthbert.
‘Send for Douglas and show them in together.’
In a few moments, the tiny, beak-nosed cellarer floated into the room, hands tucked in his sleeves. He bowed to Ravenser. ‘Benedicte, Sir Richard. God is merciful to send you to us at this difficult time. Your presence will be a comfort to all at St Leonard’s.’ Cuthbert carried with him the scent of damp, charred timber. Ravenser reminded himself to give orders to keep a rosemary wood fire going in his rooms to protect him from unpleasant odours.
Douglas settled himself behind Ravenser to record the meeting.
‘I have had disturbing news of your activities, Cuthbert.’
Beneath apologetically furrowed brows, an ingratiating smile flickered, baring oddly pointed teeth. ‘My activities?’
‘Accusing freemen of the city of accepting stolen goods.’
Cuthbert’s cheeks reddened. ‘I wished to be of service. To reclaim a few of the stolen items before you returned.’
Ravenser’s head began to pound, but he ignored the warning signals, sitting forward with an icy, ‘A few?’
The cellarer’s protruding eyes were suddenly expressionless, though his hands fluttered in his sleeves and he rocked up on to the balls of his feet. ‘I had hoped to spare you the worry until I had completed my investigation, Sir Richard.’
But why had Erkenwald written nothing of this? ‘Tell me about your investigation.’
Cuthbert glanced down at a chair nearby.
‘Be seated,’ Ravenser snapped. He disliked the cellarer’s false humility.
Cuthbert’s slender hands swept out from his sleeves, gracefully smoothing the habit beneath him as he slid on to the chair. ‘Deo gratias. It has been a long day.’
The cellarer’s movement stirred the scent of damp embers. Where did the man sleep?
‘Where to begin?’ the cellarer muttered to himself.
‘I should first like to hear the list of missing items.’
‘A list. Ah.’ Cuthbert glanced round, found no one to release him from this query. ‘The list.’
‘Are you not the one to ask, Don Cuthbert? Have you relinquished your post to another worthy canon?’
‘No. No, Sir Richard. The list.’ Cuthbert composed himself, hands returning to their comfortable nests within his sleeves. ‘Two tapestries, a golden chalice, a silver filigree missal cover with precious stones, a silver and pearl crucifix, several Italian glass goblets, an embroidered altar cloth, three blankets, and a tooled saddle.’ The canon’s attention was now on his sandalled feet.
‘Sweet Jesu. How could a thief walk off with so much and not be caught? There are so many of us here, we trip over one another.’
Red splotches spread on the cellarer’s pale neck. ‘In truth, I cannot say.’
In the ensuing silence, the scratching of Douglas’s quill attested to the length of the list. Cuthbert, for all his unpleasant qualities, had a keen mind and was excellent at detail.
‘Do you need anything repeated, Douglas?’ Ravenser asked, the scraping of quill against parchment reminding him of his clerk’s presence.
A further scratching, then Douglas asked, ‘How many goblets?’
‘Four,’ Cuthbert said softly, then cleared his throat. ‘I have retrieved two of them.’
‘Indeed! So you have found the thief?’
‘No, Sir Richard.’ Cuthbert pressed a pale hand to his blotchy neck. ‘But I have Honoria de Staines in custody as the recipient of stolen goods.’
‘Jesu! Your repentant Magdalen?’ How had his uncle known she would be involved? ‘She has told you from whom she received the goblets?’
‘She will not. In faith, she insists they are not the stolen ones.’
Had he been mistaken? Made a fool of himself as he had with the goldsmiths? ‘Are they at all similar, Cuthbert?’
The cellarer’s mouth pinched at the insult. ‘Sir Richard, I am no fool. They are of the set, I am certain.’
Ravenser groaned. ‘Perhaps it needs a gentler hand in questioning the young woman.’ He studied the uncomfortable cellarer. ‘In custody, you say?’
‘In the gaol.’
That meant all the inmates of St Leonard’s knew by now. ‘So you were wrong to trust her.’
Cuthbert straightened. ‘Nothing is yet proved against her.’
Why was the man so stubborn? ‘I shall have one of the sisters speak to her. When did these items disappear?’
‘The first we noticed was on the feast of St John of Beverley. The golden chalice.’
Early May. And had Erkenwald not summoned him, Ravenser might still have been unaware of it. Ravenser rose, paced to the window, stared out at the church, noting that work had begun on a small stained glass window. Why did benefactors choose such impractical gifts? ‘And why have you been questioning the goldsmiths? How might they help you?’
‘It is said that goldsmiths will sometimes take stolen items, melt them down, and make them into something new that cannot be identified as stolen.’
Ravenser turned to study his cellarer. ‘Are you suddenly mad or simple, Cuthbert? The goldsmiths of York are members of a guild. They would be cast out if caught thieving.’
Cuthbert lifted his hands, imploring. ‘Sir—’
‘Your theory is nonsense, Cuthbert. You will apologise.’
Cuthbert bowed. ‘Sir Richard, I—’
Ravenser silenced him with a stern look. ‘We will speak no more of it.’
‘There is one more item …’ Cuthbert dabbed his upper lip.
‘Dear Lord, what else?’
The cellarer told him of the condition of Laurence de Warrene’s corpse, and Julian Taverner’s similar head wound.
Ravenser sank into his chair, put his forehead in his hands. ‘Leave me, both of you.’
‘But Sir Richard,’ Cuthbert said, ‘we have not spoken of the finances.’
‘Discuss them with Douglas.’
Ravenser’s head felt as if a cooper were beating bands down around it. The thefts, La
urence de Warrene’s suspicious death, Julian Taverner’s wound, and a thieving and whoring lay sister in gaol. Sweet Heaven. If word of these scandals spread throughout the city he would never gain the support of the wealthier freemen. And how was he to sort out the hospital’s debts if he was so distracted by other concerns? He needed assistance. Not Cuthbert. He was indiscreet and too busy working on the accounts. Perhaps Erkenwald. But a tight-lipped outsider would be better. Archer. Owen Archer. His uncle’s spy. He would follow the threads to the culprits discreetly and quickly. And a woman like Mistress Staines might find him a more pleasing confessor. Indeed. It might be necessary to borrow Archer. Ravenser would send a request to his uncle at Bishopthorpe.
As Ravenser sat in his parlour waiting for Lucie Wilton’s physick to work on his head, his thoughts strayed to the burned shell across the yard. Laurence and Matilda de Warrene, both dead. God grant them peace. He had thought them a pleasant couple, devoted to one another and seemingly content with their lot in life. Ravenser had often enjoyed a game of chess with Laurence on quiet evenings. Matilda would sit by the fire dozing. Occasionally, Julian Taverner would be invited to keep her company, though his loud conversation broke Ravenser’s concentration.
Laurence and Julian. Had Ravenser met them separately, he never would have guessed them to be friends. Laurence had been a quiet, dignified man; Julian was boisterous, though he had another side. Laurence had spoken of Julian’s work among the sick in the first visitation of the plague, following the death of his wife. Julian had believed it to be his penance to go among the sick who had been abandoned by their families and give them succour.
‘Why penance?’ Ravenser remembered asking. ‘Was he responsible for his wife’s death?’
‘Goodness no. He was a devoted husband. No, his penance was for an older sin.’ Suddenly silent, Laurence had stared down at the board. Then, so softly he might not have meant Ravenser to hear, he had murmured, ‘But was it a sin?’ His eyes had appeared to be focused not on the chessmen, but on something far away.
‘You sit across from an expert on the topic of sin, Laurence.’
Laurence had looked startled. ‘Forgive me, Sir Richard. I was babbling.’
‘You seemed quite serious.’
Laurence had withdrawn his hand from the pawn he had been about to move, sat back in his chair.
‘Come. Ask me,’ Ravenser had urged.
Laurence had folded his hands, studied them, then brought his eyes up to meet Ravenser’s. ‘How might one unwittingly commit a sin?’ he said softly. ‘If none suffer but the guilty, has a wrong been done?’
‘Is it a riddle? I delight in riddles. Is there more?’
Laurence had glanced over to Julian, who perched on the edge of his seat, as if about to pounce on his friend. ‘Oh, if you could see your face, old friend,’ Laurence had exclaimed. ‘You see, Sir Richard, Julian is so weary of my mystical babbling he is horrified to hear it.’
‘Mystical? Then your questions were in earnest? Not riddles?’ Ravenser was disappointed, but willing to pursue such an interesting line.
Alas, Julian had joined them and, bowing to Ravenser, he had said, ‘We must get him home now, Sir Richard, else he shall make a fool of himself with more riddles. Too much of your fine wine this evening.’
Obviously a joke between two friends, for Laurence had gone good-naturedly.
But Matilda de Warrene had seemed as perplexed by the incident as Ravenser had been.
Ravenser drained his cup. It was disquieting that the Warrenes were both gone. It was strange to think that he would not see them again until he, too, was dead. And how soon might that be? Did God mean to give him time to rise to one of the high offices his uncle had taught him to covet – Keeper of the Privy Seal, Lord Chancellor, Archbishop? Or was Queen’s Receiver and Keeper of the Hanaper the best he was to do? Not that Queen’s Receiver was a lowly position, but with the Queen dying and the King besotted with his mistress, his work in that capacity would soon be at an end. For a time at least.
Ravenser rose to refill his cup. His last game of chess with Laurence had been interrupted, as he recalled; Matilda had been taken ill. He wandered over to the corner table on which he kept the chess set, curious whether the pieces had been moved. To his annoyance the set was not there. Curséd servants. He must tell Douglas to instruct them not to move things round when they cleaned. So where was it? Ravenser searched the room but did not find the chess set. In the process he also noted the absence of a pair of silver candlesticks that had stood on a chest by the door. Why was he able to find good help in Beverley but not in York? Was it the hospital environment? Were servants afraid they might be ordered to work among the sick?
Whatever the matter, the servants must be better trained. Ravenser sent for Douglas.
Douglas, shoulders hunched forward, as always, to hide the paunch so emphasised by his straight-cut gown, frowned with distress at the empty table-tops. ‘I shall call the servants together and lecture them sternly, Sir Richard.’
‘Good. Meanwhile, find the chess set and the candlesticks.’
Douglas bowed and headed for the door. Ravenser noticed he carried the account books.
‘Stay a moment, Douglas. How did you fare with Cuthbert?’
The clerk turned, his face solemn. ‘It is worse than we thought, Sir Richard.’
‘God’s blood, how is that possible? Leave the accounts here.’
Douglas looked uncertain. ‘Your headache, Sir Richard?’
‘Can be no worse. Go. The chess set and candlesticks.’
After depositing the books on the table beside Ravenser’s favourite chair, Douglas departed.
Ravenser returned to his seat and tried to quiet his mind by reading through the hospital accounts line by line. He must have dozed off, for he woke to find Douglas bending over him, a servant at his elbow.
‘What is it?’ Ravenser demanded curtly to cover his sleepy confusion.
‘The servants swear they have not touched the missing items, Sir Richard, though none can say when they last saw them.’
Ah. The chess set and candlesticks. Now Ravenser remembered. He glanced at the servant. ‘Who has been cleaning this room?’
‘I do most days, sir. But some days ’tis Mary cleans here.’ The servant stood stiffly, his eyes focused on Douglas’s shoulder.
‘And neither of you noticed the set and the candlesticks were missing.’
‘Go on, Peter,’ Douglas said gently. ‘Show Sir Richard what you found.’
‘I—’ Peter coughed, cleared his throat. ‘I did notice at last, sir, because I found this’ – he held out an ocre-stained knight – ‘’twas fallen behind the chest, you see. Then I remembered the set. But I could not find it. Nowhere in the house, sir.’
Ravenser took the ivory piece, turned it round in his hand. ‘I do not like this.’
‘Mayhap they, too, have been stolen, my lord.’ Peter’s face was pinched with distaste for the words.
They, too. So the servants knew of the other thefts. Of course they did. God help him, as if he did not have troubles enough. Servants had no discretion. ‘You may go, Peter.’
When the servant had departed, Ravenser dictated his request to Archbishop Thoresby to Douglas.
‘Captain Archer, Sir Richard? The one who helped you with Dame Joanna Calverley?’
‘The very one. Send Topas to Bishopthorpe with the note, Douglas. Tell him to wait for an answer.’
Ten
Alisoun’s Plight
Lame John Ffulford had decided to give up the search for his niece Alisoun. A week had passed since the priest had come to him, and for all his efforts, John had seen no sign of the child, save that she had managed to sneak away with the nag before he had reached his brother’s farm. Who knew how far she might have wandered? But she had left the cart, and one or two items his wife might fancy. So this morning he had brought his donkey to pull the loaded cart home.
And who should he have found in the barn but A
lisoun, tending to a wound on her nag’s shoulder. God tested him sorely.
Now the girl stood beside the cart, arms folded, eyes cast down. She looked like some wild thing, shoeless, her gown in tatters, her hair a snarl of knots and debris.
Lame John shook his head. ‘God help me, but if you were not my brother’s daughter, and all that’s left of his family, I would leave you here, you stubborn child. For a week you have led us a merry chase.’ He tossed the bag of clothes and sundry items on to the cart, then grabbed his niece by the shoulder. ‘Climb up or I’ll toss you up, you changeling.’ She was like her mother, she was. His brother Duncan’s wife Judith had ever been a sullen, secretive woman. Duncan had oft complained about her. And he had feared she put strange ideas into her children’s heads about how they had been born to better than what they had and someday would move up to a grander life. But John’s immediate problem was how to reconcile his wife to Alisoun’s presence. When the priest had come with the news that they must do something for the girl, Colet had agreed, but she had been very uncomfortable with the idea of Alisoun actually living with them.
‘How did she survive when they did not, husband? A pact with the Devil, is how. Traded their lives for hers. And she will do the same with us.’
Now that was Colet’s family, always ready to blame trouble on the Devil, or, at the least, spells and curses. John had demanded her co-operation in God’s name.
But the child was difficult. ‘My horse,’ she reminded him.
‘We shall send Rich for her as soon as he is able. She has plenty feed.’
The eyes in the child’s dirty face looked forlorn.
‘For pity’s sake, we would not let the creature die. A horse is too valuable.’
‘Pull her behind the cart.’
‘Nay, child, the going is quicker without pulling a wounded nag behind, and I have much work to do in the fields. From which you have kept me these seven days.’
‘I shall help you.’
‘You might have helped more by coming to me on your own. And now this nag. What if she pulls away? With my bad leg, I cannot chase her.’