HOLY POISON: Boxed Set: The Complete Series 1-6

by Margaret Brazear

  “But, My Lord,” the woman protested. “The air is bad for a newborn child.”

  Did anyone really believe that? How could the wonderful fresh air be anything but good? But he refused to leave until she gave her word, so she had to give in.

  He waited outside while the maids ran back and forth with water and towels and clean sheets, his memory full of Alicia’s birth, which he had missed. He had come after, when it was all over, when it was too late to give his wife the comfort she needed. He had torn himself away from the Queen and his duties at court, his self imposed duty of trying to prevent his sovereign from her path of destruction.

  He had sat on the bed and taken Bethany’s hand, thrilled with his baby daughter and relieved that his wife seemed none the worse for her ordeal, and he had felt the distance between them. She had reverted to using his title, she had withdrawn from him and it was his own fault.

  This child’s birth would be different. This child would be born to two people who loved each other enough to forgive horrendous sins and start again.

  The distinctive cry from the chamber made him leap to his feet and push open the door.

  "It is a son, My Lord," Nancy said with a happy smile.

  "A son? A boy?" He said with childlike wonder.

  "Yes, My Lord. You have a son and he appears to be very healthy."

  As the midwife finished washing Bethany and tying off the cord, cleaning up, he lie down next to her and took her in his arms while the nurse took the baby away to bathe him.

  On her return she put him into his mother’s arms and looked at them with a smile of delight.

  Holding this little person reminded Bethany painfully of the child she had lost. She remembered holding her in her arms, playing with her, watching her grow, her little achievements, then losing her to a cruel disease. She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer for the safety of her little son. She felt this was indeed their new beginning as she snuggled into Richard's arms.

  "Finally," she said softly. "I have finally managed to fulfil one of those promises I made to you. You will want to name him ‘Richard’ after his father.”

  Bethany sat with her new son in her arms, enchanted with his tiny features. He looked so much like his father already, she could not help but remember that other little boy who looked like his father.

  “No,” he said. “I would like to call him Joshua.”

  She gave him a surprised look.

  “Joshua? Why?”

  “Because I like the name. I rather like the sound of a Lord Joshua Summerville.”

  He smiled as she nodded her agreement.

  “Joshua it is then,” she said. “And we will both be here this time, to be sure he is safe and happy.”

  Barely eleven months later, Bethany gave birth to a daughter, Estelle; after the turmoil of the years of Bloody Mary, life was good. They had almost recaptured those first weeks of their marriage, when they had been so happy together, so very much in love.

  The occasional bad dream still haunted them both, but these were growing less and less.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Throughout the journey from Suffolk, Rachel held on to the memory of that farewell at the inn. The shocked expressions on the faces of the villagers when Richard kissed her, with his wife looking on, and the even more shocked glances when she took Rachel’s hand. It could not have been more perfect, for now they believed she had once been their Lord's mistress, but no more.

  She dreaded a return to Finsbury. She would never tell Richard that; she wanted nothing to take him away from his wife, but she could not help but wonder how long it would be before the men of the area started to notice her again. She had hoped the signs of aging might diminish her beauty, but that did not seem to be happening. She was wealthy now, too, which made her an even more attractive prospect.

  Also she would miss Richard. She had lived with him for a very long time and although she was delighted to see him and his wife trying to build a future together, she could not help but be a little envious of the love they obviously shared. She would always wonder what that kind of love felt like but that was something she would never know.

  He took a long time bidding her farewell and the reason for that was his telling her about his argument with Anthony. Rachel promised that when that young man came to visit her, which he always did, she would try to make him see sense. His behaviour was out of character, so perhaps it would not be so difficult.

  All his life Anthony had gone along with whatever Richard decided, even insofar as to have someone disposed of on Richard's orders. Now he was digging his heels in and trying to turn his cousin against his own wife. It would never happen; he had to see that.

  "We are nearly there, My Lady," Louisa said, shaking her gently. She had not realised she had fallen asleep. "I hope they have the house ready as I asked."

  As the carriage stopped outside, the coachman climbed down and handed Rachel out, then did the same for Louisa and she noted a little twinkle in his eye when he looked at her. She also noted that he held on to her hand a little longer than he needed to until she eventually pulled it away.

  "An admirer?" Rachel asked as soon as they were inside.

  "It would seem so, My Lady," she replied, but she was not smiling.

  "But you do not return the sentiment?"

  "No, My Lady," she said firmly. "I will never understand why you can be so eager for a woman to get herself tied up with a man, not after everything you have suffered."

  "I seem to have come out of it in one piece, though," Rachel replied.

  "I am not sure you have, My Lady, with all respect," she said sourly. "It still upsets me to see the way those people in Suffolk treat you. I am always tempted to tell them the truth, but you would never forgive me and they would never believe me if I did. You have had to give up your good name and be known as the mistress of a married man, just to stop other men interfering in your life. That is just so wrong."

  "It is wrong, Louisa," Rachel said as she touched her arm, "but it was the best solution. It was Lord Summerville's idea and it has stood me in good stead until now."

  "Until now?"

  "I think that now I am here and Richard will not be visiting, at least not often, it is unlikely I will be left in peace."

  She saw Louisa was about to object, but thought better of it.

  "I will see to the unpacking, My Lady," she said as she left the room, leaving Rachel to wonder if she would ever change her mind.

  Terrible abuse during Rachel’s childhood had left her damaged, both physically and emotionally, and her poverty and beauty had made her vulnerable, at the mercy of men everywhere who wanted her as a lovely decoration to hang off their arms, who wanted her in their beds to make themselves feel good. Richard Summerville had changed all that; he spread the tale that she was his mistress and his alone. He gave her wealth and served as her protector for many years but when he married and fell in love with his wife, that had to change.

  Rachel would not stay at her house on the edge of Summerville land, where everybody believed she was still his mistress. That was disrespectful to Bethany and would break her heart if she ever learned of it.

  But Rachel had been willing to replace her at the court of Queen Mary, to protect her from the Queen’s wrath should she ever learn of Bethany’s Protestant beliefs.

  Now that Queen was dead and her cruel laws with her, Bethany had met Rachel and believed her husband had not been unfaithful. Rachel had to leave, to return to Finsbury and leave the couple to rebuild their shattered lives.

  She had been home for three days before Anthony arrived on her doorstep.

  She hardly knew what to say to him, and she almost wished Richard had not given her warning of his anger. She found it difficult to greet him in a natural way.

  "Rachel," he said, stepping forward and taking her in his arms. "I am so happy to see you again. And back here, away from the insolence of the villagers in Suffolk. Here you will command more respect."

>   "That is true," she replied, allowing him to kiss her cheek. "It is good to know Richard is home and safe. It is doubtful that Elizabeth will bother with his activities; she is busy building a government, making sure she is accepted."

  "She will marry as soon as she decides who would suit her best," he replied decisively, as though it were obvious. "There is little hope of her marrying a Catholic prince, although I hear that Philip has made overtures."

  "Her sister's widower? Is that not what caused major confusion before? I do not think she will do that."

  Being in service to Queen Mary, Rachel had met Elizabeth, but once, and she seemed to her to be a very decisive and confident young woman, not like her sister at all. She could not see that she would be in a hurry to relinquish her powers or to share them.

  "Well, it matters little who she marries but she must marry someone." He sat down and Rachel handed him a goblet of wine before sitting beside him.

  He but voiced the opinions of all the Queen’s counsel; they did not believe a woman could rule alone. They all thought Elizabeth would marry as soon as possible, concentrate on getting an heir to the throne and relinquish her powers to her husband.

  Rachel thought it best to change the subject; talk of the monarch’s private life was never a safe topic. One never knew when such remarks would come back to haunt one.

  "You have opened up your own house, I hear," she said.

  "I have had no choice," he replied sharply. "I cannot live under the same roof as Richard's treacherous wife. I will never understand why he has allowed her to return to the marriage as though nothing had happened."

  "He loves her."

  Anthony scoffed loudly before sipping his wine.

  "She almost got him killed; you too. It was only fate which prevented that. Had Mary lived for one more day, one more hour even, he would have lost his head. The least he should have done is left her to rot in the priest's cottage."

  "If he can forgive her, Anthony, it is not your place to do otherwise."

  "I do not accept that, Rachel. I have always gone along with his wishes because I always accepted that he knew best, but not this time. He is besotted with her to the extent that he no longer knows his own mind. I would go so far as to suggest she has bewitched him."

  He stopped talking and looked at her searchingly, as though trying to find some sign that she might agree with him. She hoped he found none, but his suggestion amused her.

  "I can see that, Anthony," she said sarcastically. "I can see he is so far under her spell that she forced him to imprison her to fend for herself like a peasant."

  "Obviously she used some wile to make him change his mind."

  "She is his wife," Rachel argued, growing exasperated. "What would you have him do?"

  "How can you defend them?" He replied, raising his voice. "He has sent you away, allowed the tenants and servants on his land to insult you, all so he can let that common heretic back in his life."

  Rachel was offended by the idea that she was somehow under Richard’s command.

  "He has not sent me away, Anthony," she told him firmly. "I chose to leave, for all our sakes. Do you imagine I enjoy being scowled at wherever I go?"

  "Then he will come here to see you?"

  "No," she answered, shaking her head. "We are finished, Richard and I. He wants to make a fresh start with his wife and that is also what I want for him. If you care for him, it is what you should want too."

  "I want him to marry a woman like you, someone of his own class, his own faith."

  "I told you before I have no wish to marry him, or anyone." She stood up and walked toward the window to gaze out. She could not bear to look at Anthony any longer, his talk was making her angry. He believed her to be Richard's mistress like everybody else, but his assumption that she would marry him if she were only fertile, was infuriating. "I thought you would be happy for him."

  "Summerville should come to me, not to a son of that traitorous heretic!" He narrowed his eyes as he looked at her closely before going on. "Did you know Richard has a son by her sister? By Lady Winterton?"

  She looked up quickly. She had forgotten; Richard told her about the boy, his son, but she had not given him another thought. She remembered the day she saw his mother emerging from his bedchamber, that same day he told her he intended to make a proposal to her sister.

  "I did know," she replied. "Does Lady Summerville know of this boy?"

  He nodded.

  "Yes, she does. He says if she fails to give him an heir he will leave it all to this bastard of his. Another son of a treacherous heretic."

  "If you stop interfering, he will have a legitimate son to succeed him."

  He shook his head.

  "Not hers, no. I will never accept that."

  "You, Anthony, are a fool and I have no patience with you," Rachel said angrily. "You are destroying your relationship with the man who raised you because you will not accept the woman he loves. I hope one day you will be fortunate enough to love as they do."

  "If it means my behaving like a lovesick idiot, I can live without it," he said angrily.

  Louisa came in at that moment to replace the wine flagon and it was obvious she had overheard their conversation. She glanced at Rachel meaningfully, then left them alone.

  "You know," Anthony said as he watched her go, "my cousin might as well have married your little maid there. The only difference between her and his wife is that one was rich and the other poor."

  "You know nothing about it," Rachel said.

  "I know Bethany is the daughter of a merchant, not quality. I do not know where you found your maid, but she is also not quality, so they seem to be equal."

  "Louisa came from an orphan home," Rachel told him, wanting only to change the subject, not knowing what seeds her words might be sowing. "There is no telling whether she is quality or not. That alone should tell you that your noition of quality is meaningless."

  "Really? You took her from an orphan home?" Rachel nodded. "For what purpose? Did you want to adopt her as your own, you and one of your husbands?"

  The memory made her shudder but she was not about to tell Anthony the tale. It was all part of her secret past and that is how it would remain.

  "We thought to give her employment, that is all. She was older than the other children there and it would not have been long before she was cast out."

  "I had no idea there were such places until recently," he said.

  "Of course not," she told him bitterly. "You live in a world where there is a divide, those from titled families and those lower class souls who serve them. Richard is always saying he is no better than his tenants; why do you feel you are somehow better?"

  "My father would never have agreed with him," he replied coldly. "Had he lived, he would have seen to it that Richard did not marry beneath him."

  She laughed bitterly, knowing that she would never make him see reason and just wanting him gone.

  "If you really believe that your cousin would have allowed anyone to decide his future for him, you really do not know him at all, do you?" She asked him. "He once allowed his own father to arrange his marriage for him, and look how that turned out. He would never have risked that mistake a second time."

  "You seem to know a lot more about the first Lady Summerville than I do," he replied suspiciously. "Were you Richard’s mistress even then?"

  "No, but I did meet his wife."

  "Really? What was she like? I remember seeing her once, but I cannot recall ever having exchanged a word."

  "She was very shy and mentally unstable," Rachel replied impulsively.

  She did not like this probing and she thought it unlikely that Richard would approve of her discussing Rosemary like this. He had kept her secrets; Rosemary was his secret.

  "Really?” Anthony said. “Is that why he killed her?"

  Rachel could only stare in stunned silence. Killed her? Is that what Richard had allowed this man to believe? She wondered why, but she knew he
would have his reasons and she had no intention of saying more.

  "I was under the impression she died of plague, while staying with your parents."

  "That is what he wanted people to believe, but it is not true. He was responsible. He admitted it to me only recently."

  Yes, he would have thought himself responsible and he had let Anthony believe he had murdered his first wife. It had to be something to do with the church, with not wanting him to know that Rosemary was a suicide.

  She turned to face him, feeling angry enough to lash out and hoping for the last time to make him see reason.

  "Anthony, listen to me," she said firmly. "Richard is deeply in love with his wife. He is not bewitched, or besotted, and they just want to be left alone to make a new start, hopefully have more children. I know he would like you on his side, but if he is forced to choose, he will choose Bethany. You have to accept that and be happy for him. Is he really someone you want as an enemy? Those are your choices, pick one."

  ***

  Rachel sent a gift when little Joshua was born. Lucy wrote her all about it and she was thrilled that Richard had his heir at last.

  It was less than a year later that another child was born, a girl this time, and she could not have been happier for them. She wondered briefly if it would be acceptable to visit, as she really did miss him, but it would only cause more gossip and speculation, blacken his name again. Anthony had not called on her since that first time, for which she was relieved, but eventually he arrived on her doorstep.

  "Rachel," he greeted her, stepping forward and pulling her into his arms.

  This was a little more familiar than he had ever been before, but she noticed he had matured somewhat, with his beard and moustache and muscular figure beneath his clothing.

  "Anthony," she answered, stepping back from his embrace. "It has been a long time."

  "Forgive me for neglecting you. I have been very busy and I have only recently been told that Bethany gave birth to a son."

  "Joshua? He is almost two years old. Where have you been that you did not know of his birth?"

  "Joshua? Is that his name? Not Richard?"