Wolf Wood (Part Two): The Dangerous years

by Mike Dixon

  He took a slip of paper from his pouch and presented it at the gate, saying he had to deliver it to his father. The gatekeepers knew him so they weren't greatly fussed. Nor did they bother to check where he went, which didn't matter because he only wanted a wee and wasn't planning to steal anything or assassinate anyone.

  The privy stuck out from the palace wall. When you used it, anything that came out of you ended up in the Thames, which was a bit messy if you used it at low tide. Everything about it was very posh. You sat on a wooden seat, with a circular hole, and when you had finished there was a basin of water, complete with little squares of cloth, for you to wash your hands and other things.

  Steven sat on the seat and was thinking about how the amenities could be further improved when he heard voices. His dad was speaking with Robin and they were discussing developments in London. Dad was using Robin's new title, calling him Sir Robin and making it sound like a joke. Dad said he would use it when he introduced him to the Lord Mayor of London.

  It sounded like the mayor was getting the wind up. It wasn't just the men of Kent and Sussex who were in revolt. The whole of the West of England had taken up arms. Some old bishop had been hacked to death not far from Wolf Wood, where he had been born, and some other bishops had gone into hiding, scared the same thing would happen to them.

  Dad said Commander Gough had moved into the Tower of London and they were going to join him. That was a bit spooky because dad had been locked up there. That was before they had gone to live in Normandy and he was still a baby.

  It would be exciting though … living in the Tower. Things were hotting up. It had been quiet for a week since the king came through. Now, things were happening again. Steven pulled up his draws, secured the linen straps to his linen belt and sneaked out before anyone knew he was there.

  Chapter 14

  John Mortimer

  Harald stood before Lord Scales, Governor of the Tower of London. He and Matthew Gough had been summoned for urgent discussions. Scales had just returned from a meeting with the Lord Mayor and had some alarming news.

  'They are losing control.'

  He made the announcement with a note of finality that suggested all was lost. Harald had the feeling that the governor was losing control himself.

  'Cade is back and he's now calling himself John Mortimer. It has to be a reference to the House of York. At any rate, that's what people think.'

  'Aye,' Matthew Gough nodded. 'He's claiming an affinity with the House of York. He's tried it before and Duke Richard wants nothing to do with him.'

  'That may be so.' Lord Scales wrung his hands. 'But people are clamouring for Cade to be let into the City. They see him as the duke's man. There has always been a lot of support for York in London. He's taken their side in disputes with the king.'

  'So what have they decided?'

  'Cade is lodged at the White Horse Inn in Southwark. He will receive an official invitation from the Mayor and Corporation to enter the City by London Bridge and dine with them tonight.'

  ***

  Steven climbed onto a ladder and surveyed the crowd. London Bridge was crammed. Shops lined its sides and the roadway between them was thronged with people. The bailiff's men were out in force and heavily armed.

  If it had not been so hot, he would have worn a hooded jacket. That way he could have hidden his short hair and not looked like a refugee. That wasn't practical so he had fallen back on his other plan, which was to wear a wig. They weren't difficult to find. The Tower was like the palace. People had got out in a hurry and left things behind.

  He'd chosen one with brown hair. People wouldn't know his hair was blond so the colour didn't matter. They wouldn't care that it had been made for a lady either. And it didn't matter that the hair had once been long. He'd trimmed it with his knife and it now stopped just above his shoulders, which was the fashion in London. A tight-fitting woollen cap held the whole lot in place and the result was quite convincing. He had spent time admiring himself in a small mirror that he had added to his collection of useful items.

  He had taken up a position at the far end of London Bridge on the Southwark side. He would have ventured further but there was a drawbridge which had been raised to stop people coming in from the south. Even if it had been down, there was the risk that it might be pulled up again. That would stop him getting back and he didn't want to get trapped on the south bank.

  His father said it was too dangerous to go out and he should stay in the Tower. He had got past the guards in the gatehouse by saying he was running an errand for Sir Robin. That was what you had to call him. Henriette was dead scared of the new title. Commander Gough said you had to use it when you were talking to the soldiers.

  The sun was low and it was starting to get cold when Jack Cade finally put in an appearance. He came riding along like he owned the place. He wore a gown of blue velvet and had golden spurs. That told you something. Spurs like that should only be worn by a knight and Cade was not a knight. And there was more to come. When he got near you could see the crest on his helmet. It had once belonged to Sir Humphrey Stafford. Guy and William had killed Stafford at Sevenoaks. They must have presented the helmet to Cade.

  Steven jumped down from his perch and prepared to march beside Cade and his party as they crossed the bridge. Then he would get back to the Tower and report his findings. His dad would be mad with him for what he had done but he would be mightily impressed by what he had found out.

  ***

  Harald could scarcely believe that security was so lax. Steven had left the Tower and returned as if he had been on an afternoon stroll. He said the warden's boys came and went like that and he had merely joined them. His mother would be horrified if she knew.

  'You won't tell mother … will you?' Steven said. 'She will only worry about nothing. It wasn't dangerous.'

  The boy said it so innocently. Harald wondered if he really was that stupid or treating him as a fool. He would have been more angry with him if his son hadn't returned with such valuable information.

  'Are you sure it was Stafford's helmet?'

  'Yes. The badge was a silver hand. I recognised it from those heraldry drawings you had.'

  Lord Scale's spies had missed that important detail. Harald wondered what else they had failed to see.

  'What did Cade do when he crossed the drawbridge?'

  'He used his sword to cut the ropes so they couldn't pull it back up again.'

  That checked with what Scale's men had reported.

  'Who was with him?'

  'There was a squire walking in front carrying a sword like it was a Sword of State. You know, how it's done when a king visits a city.'

  'And the people coming along behind ... did you recognise any?'

  It was the question Steven had been waiting for. Lord Scale's men were Londoners. They wouldn't know about the men who had joined Cade from Normandy. He rolled off the names of officers in the Bayeux garrison and looked expectantly at his father.

  'Is that all?'

  'Uncle Guy and William were there. I thought you would know that.'

  The boy had made a calculated remark. Harald decided not to reprimand him for insolence. As an inquisitor, he would have railed at him. As a father, he was pleased his son was acquiring the skills needed to survive in a difficult world.

  'Where were they in relation to the others?'

  'Up front like they were Cade's leading henchmen.'

  'Do you think they saw you?'

  'No.'

  'Are you sure?'

  'I think William might have.'

  'Then you must take great care, Steven.'

  Harald leant forward and spoke earnestly to his son.

  'Your cousin killed Sir Humphrey over your mother's marriage to me. I doubt if he thinks kindly of you. Do you understand what I am saying?'

  'Yes, Father.'

  There was no need to say more. Steven had received lectures from his mother on the Gascoigne family and their likeness to a pac
k of wolves. When he was small she had talked to him about wolf cubs and how they roll over in the presence of bigger males. The cubs exposed their bellies in a sign of submission. The bigger animals could rip their soft underside open if they so desired. His mother had told him to submit to Guy and William. That way they would not see him as a threat and leave him alone.

  Steven decided that he was not going to spend the rest of his life baring his belly to Guy and William. They were a threat to everyone and there was only one way to deal with people like that.

  Chapter 15

  Retribution

  Heavily armed men stood before the main gate and others lined the perimeter. It was like Bayeux all over again. Henriette could hardly believe that she had returned to England to face a situation like this. They were in the Tower of London and were besieged by an army of Englishmen.

  She was on the battlements with Alice and Harald, awaiting the return of Robin. He had gone out, with a detachment of the guard, to deliver a prisoner into the custody of the Lord Mayor. The prisoner was Lord Say, who had been arrested by the king at Blackheath to placate Jack Cade and his army. If Say thought he had been taken into safe custody, he was hugely mistaken.

  It was early afternoon before Robin got back. He rode through the besieging troops and entered the Tower without incident. Henriette expected him to go straight to the White Tower and report to Commander Gough. Instead, He came up the steps and joined them.

  'All done?' Harald asked.

  'Aye,' Robin nodded.

  'Did it turn out like we expected?'

  'Just like we expected.' Robin removed his helmet. 'We took him to the Guildhall to join the other prisoners. The Mayor had assembled justices for a proper trial but that didn't happen. The mob rules London and the Mayor is too scared to challenge them.

  'Say drew attention to himself by his arrogant behaviour. If he had kept his mouth shut he might still be alive. Some of the crowd wanted to put him to a traitor's death. Others said they were fighting to put an end to such barbaric practices. You can imagine what it was like. I expected them to fight over him. In the end, a priest got involved … and that sealed his fate.'

  'In what way?' Alice asked.

  'They agreed that beheading was a Christian way to do it. They forgot about the trial and took him to Cheapside and did it there.'

  'Does Lord Scales know?'

  'He should. One of his clerks was with me. He should have reported to Governor Scales by now.'

  'Why did he hand Lord Say over?'

  Robin pointed to the cannons below.

  'There's your answer. London has the biggest standing army in the land. It answers to no one except the citizens of London and right now they are answering to Jack Cade.'

  Alice still couldn't come to grips with the situation.

  'Are you saying that Cade has won?'

  Robin shook his head.

  'The strength of Cade's army is in the mutineers from France and the private companies like Guy's. They were demanding pay from him at Sevenoaks and there's no way he can raise the money without looting. It's only a matter of time before the Londoners discover that simple truth. Then, they'll turn the militias against him.'

  'How long do you think that will be?'

  'A few days ... perhaps even weeks. We just have to hang it out and not do anything silly. We may have to sacrifice a few more prisoners. None of them are worth dying for.'

  ***

  If Robin was wrong then it was only in the timing. Events moved faster than he predicted. Within a day, Cade's troops were out of control and he was in serious trouble.

  Alice had placed a lot of hope in Jack Cade. His demands were just and it was difficult to believe the things said about him. People accused him of behaving like a lord. She told herself that he had to do that to stay in command. His troops expected their leader to look like an earl and behave like one. He wouldn't remain in control if he dressed and behaved like a lawyer or country gentleman.

  The men from the shires were deserting him in droves. The killing of Lord Say was part of it. He hadn't suffered a straight forward beheading. His dead body was stripped naked and subject to gross indignities as is was dragged through the streets. And his head was displayed on a pike together with others that had been lopped off that day. Alice feared it was a foretaste of things to come. Mansions were being ransacked and people murdered.

  ***

  Steven climbed onto the roof of one of the animal cages in the royal menagerie. It housed a lion that had been presented to the king by a visiting potentate. The Tower had other strange beasts within its walls. On Sundays, families were allowed in to see them.

  Robin said the Tower used to be a great fortress. The Normans built it to control London. That was before cannon. Today, the Londoners could blast holes in its walls and reduce the whole place to rubble if they wanted.

  He was practising with his crossbow. It was one of the smaller sort and intended for self-defence or close-range combat. He had chosen it because it suited his small size and could shoot a lethal bolt. You had to get used to shooting from different angles for what he was planning to do and the menagerie was ideal for that.

  There were lots of things to climb on in the menagerie and you could shoot into sacks of fodder. It was important not to miss. If you hit stone you would damage the tip of the bolt. If you hit wood you might never get the bolt back out again. In Bayeux, the soldiers used to practise on dead animals or even people.

  ***

  Matthew Gough peered out from the observation post at the top of the White Tower. From that vantage point, a major part of the City could be kept under observation. He turned to Robin who was standing nearby.

  'There's a lot of movement through Aldgate.'

  'Aye.' Robin glanced in that direction. 'The men of Essex are getting back to their families. They've seen how this thing is developing.'

  'What do you think about the bridge?'

  'Harder to say.' Robin returned his attention to the river. 'Cade's lost support from the southern shires but the troops from France are still behind him.'

  Commander Gough walked over to where Robin was standing.

  'Looks like the bulk of Cade's forces are planning to spend the night on the south bank. If the Mayor had any sense, he'd close the bridge and stop them coming back.'

  'I don't see that happening.'

  'Nor do I. What do you suggest?'

  'If he won't close the bridge then we should.'

  'Agreed.' Commander Gough nodded. 'If he's not done anything by nightfall, we'll go down there and do it for him.'

  ***

  Steven let the dinghy nudge against the pylon. The tide was flowing up river and he had reached London Bridge under cover of darkness. Daybreak came early at that time of year and wasn't far off. It would be a good time for an ambush. The rebels usually trooped back into London at first light.

  There was a lot of yelling and shouting. At first, he thought they were having a party. That's what had happened on the previous two nights. They had partied on the bridge. It had gone on until daybreak then the first of the contingents from Southwark had started to stream back into London, led by their captains.

  This time, the bangs sounded too loud for fireworks. Guns were firing and people were screaming. The roadway between the houses on the bridge was only eight foot wide. Steven had seen street fighting in Normandy. The slaughter caused by men wielding swords and battleaxes in such a confined space would be horrendous.

  As he watched, the side of a house gave way and collapsed into the river. Elsewhere, women and children were jumping into the water to escape the fighting. That was not how he had imagined it. His plan was to stage an ambush, not get involved in a battle.

  There was no going back. He'd timed the operation so that he would arrive on an incoming tide and leave when it had turned. You can't paddle against the tide in a dinghy. That restricts what you can do but has one big advantage. When the time comes to leave, you can make a sp
eedy escape.

  A huge waterwheel stood on the London side of the bridge. It was worked by the flow of the river and lifted water up into a conduit that distributed it around the City for flushing out drains.

  It was a perfect place for a sniper. There was a covered platform where you wouldn't be seen. If you got into difficulties, you could dive into the river and make your getaway. All you had to do was duck down and hold your breath. The water was too muddy for anyone to see you. By the time you had to surface, you would be well clear of the bridge.

  Steven secured the dingy and climbed onto the waterwheel. It was covered in slime and turning. That made boarding it difficult but not impossible. The trick was to work quickly and not fall off. He places a foot in one of the buckets and hung on while it rose towards a walkway.

  The next bit was tricky.

  You had to jump a gap. That meant you had to judge the distance in the poor light. He half got it right and landed on his knees, which was painful.

  He checked his crossbow to make sure it hadn't suffered when he crashed down. It was still in good nick and so was his bag of bolts. He had six. They were made of hardened steel and sharpened to points so fine you could clean your nails with them.

  From his perch he had a clear view of the roadway in front of the bridge. There were men in all sorts of uniforms. He guessed they were from the southern shires and wanted to go home. Robin had talked about them. They had come to London thinking they were going to throw out the earls and barons and replace them by people like themselves.

  The poor sods didn't know they were joining a band of cut-throats. Steven could have told them. He knew what to expect from the people returning from France. His uncle and cousin were amongst them. They prided themselves in behaving like wolves. Dad had spent his life trying to get away from them. He didn't understand that there was only one way to deal with wolves.

  Mum thought you had to roll over and bare your belly. That's what wolf cubs do. She should remember that wolf cubs grow up. They get old enough to know that there is something you can do about it. That's important when it looks like your belly is about to be ripped open.