by J. N. Cao
“If it is her, then she must have changed her name to protect herself. I can only assume that many people were after her to find out about Victor Harte’s treasure,” Matilda said.
“Well, it’s a good thing she doesn’t know much about it. I wouldn’t want those witches getting their hands on my treasure,” said Ralph as he settled himself to sleep.
Roger too started to adjust his bag to rest his head on. “I don’t remember the last time I had a nice soft bed.”
Matilda lay on the ground with her head on her bag and stared at the fire.
“Do you always sleep with your hat on?” Will asked her quietly.
She looked up at Will, who was still sitting next to her. “Yes, it keeps my head warm.”
“Even when you’re inside, like at the inn?” said Will, as he settled himself down.
“Yes, I have a scalp problem, and I’m very conscious about it.”
“Really?” said Will. “Let’s see.”
He reached one hand towards Matilda’s beret, but she caught it in time with both her hands. “I’m not going to laugh, just one look,” said Will as he reached for the beret again. “Stop it!” said Matilda under her breath as she tried to hold onto her beret with one hand and use the other to beat his hand away. There was a hint of amusement in her voice, which only provoked Will not to give up. After another attempt from Will, she managed to pinch him hard on the rib.
“Oww!” he groaned, half in giggles. Matilda sniggered at the sight of him holding his side.
Ralph made a sound as if he was clearing his throat. And then they both settled down again. Matilda made a mental note to buy a wig and then stared up at the starry sky until her eyes were too tired to stay open.
The next morning Matilda and her companions were back on the road. The pace of the journey was quite slow for the next two days because it rained often. Eventually, by the third day, they were not far from a small village called Hamstone.
At one stage, Matilda and Will were walking ahead, chatting away while Ralph explained to Roger about the friend he had in Portsmouth who had agreed to lend them a ship.
“Do you think you will be able to sail there yourself?” said Roger.
“I do have some sailing experience, but don’t worry, Toby will be happy to sail for us I’m sure. No man in his right mind would turn down an offer to join our journey.”
“Uncle! Roger! Look out!” cried Matilda, who was now with Will, off the road. The next moment, Ralph was pulled to the side of the road by Roger. Ralph had only just missed being run over by a fast-moving carriage. It was a luxurious carriage that sped past them; they could hear someone, a male, from the inside crying out, “Faster Lewis! Faster! Whooo!”
“That blasted, loose-headed twit!” yelled Ralph, “he almost killed me! And I do not wish to die before I get to my treasure.”
By nightfall, they arrived at Hamstone. This rural village had one inn, where most of its people, mostly farmers, would gather at night. The group decided to lodge at the inn for the night. Men and women sat at the tables of the tavern area drinking and chatting about their day. The atmosphere was cheerful, and soon a man decided to play a tune on his lute. Sitting near the man was Matilda and Will. They were also enjoying their drink while they waited for Ralph and Roger, who were upstairs.
The man seemed to have some trouble playing a song that he had once heard in Esterwall. Matilda recognised the song he was trying to play as it was a song she loved and knew too well. Will turned to the man, “Sir, I think that bit is supposed to go like this,” and he hummed the correct tune.
“Oh, if you know it so well then, here,” he handed Will the lute, “show us.”
Will was a little taken aback with the sudden attention focused on him by the crowd. He looked at the starring faces and then started to play. The crowd listened, and then they began to clap and cheer at the delightful song. Midway through the song Will slowed down his playing as he had forgotten the next bar. Matilda jumped in to assist him by humming the next bar and soon the memory of the next bar flooded back to Will, and his playing picked up energetically. He started to sing the words to the song and saw Matilda mouthing the words.
“Go on Matthew, sing!” he cried.
Matilda immediately shook her head. She loved to join in but knew it was not a good idea.
“Go on! I know you want to,” coaxed Will and continued singing. Then he let Matilda finish the last few words of the song by leaning in and waiting for her to sing. Soon all the attention was on her. She felt the pressure climbing to her face and then started to sing. As she sang, her audience’s smiley faces turned quizzical, for they did not expect to hear such a feminine voice.
Matilda immediately stopped short on the last few words. There was a brief moment of silence until a man next to her said, “Well, finish the song, get cracking,” he turned to the crowd, “on that voice!” and he let out a roar of laughter, with which the crowd joined in. Matilda, glowing red, gave a sheepish smile.
Just as the laughter died, Ralph and Roger came downstairs. They sat at the table with Matilda and Will.
“Where are we going next?” asked Roger as he received his drink and food from the waiter.
“Err, I don’t remember, here you can check for me,” said Ralph, as he pulled out the map from his inside pocket and started to eat his stew. Then he caught Matilda looking at him in surprise.
“Don’t worry. No one knows what kind of map it is,” Ralph said, then he took a sip from his pint and choked on his drink. “Roger!” He grabbed the map off Roger and blew out the little flame on the top right-hand corner of the map.
Then he gave the map back to Roger.
“Watch it! It was burning in the candle,” said Ralph, as he removed the small table-candle away from Roger.
“Sorry.”
“Actually,” said Ralph, taking the map back, “you can read it later,” and folded the map back into his pocket. “New rules here. Firstly, no reading the map too close to fire. And secondly, not anywhere near food, drinks or water.”
Suddenly, the door of the inn opened and a group of men, ordinarily dressed, walked in. They sat down at a table and became deep in conversation.
Just then a stocky man entered the tavern. He wore an expression of annoyance and made his way to the stool at the counter and ordered a drink. When his drink arrived, the bartender initiated a conversation. Soon the stocky man started to talk loudly.
“Lost my home and land in Oxford so he can have the area to himself,” he said.
“What for?” asked the bartender.
“For his hunting!” cried the man.
Soon, those who sat near him, including Matilda’s table and the group of men earlier, fell quiet. They could hear him rant on.
“The King burned down our houses and evicted us so that he can have the land and forest to himself!” He drank from his mug. “Now I’m here because I have nowhere to go.”
The bartender listened attentively but gave no advice. Then a man with shoulder length hair, from the group earlier, rose up from his table and walked over to the stocky man. He asked him some questions.
“Of course I will! If I can get my hands on him I will!” the stocky man suddenly shouted. “I’ll do anything to get back what was mine.”
Then the shoulder-length-hair man said something in a low voice to the stocky man. The stocky man nodded, and then joined him at his table. Soon, this group of men all made their way upstairs.
“Looks to me they might be cooking up something,” Ralph said as he watched them leave. Then he turned back to his table, “Oh well, it’s not our business. We got more important things to worry about.”
The next day, Matilda and company set out on their way to Somerton. They intended to stop by to stock-up their provisions before heading off to Oxford. As they left the marketplace, Ralph spotted the same luxurious carriage that had almost run him over earlier, parked outside a blacksmith. Two men, who looked like guards, stood nearby t
he carriage having a chat and a blacksmith was tending to the horses’ shoes.
As the group approached, Ralph remarked, “So we meet again. I wonder what kind of twit rides in that kind of carriage.”
Just then the Chamberlain stepped out of the carriage and gave a bow to someone inside before closing the door. Then the King poked his head out, “And get me something to entertain myself. I’m bored to death sitting in this carriage all day.”
“Yes, Sire,” said the Chamberlain and then hurried off to the marketplace.
As the group walked past, they heard the King said to his coachman, “How long will this take Lewis?”
“Not long, Sire.”
When they were out of the King’s sight, Ralph started to have his own little rant.
“All our taxes wasted on that carriage so that he can sit in there and complain.”
And Ralph continued on like that until they stopped at a river.
Surrounding the river were fields, with a few farmers ploughing away. They then sat at the banks watching some men fishing at the river. Matilda sat down on the grass and took out the letter from Victor Harte. She started to examine the letter. First she used her finger and rubbed the empty blank area, but there was no sign of brown ink handwriting. She even tried licking her finger and then using it to rub the blank area. Nothing appeared.
Finally, she raised the letter up against the sky and could see nothing new appear on the letter. Her companions watched her and asked what she was doing. She then explained to them about the brown ink on Victor Harte’s letters. She also commented that the messages written in black ink were rather mundane, whereas the messages written in brown ink were secretive or important.
They all pondered for a moment, unaware that they were being watched by Sir Laurence and his companion from the river bridge.
“It appears that she’s not alone this time,” said Sir Laurence’s companion. “I much prefer to get her alone; the less people know, the better.”
“Allow me to handle this my way,” said Sir Laurence. His companion nodded.
Chapter 12
Sir Laurence’s Proposal
Matilda and company eventually continued on the road again. Not long after, they arrived at a small town called Brighton, where the villagers were holding a festival. There were street acrobatic performances and music. They were delighted by the mood of the event and so decided to stay for a short while. Ralph, Roger and Will sat at an outdoor table watching a performance while Matilda explored the lanes of stalls.
A stall selling wigs caught Matilda’s attention. She went over to the stall and picked out a wig that she could wear underneath her beret. She paid the seller. After she turned to leave, she immediately saw someone standing in front of her. It was Sir Laurence.
“May we speak with you, Miss Burley?” he said.
Matilda’s insides jumped. She recognised him as the man from the monastery and was surprised that he knew who she was. Instinctively, she turned to her right to run but was blocked by Sir Laurence’s companion. They each had a sword hanging on their belts; they left little room for Matilda to escape.
“Miss Burley, we do not mean any harm, we just want to talk with you, although we can easily harm you right now, or we can leave that to them,” said Sir Laurence, gesturing to his right.
Matilda realised what he meant when she turned her head and saw Captain David and his men walking along the stalls some feet away. Clearly, she did not have much choice. So she followed them to a fortune telling tent. Sir Laurence paid the fortune teller some money to leave them alone for a while.
Inside the tent, Sir Laurence sat down at the table. “Please sit down, Miss Burley.”
Matilda quickly glanced behind her. Sir Laurence’s companion was standing behind them, making sure she did not escape. So she sat down at the table in front of Sir Laurence. She could see him properly for the first time. He was older than Ralph, with tired, dark blue eyes, and a neatly trimmed, full beard that was short.
“We don’t want to hold you for too long, so I will get to the point,” said Sir Laurence. “I am Sir Laurence, the royal secretary of Queen Isabel. And behind you is his Royal Highness, Prince Henry.”
This new information only made Matilda more confused. She was not even sure if she should curtsey.
“Don’t worry, Miss Burley. We just want to offer a proposal to you,” continued Sir Laurence. “We are well aware that you carry with you a map that had belonged to Victor Harte. And we want you to hand it over to us.”
Matilda’s eyebrows pinched at the centre.
“Of course, we are not going to make you do that without hearing why you should first. This map is going to cause a war. Your Duke has already become allied with the Spanish King, and they have agreed to use the gold to build a Spanish army. That will first be used to overthrow your King, and once the Duke is King, they will join forces to invade North England.”
“The Duke has already gone after the treasure?” Matilda finally spoke.
“Yes, he set sail some weeks ago,” answered Sir Laurence.
He must have made a copy of the map, thought Matilda.
“Unfortunately, he discovered our Spanish spy. Otherwise, we could have sailed after his ships and perhaps stopped him. And so we need your map to find out where he is.”
“How do you know I have the map?”
“Word got to us about a small group of sailors claiming to have the map. So our spy found the sailors in an Esterwall prison and spoke with them. And they mentioned you. We then figured that you were heading south, based on the direction that Captain David was going. And we knew we had to find you before he did.”
“And how did you know it was me through my disguise?”
This time Prince Henry came to sit down next to Sir Laurence. He was tall, with broad shoulders. He had dark cropped hair and a handsome face.
“Luck was on our side that day in the marketplace at Balwyn. We saw your disguise come off, remember?” said Prince Henry.
“So, Miss Burley, we do not desire war and will do anything to avert it,” Sir Laurence said. “I’m sure you understand this. So for the peace of your people and mine, please give us the map.”
“Of course, if you refuse to, we can easily take it off you by force,” added Prince Henry.
Sir Laurence smiled, “But we trust that you will hand it to us to avoid bloodshed. And of course, you will be rewarded for your sacrifice. You are a fugitive here, but you will have a place in North England, where you and your family will be safe. His Highness guarantees this,” and he made a sidewards glance at Prince Henry.
“Yes, your family will be welcomed and well rewarded in my country,” said Prince Henry.
They waited for Matilda’s response.
This could all be entirely made up, but they wouldn’t have to go through all this talk when they could easily just take the map from her, she thought. Of course, she wanted to avert war, but she admitted to feeling a little disappointed that her adventure had come to an early end.
“And you are not after the treasure yourself?” Matilda said.
Sir Laurence smiled at this. “A valid question. We will be frank. The Queen’s military has weakened considerably after the sea invasion from Spain. And our harvest has suffered due to bad weather. Our country is in a dire state and that gold could greatly relieve us. We can assure you that we will not use that gold to create war. Her Majesty’s people have enjoyed over forty years of peace, and she does not wish to maintain an army to invade, but simply to defend that peace.”
Matilda could not think who or which nation deserved the gold. Although she felt that her people were in need of the gold too, it would only be taxed away by King Anthony, who she knew would be happy to waste it on frivolous things and worse, war. The best she could do now was to avert a terrible war and what happened to the gold after that was really outside of her power.
“May I know what you are thinking about?” asked Sir Laurence.
&n
bsp; “The people in this country are starving,” Matilda said.
“Yes, unfortunately, your king is ill-suited to rule. Her Majesty knows your people are suffering and has the intention of making England whole again,” said Sir Laurence.
“So there will be a war?” said Matilda.
“There will have to be some sacrifices,” Sir Laurence said. “But if you look at the bigger picture, your people will be better under her Majesty’s rule. Of course, we can together persuade the Queen to find more diplomatic ways to go about it. But right now there is a problem at hand that we must deal with. So, will you give us the map?”
Matilda searched for any other queries to ask, but she found none. “Yes.”
Matilda reached into her bag and pulled out the map. She slid it over to Sir Laurence.
Sir Laurence examined it for a moment and then looked up at Matilda. “Thank you, Miss Burley. You are doing Her Majesty a great deed, and she will hear of it.”
“You are heading to Oxford, I presume?” said Prince Henry.
“Yes,” Matilda said. “Well, we were.”
“Stay here. I will send guards to escort you and your family safely to North England,” said Prince Henry. “And what is the name that you go by with now?”
“Matthew Dudley.”
“Right. I’ll have my guards ask for that name to avoid any suspicion. We are in a hurry. If we are to stop this war, we must go now,” Prince Henry said.
Then they all stood up.
Sir Laurence then came to Matilda, pulling out a small pouch from his pocket. “I hope this can help you while you wait for our guards to come to escort you,” and handed it to her. She felt the pouch and was sure it was full of money. “Thank you.”
Sir Laurence then bowed his head to Matilda. “Miss Burley,” then he left the tent.
Prince Henry said, “Thank you, Miss Burley, for your cooperation,” and he also bowed his head to Matilda. She lowered hers back. The Prince then left the tent.
Matilda left after him. Once outside, they watched her walk back to the other side of the festival. Sir Laurence turned to the Prince, “What did I tell you, Highness? I knew this could be dealt with in a civilised manner.”