C. Sansom - Lamentation

‘We should find that apprentice,’ I said.

He looked at me sternly. ‘You should not have lost him.’

‘I know, my Lord.’

‘And those three associates of Greening’s. Gone to ground?’

‘It looks like it. Though they may just be keeping quiet for a while. The constable knows where they live. He has been keeping an eye on them this year, as suspected sacramentarians.’

Lord Parr frowned angrily, spots of colour forming on his pale cheeks. ‘God’s death, these extreme radicals with their mad ideas. They are a danger to those of us who know that reform must be sought through quieter means. They have no idea of the reality of politics. This Bertano, he may not even exist, may be some phantasm of their fevered minds!’ He took a long breath, calming himself, then said, ‘You must seek out these three friends of Greening’s, talk to them, find what they know. Likely that apprentice has taken refuge with them.’ He frowned again. ‘And if you take your pupil this time, make sure he knows when to keep his mouth shut.’

‘Rest assured, my Lord, I will.’

I thought, this meant even more work, and among people who could be dangerous to those they thought their enemies. I thought also of the work in chambers that I could not leave to my staff — the inspection of the wall painting in the Slanning case was coming up — and I had a moment’s panic, felt the chair shifting under me. I grasped the arms hard.

‘What is the matter?’ Lord Parr asked sharply.

‘I am sorry, my Lord, I — it has been a long day, and I was at the burning yesterday. Sometimes when I am tired I feel strange, the world seems to rock — ’

I expected him to snap at me for being a mumping weakling, but to my surprise he spoke quietly. ‘The Queen told me you were on the Mary Rose when she went down last year. That was a great tragedy. Though it is not permitted to speak of it at court, the King felt much humiliated by the foundering of his favourite ship.’

‘I lost good friends, and nearly died myself. At times of strain — forgive me, my Lord.’

He grunted. ‘I, too, am sometimes unwell. I have long suffered from fevers, and they grow more frequent. Sometimes I am so tired — ’ He shrugged, then gave a tight smile. ‘But we must go on. You know the Queen’s motto?’

‘To be useful in all I do.’

‘And so must we be. I know this is a hard load, Serjeant Shardlake.’

‘Thank you, my Lord, but is it really the best course for me to try to find and question these men? The radicals are suspicious of everybody. They will surely see me, as the apprentice did, as an inquisitive lawyer who may serve some master who would hurt them.’

Lord Parr smiled wryly. ‘Yes, people are suspicious of your trade, they think all lawyers will serve any master for a fee.’

‘Perhaps if someone else could approach these men initially, someone known as a sympathizer, who could reassure them that the lawyer who will be coming is not an enemy. No more than that need be said.’

The old man nodded. ‘You are right. You met young William Cecil last night?’

‘Yes.’

‘He is known to have certain — contacts, shall we say. He is a very junior employee of the Queen’s Learned Council, but I have already marked his cleverness, and his commitment to reform. As well as his ambition for himself, which is considerable.’ He gave his sardonic smile again. ‘Very well, I will send him to try and find these people, and reassure them that you merely wish to question them about the murder of Greening, but that you mean them no harm. That is all Master Cecil needs to be told. He does not know about the Lamentation , of course.’

‘That may help our quest.’

Lord Parr stroked his beard. ‘You say Greening was only printing some French primer when he was killed?’

‘Yes. I checked the print-shop thoroughly.’

‘The Queen, you may imagine, has no connection with such small-scale printers. Her Prayers and Meditations went to the King’s Printer, John Berthelet.’ He shook his head, then grasped the arms of his chair resolutely. ‘And now,’ he said, ‘I would like you to question some servants of the household.’

‘Yes, my Lord.’

‘But first, look at this.’

He reached into his robe, and held up a little key on a gold chain. ‘I have persuaded my niece to entrust this to me. It is the one she kept around her neck, that opens her private chest.’

I examined it, and saw it had several teeth of different sizes. ‘It does not look like a key that would be easy to copy.’

‘No. The chest itself I have removed to a place of safety, where it can be inspected.’ Lord Parr replaced the key in the folds of his robe. ‘Now, are you ready to question these servants?’ He gave me a hard look.

‘Yes, my Lord. Forgive me, I had but a weak moment.’

‘Good.’ He consulted a paper on his desk. ‘I have checked the records and discovered who was on duty that evening. The Queen was in her chamber all that afternoon; she went to her bedchamber after lunch, looked at the book and thought again about disposing of it, then spent some time studying Spanish — she is working to increase her knowledge of languages, that she may be of most use in diplomatic functions.’

‘She is often on her own during the afternoons?’

‘No. But when an afternoon is free she does like to take the chance to be alone for a little — it is not always easy in this place,’ he added feelingly. ‘Then at six she was called to the King, as you know, and returned at ten of the evening. It was during those four hours that the Lamentation was stolen. According to the guards, the only people who came into the Queen’s privy lodgings during that time were the two page boys whose duties are to clean the rooms and the Queen’s Gallery, and feed Rig, the Queen’s spaniel, and her birds. Also you will interview two women who have more or less free access — Mary Odell, a maid-in-waiting who has served the Queen for years, who makes sure her bed is ready and often sleeps with her in her chamber; and Jane, the fool she shares with the Lady Mary. Jane is much wanting in wit. Apparently she came into the Privy Chamber that evening, where some of the Queen’s ladies were sitting, demanding to see my niece, saying she had something that would entertain her. She did not believe the ladies when they told her the Queen was with the King, and Jane can make a great fuss if she does not get her way — the Queen and the Lady Mary both overindulge her — so the guard let her into the Queen’s privy lodgings to see for herself. She came out after a few minutes. And that is all.’

‘How many rooms make up the Queen’s privy lodgings?’

‘Six. The bathroom, bedchamber, the closet for prayer, a study, and dining room. And beyond those the Queen’s Privy Gallery, where she often walks. I have searched every inch of each chamber myself, by the way, in case the book was somehow secreted there. And found nothing.’

‘Are two pages needed to clean each day?’

Lord Parr laughed scoffingly. ‘Of course not. But this is the royal household, and a multitude of servants is a sign of the Queen’s great status. There is another pair who come to clean in the morning. Only the King has more.’

‘And the staff on duty vary?’

‘Yes. There is a rota. I see what you are thinking. Another servant could somehow have discovered the book’s existence earlier? But they could not have arranged in advance for the book to be taken on that day, as nobody knew the King would call the Queen to him that evening.’

‘But he must do so fairly often?’

‘Not every evening. And in recent days he has often had meetings in the evening with the councillors and ambassadors.’