C. Sansom - Lamentation

‘Unless something brings it alive again.’ The Queen turned to me. ‘I have heard from my uncle that two of your employees were injured. I am sorry for it.’

‘Neither was seriously hurt, your majesty.’

‘And this man Myldmore, you have him somewhere safe?’ she asked Lord Parr.

‘Yes, together with the guard and the carpenter who helped Leeman.’

‘Each could be open to a charge of treason,’ Cecil observed.

Lord Parr shook his head. ‘If this matter is settled we should ensure all three move quietly out of London, to somewhere far out in the provinces.’

I said, ‘Myldmore can only pretend sickness for so long; eventually there will be enquiries made.’

‘There is no connection to us. They’ll think he’s run away.’

‘So many disappeared,’ the Queen said quietly. ‘And two dead. And all because of me.’

‘Anne Askew played her part,’ Lord Parr said gruffly. ‘God rot her wild heresy.’

Cranmer bit his lip, looking troubled, then said, ‘With your leave, your majesty, Master Shardlake would like to show us something he has worked out.’ He gestured to the sheet of paper on his desk.

The Queen looked at me and nodded, and I bowed again.

Cecil produced chairs for the Archbishop and the Queen, then stood beside Lord Parr. In front of them was a list of names and dates:

Armistead Greening — murdered 10th July

James McKendrick — vanished 11/12th July

William Curdy — vanished 11/12th July

Andres Vandersteyn — vanished 11th/12th July

Elias Rooke — fled 17th July, murdered 18th July

Michael Leeman — suborned carpenter Barwic and guard Gawger with money, almost certainly took Lamentation of a Sinner to Greening on 6th July. Fled Whitehall 19th July

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Thomas Myldmore — took Anne Askew’s writings to Greening on 29th June

I said, ‘These seven people constituted a radical group which met at Armistead Greening’s house.’

Cranmer pointed to the paper. ‘Why is Myldmore’s name separated from the others?’

‘Because he was never actually accepted into the group. There might also be others who were considered, but these first six are the core. Vandersteyn may have had links to the Anabaptists, while Curdy had the money and may have supplied the bribes which Leeman used to pay the locksmith Barwic and the guard Gawger. Greening himself almost certainly had links to John Bale in Antwerp, and likely imported forbidden books from Flanders. Myldmore’s evidence makes clear that this was more than a discussion group; it shows the fervour of some sort of Anabaptist sect.’ I looked round. ‘I think the group was trying to recruit people with connections to positions of trust, in high or secret places — the guard Leeman and the Tower gaoler Myldmore being two examples. Myldmore, however, could not accept their views on social order, nor on the Mass, and they asked him to leave. But later, when he saw what happened to Anne Askew, he felt he must act. Greening was the obvious person for him to take the woman’s book to. And he, in turn, planned to take it to John Bale.’

The others remained silent. The Queen nervously touched the pearl at her breast; Cranmer fixed me with a troubled stare. William Cecil nodded slowly. ‘Then Greening was murdered,’ I continued. ‘As for the other five — ’ I ran my finger down the list of names — ‘three immediately vanished: McKendrick, Curdy and the Dutchman. The guard Leeman remained in his place here at Whitehall. And Elias moved to work for his neighbour Okedene.’

‘If the other three fled,’ said Cecil, ‘rather than being murdered, why did not Elias and Leeman go, too?’

‘I have pondered that. It may be that Leeman thought, given he worked at Whitehall Palace, that he was safe. He has quarters there. He stayed till he found he was under investigation, and only then disappeared. As for the apprentice Elias, remember times are hard, and he provided the only income for his widowed mother and his sisters.’ I sighed. ‘He was obstinate, and probably rejected the advice of the others to join them in fleeing. He seemed, when I met him, to think Greening was the murderers’ only target. And given his youth, and perhaps limited experience, it may well be that the others did not trust him with the knowledge that they had possession of the Lamentation . Though I believe he knew that Greening had been given Anne Askew’s writings.’

Cecil said, ‘Because he said “killed for Anne Askew” before he died.’

‘Exactly.’

‘The poor boy,’ the Queen muttered. ‘He stayed for the sake of his mother and sisters, and died for it.’ She walked abruptly to the window and stood looking out over the little courtyard below, her head bowed.

Lord Parr said, ‘So these other four? Are they still alive?’

‘I do not know. The fact Elias was murdered, too, makes me think the killers were after the whole group. Whether they found them or not we do not know.’

Lord Parr stroked his white beard. ‘And whoever killed Greening and Elias is likely to have both Anne Askew’s writings and the Queen’s.’

Cecil asked. ‘Could someone powerful — Wriothesley or Gardiner, Rich or Paget — have an agent inside the group? One of the missing four? How else could anyone outside have come to know that Greening had the Lamentation ?’

I said, ‘Yes, someone within that group could have been working for an enemy. I think we can rule out Leeman — if he was acting for Gardiner, the last people he would take the Lamentation to is Greening’s group. That leaves Curdy, Vandersteyn and McKendrick; three of them. But if one of them was a spy working for Gardiner or anyone else, and murdered Greening and took the Lamentation , Anne Askew’s work too, why has nothing been heard of either book since? Anne Askew’s work they might destroy, for it incriminates Wriothesley and Rich, but surely the spy, if there is one, would take the Lamentation straight to the King?’

Cranmer nodded. ‘Yes. Norfolk and Gardiner knew that Lord Hertford and Lord Lisle are about to return to the Privy Council, and that the heresy hunt had failed. It has only been recently that I have felt it prudent to return to the council myself. The sensible thing for them would have been to act at once, so far as the Lamentation was concerned.’

I said, ‘Yes, my Lord Archbishop, I agree.’

The Queen turned and looked at me, a spark of hope flashing in her eyes. ‘So you think it may not be Gardiner’s agents who killed Greening and took the Lamentation ?’

‘Possibly. Though Master Cecil’s logic about an informer within the group is persuasive.’

She shook her head, mystified. ‘Someone working against a group of the godly from within? Pretending to be one of them? How could anyone bear such a betrayal of their souls?’

Lord Parr spoke with sudden impatience. ‘In God’s name, niece, when will you realize not all are as pure in mind as you?’

The Queen stared back at him, then laughed bitterly. ‘I am not pure. If I were, I would never have needed to write a book called Lamentation of a Sinner — nor failed, after my Lord Archbishop’s good advice, to destroy it through my sinful pride, and hence caused all of this. And deceived my husband in the process,’ she added bitterly.

I glanced at her. In other tones the words might have sounded self-pitying, but the Queen spoke with a sad, honest intensity. There was silence for a moment. Then Cecil turned to me. ‘The way Greening and Elias were killed, and your description of the two killers — that speaks to me of the involvement of someone powerful, someone who can afford to hire experienced assassins.’