Edward Marston - Trip to Jerusalem

'He is hopelessly in your debt, Nick.'

'I could not let them steal our best apprentice.'

'It goes deeper than that.'

'We are good friends.'

'You are like a father to the lad and risked your life for him. Have you ever had a child of your own?'

'I was never married, Christopher.'

'The two things do not always go together.'

Nicholas laughed evasively and changed the subject. He was enjoying his chat with the actor and finding new things to like about him all the time. When Millfield moved away, however, it became clear that not everyone shared the book holder's good opinion of him.

A worried Eleanor Budden bustled over.

'Do not listen to him, sir,' she begged.

'Master Millfield?'

'He is a very dangerous young man."

'Why, Mistress?'

'Because he does not believe in God.'

'Did he attest as much?'

'More or less, Master Bracewell.'

'I find that hard to accept.'

'Beware, sir!'

'Of what?'

'Atheism in our midst!'

Nicholas did not take the claim at all seriously and she did not pursue it since she wanted to enjoy their rare moment alone. Love made her eyes sparkle like gems.

'It was wonderful to see you back with us!'

'I share your delight, Mistress.' I knew that God would not take you away from me.'

'My place is here with the company.'

And mine is beside you.'

'We will get you to York with all due speed.'

'I have found the true path in you!'

Her ardour was quite unnerving and Nicholas glanced around for help. Being attacked by robbers or captured by rivals were nowhere near as frightening as being cornered by Eleanor Budden. If he was not circumspect, she would rob him of something he did not want to lose and hold him captive in a way that did not appeal. He fended her off with questions.

'How do you like the fellowship of actors?'

'Yours is the only company I seek, Master Bracewell.'

'Does nobody else interest you. Mistress?

'They pale beside you, sir.'

'What of Master Quilley. He is a famous artist. Have you and he had discourse yet?'

'Only when I interrupted him,' she said. 'He was angry when I came upon him playing with his cards.'

'Cards?'

'I have never seen the like before. They had strange pictures on them and he studied each one with great care. It was almost as if he looked for some kind of message.'

Nicholas Bracewell smiled in gratitude. Unwelcome as her attentions had been, he sensed that Eleanor Budden had unwittingly given him some valuable information.

His suspicion of Oliver Quilley deepened.

Days without his wife and nights without her precious bounty had wrought changes in Humphrey Budden. The house seemed empty, the children were fractious and his whole life was now hopelessly barren. Long discussions with Miles Melhuish were followed by even longer ones with the Dean. It was the latter who counselled action.

You have sinned against your wife.'

'The memory of it is grievous unto me.'

'You must seek her forgiveness.'

How may I do that?'

'Not here in Nottingham, that is certain.'

'Then where?'

'In York,' said the Dean sonorously. 'There is no better place for you to be cleansed and reconciled. Go to York, sir. Seek your estranged wife in that monument to Christian dedication. That is where your hope lies.'

'Will she take me back?'

'If you deserve it, Master Budden.'

'Should I travel with the children?'

'Alone, sir. This is a matter between two souls.' He lowered ecclesiastical lids. 'And two bodies.'

Humphrey Budden left for York the next day.

A bell had signalled the beginning of the Whitsuntide fair and pandemonium followed. Streets that were usually crowded were now overflowing. Shops and stalls that were usually busy were now completely besieged. York was aflame with life. Tinkers, travellers, pilgrims, country folk, merchants, knights and many more streamed in through the four gates. Minstrels, mummers, acrobats and jugglers competed for attention. The shrieking of children and the yapping of dogs swelled a cacophony that was taken to deafening pitch by the constant peal of church bells. The city ran riot for three holy days.

Westfield's Men came in through Micklegate and made their way through the press to the Trip to Jerusalem, a name that had a special resonance for them. Lambert Pym gave them an exaggerated welcome and conducted them to their rooms with beard-scratching charm. Accommodation was also found for Oliver Quilley and Eleanor Budden. The exuberant Susan Becket appointed herself as Firethorn's bedfellow yet again. Jerusalem was a spacious metaphor.

Nicholas Bracewell was dispatched at once to the Lord Mayor to secure a licence for performance. When he came back with it in his hand, he found Firethorn poring over a letter from Sir Clarence Marmion that invited them to stage a play at his house. Here was good news indeed. York was proving to be a worthy shrine for pilgrimage. Not a moment was wasted. Playbills were printed and posted up, a stage was erected in the yard at the inn, and the first rehearsal was held. The hectic pace of it all made them think they were back at the Queen's Head.

A new drama by Edmund Hoode was to be given its first performance outside London. Soldiers of the Cross had a particular relevance to their venue because it dealt with a crusade and took Richard the Lionheart through a succession of epic battles. Westfield's Men had presented a crusader play before, a novice work by one Roger Bartholomew, an Oxford scholar with misguided aspirations about the theatre. Hoode's work had the mark of a true professional. It was well crafted, lit with fire and passion, and filled with soaring verse. In the play about Robin Hood, the same king had been but a minor character who slipped on near the end to knight the hero. Soldiers of the Cross made him central to the action and Firethorn's performance made him tower even in ore.

Nicholas Bracewell was industrious and watchful. He kept the rehearsal rolling along and noted any faults or omissions along the way. His stagekeepers were given a long list of jobs when it was all over. He worked well into the evening himself then adjourned to the taproom.

Oliver Quilley was sampling the Malmsey. 'Master Bracewell, let me buy you a drink, sir." 'I cannot stay.'

'But I have not thanked you for finding my horse.'

'There was something else I found.'

Nicholas took out the list from the saddlebag and handed it over. The artist snatched it eagerly from him.

'I see that some names were ticked off, Master.'

'Those commissions have been completed.'

'There is a question mark beside one person.'

'Is there?'

'Sir Clarence Marmion.'

'I cannot see it.'

Quilley glanced at the document then folded it up and put it away. An enigmatic smile kept Nicholas at bay. The book holder met his gaze.

'How did you know of Master Pomeroy's arrest?'

"Word travels fast.'

'Only by special messenger.'

'I have my contacts, sir.'

'So I believe.'

The artist gave nothing away. His unruffled calm was a challenge that Nicholas was unable to take up at that point. The book holder had a more pressing commitment and he excused himself. He would return to Oliver Quilley.

Night was taking its first gentle steps towards York as Nicholas shouldered his way through the crowds. Even in the turmoil of their arrival, he had found the time to enquire after other theatre companies. Banbury's Men had reached the city that same day. They were staying at the Three Swans in Fossgate. He went over Ouse Bridge and headed north, picking his way through clamorous streets that he half-remembered from an earlier visit some years before, and listening to the Yorkshire dialects that rang out on every side.