"But "tis true, Robin Southwood!"
Robin laughed. "I suppose it is," he said. Then finding the other maids of honor he said, "I"ll fetch ye when the queen dismisses the court later," and he was gone to stand behind the queen"s chair which was his own special post at meals.
For a moment Aidan stood not quite certain what to do, but then the girl she had seen earlier, the one called Linnet Talbot, made room for her on the bench, and she squeezed in amongst the others.
"Thank you," Aidan said. "I am sorry about your friend."
"It wasn"t yer fault," said Linnet. "Sooner or later Althea was going to be sent home for one misbehavior or another. She had no sense."
"Have ye been friends long?"
"Only since she came here four months ago. Her family is from York. Where are ye from?"
"My estates are near Worcester," said Aidan.
"I come from Kent," said Linnet. "My family are distant relations of the Earl of Shrewsbury"s family. Let me introduce ye to the others. This is Mary Warburton, Dorothy Saxon, Jane Anne Bowen, and Catherine Baldwin. The others aren"t at this table, but then most of them are from the high-and-mighty families, and we"re not. We"re here because our families have connections that have allowed us the opportunity to serve the queen, and better ourselves. We all expect to find husbands while we"re here. Do ye?"
"I am a royal ward," said Aidan, "and the queen promised my father that she would marry me off to a good man so I suppose I, too, expect to find a husband at court like the rest of ye."
"Yer older than we are," remarked Linnet.
"I"m twenty-three," Aidan answered the girl honestly.
"Twenty-three!" Linnet said the word as if Aidan had said one hundred and twenty-three. "We"re all sixteen but for Cathy. She is fourteen. Why are ye not already wed? Did yer betrothed die? Have ye no respectable dowry?"
Aidan reached for the loaf of bread upon the table, and tore off a chunk. "My mother died when I was ten. I had been born to my father when he was virtually an old man, and he needed me particularly after mama was gone. I am, ye see, his only living child. How could I marry, and leave my father to suffer loneliness?" She helped herself to a wing of capon as a servant offered a platter with the neatly carved bird upon it.
The other girls nodded their agreement, and their sympathy of her plight. They fully understood the obligations of family. No decent girl would leave an aged parent. Curiosity satisfied they settled down to eat, much to Aidan"s relief. What a bunch of cackling little hens, she thought amused, and then turned her attention to her own meal. She hadn"t eaten since morning, and she was starving. She wondered if poor Mag knew where to eat, and decided to take her a capon leg, and some bread, and a pear in her napkin afterwards. Then conscience quieted she filled her own plate high with prawns broiled with herbs; a small individual game pie which was still hot, steam coming through the vents in its crust; a slab of juicy beef; and an artichoke that had been braised in white wine. Her first pangs relieved she refilled her now empty plate with a piece of Dover sole, a slice of pink ham, more bread, and a wedge of sharp cheddar cheese. Amazingly she yet had room for a large slice of apple tart that was served up with thick clotted Devon cream. She drank sparingly, however, as she had never had much of a head for wines.
Her young companions had watched as she had devoured the three platefuls of food without so much as a belch. Their eyes were wide with amazement at her appet.i.te for they had been taught that a lady takes a little, and then eats only sparingly of her portion.
"Ye don"t get fat?" Cathy Baldwin finally asked, unable to contain herself.
"Nay," said Aidan. "I"m a big girl, and I need my food. Yer but a little bit of a thing. Ye all are."
They nodded. It was perfectly true. They were all just over five feet in height, Dorothy being the tallest at five feet three inches. Aidan St. Michael had to stand at least five feet ten inches in her stockinged feet. She was fully as tall as many a man. Each had the same thought in her head. Poor Mistress St. Michael. What man would wed with such a big lummox of a woman? Her family was unimportant, and obviously she had no decent fortune else her father would not have commended her care to the queen. At least she would not be compet.i.tion.
"We must all be friends," said Linnet Talbot speaking for the five of them, and feeling in her heart that she was doing the charitable thing.
"How kind ye are," replied Aidan. "I should indeed appreciate yer friendship for I am woefully ignorant of the court, and all its customs. I would not want to bring shame upon my family by being socially inept."
The five younger girls murmured sympathetically. "Do not fear," Linnet said. "We will guide ye through the maze of customs, and in just a few weeks ye will feel as if ye had been here all yer life. Everything else will pale in comparison to the life here at court. This is probably the most exciting place in the entire world to live! We are all so very, very lucky, aren"t we?" She looked to the others for approval, and all nodded.
After the meal which ended with plates of paper-thin sugar wafers, and tiny gla.s.ses of Malmsey wine, there was dancing. The queen adored dancing, and any gentleman who hoped to catch her favor was wise to be light on his feet. Shyly Aidan watched from the sidelines as the evening progressed. She noted that Conn O"Malley danced with no one before he danced with the queen; but once he had satisfied honor, he never danced with the same lady twice. At one point two beautiful young women got into a scratching, screaming match over whose turn it was to dance with the handsome man. Aidan never knew what it was Conn said to the two to stop them, but suddenly both were sunny-smiled, and one waited patiently on the sidelines while the other danced with the tall Irishman.
No one asked Aidan to dance although her five pretty companions were most active. It didn"t matter to her, however, as she was extremely weary from her trip. She far preferred watching for she was discovering that the court was a fascinating, place, and she expected that once she was up on all the current gossip, and knew the faces that matched the great names it would be even more interesting. As intriguing as it all was she was relieved when the queen called an end to the evening, and she trekked out with all the other maids of honor to accompany her majesty back to her apartments. There Elizabeth Tudor dismissed her maids, and Aidan found Robin at her side ready to lead her back to her own little room in the attics of Greenwich Palace.
"The queen never found time for her embroidery tonight," remarked Robin mischievously.
"Nay, she did not," replied Aidan, "but had she, the threads she needed were ready, my lord Southwood."
He chuckled. "Yer going to do just fine here, Aidan. My sister, Willow, the Countess of Alcester, will be returning to court for the Christmas revels, and I shall introduce ye to her. She is a bit younger than ye, but yer much alike. I think ye"ll find her a very good friend to have."
"Perhaps a lady of such exalted rank will not want to be friends with one of lesser rank."
"Willow married rank," Robin remarked, "although she has behaved her entire life as if she were royalty. She was plain Mistress Willow Small until she was fortunate enough to trap Alcester in her little net."
"She is older than ye then?"
"Willow will be seventeen in the spring. She met Alcester here when she was a maid of honor."
Aidan was curious. "How is it," she asked, "that yer family name is Southwood, and hers Small? Has yer mother been married twice?"
"My mother has had six husbands," said Robin calmly, "and children by all but the fifth one."
"How many children?" Aidan was fascinated.
"Eight. Seven of whom are alive today. lather, and my younger brother, John, died of the whitethroat. I have two elder brothers named O"Flaherty, one of whom is on his estates in Ireland, and the other at sea for he would one day captain his own ship. Both are wed. Willow is my older sister, but I have two younger sisters, Lady Dierdre Burke, and Velvet de Marisco, as well as a younger brother, Lord Padraic Burke. Padraic is a page with the Earl of Lincoln"s household."
"Where does yer mother live, Robin? In Ireland?"
"My mother lives on the estate of Queen"s Malvern which borders yer own Pearroc Royal."
"They are the family that moved in last year?"
"Aye."
"I never had time to pay them a call, and welcome them to the district as I should have. My father was ill then, and we could not entertain."
"I am sure," said Robin, "that my mother knew that, and understood."
At this point they had arrived back at Aidan"s chamber. Robin bowed to her politely saying, "You will be expected to accompany the queen to chapel in the morning. I will come to fetch you. Good night, Aidan."
"Good night, my lord." She opened the door to the room and stepped inside. "Ohhh," she said softly as looking about she viewed the amazing metamorphosis the little chamber had undergone. A bright orange fire burned merrily in the corner fireplace, and next to it on her high-backed stool Mag sat nodding. The stone mantel above the fireplace held her silver candlesticks, and her small jeweled clock that even now ticked rea.s.suringly. The floor beneath her feet was plush with her Turkey carpet, and both the single window, and the bed were now hung with dark velvet curtains. Aidan could see that the bed"s old mattress was gone, and her own plump one was now in its place; the bed freshly made with her own lavender-scented fine linen sheets, a fluffy down coverlet, and pillows. Beneath the window was one of her trunks, but what had happened to the rest of her luggage she knew not. Still in all the improvement in her quarters was amazing.
"Mag." Gently Aidan shook her tiring woman who from habit awoke instantly.
"Yer back, my chick. Was it an exciting evening then?"
"Interesting," was the reply. "I have brought you something to eat, Mag." Aidan brought forth the chicken leg, the bread, and the pear from her dress pocket.
"Thank ye, dearie, but the serving wench the little lordling sent to help me showed me the servants" dining hall, and I have already eaten."
"Then I shall eat it," said Aidan. "I find that I"m hungry again despite the good supper I ate this evening. Oh, Mag! What wonders ye"ve wrought with this little nest of ours. I cannot believe it is the same room! Thank you! Thank you!" She sat down upon the bed, and began to devour the food she had brought with her.
" "Twasn"t easy, dearie, but once the bed was gone, and I could see what we had, I knew what to do. We scrubbed the flooring down good before I would allow yer precious carpet to be laid. I found a cabinet built right into the walls, and would ye believe there was a nest of mice in it? Well, they"re gone now I can tell ye! After the carpet was put down I had them rea.s.semble the bed against this wall rather than centering it in the room. It allowed me the room for a trunk by the window, and the stool by the fire. I"ve hung yer gowns in the cabinet, yer shoes are there, and the necessaries I"ve repacked in the trunk. Everything else I"ve sent back to Pearroc Royal with the coachman. We simply have no room, dearie."
"I know," said Aidan. "I"ll probably have to have new gowns made, Mag, for the ones I"ve brought with me are out of fashion. The young earl has promised to introduce me to his mother"s dressmaker."
"Ye"ll not be wearing those shameless dresses that all but allow yer t.i.tties to hang out? What would yer father say!"
"If I wish to blend in with the others, Mag, I cannot look different now, can I? Do not fear. I can be fashionable without being immodest." She had finished the chicken, and taking the bone from her Mag opened the window and threw it out.
"I"ll have no more mice in this room," she announced. "Next they"ll be eating yer shoes!"
Aidan chuckled. "I hope not for I"ve not a pair to spare!"
Mag bustled about now preparing her mistress for bed. To Aidan"s surprise there was a basin of warm water to wash her face and hands, and when Aidan had bathed the window was opened, and the water followed the chicken bone. "It ain"t like our home," the tiring woman said wryly, "but we have to get rid of it somewheres. I hope we don"t have to stay here too long." She helped her mistress into her white silk nightgown and matching nightcap with its pretty pink ribbons. Then she tucked her into the bed.
Feeling the soft mattress beneath her, warm and dry beneath the coverlet, the scent of lavender in her nostrils Aidan watched sleepily as Mag put away her clothing. She didn"t think this was the time to explain to her servant that the queen had honored her greatly by appointing her a maid of honor. It was very unlikely that they would be going home in the near future, but Mag would learn to cope she knew. As soon as the older woman got her bearings, and found a place for herself amongst the others of her own kind she would feel better. Everybody needed someone. She yawned, her eyes drooping heavily. I wonder who my someone is, she thought as she slid off into sleep.
Chapter 2.
The golden-red flames from the great fireplace cast their wild shadows all about the chamber in Greenwood House. Upon the great bed two nude figures were entwined in pa.s.sionate combat. The big man towered over the woman beneath him, imprisoning her neatly between his muscled thighs, thrusting into his partner"s soft flesh over and over again with increasing rapidity until she suddenly shrieked a high-pitched wailing sound, and a moment later both figures collapsed, the man falling away from the woman.
For a long moment only the crackle of the fire could be heard in the room, and then a husky female voice purred, "Jesu, Conn! Yer the best lover I have ever had! I would venture yer the best lover in the entire world. What a pity this will be our last time together."
Conn O"Malley was surprised. Usually it was he who ended his affairs, and Lettice Knollys wasn"t even really his mistress. She had never been, but they had been attracted to each other ever since he had come to court two years ago. In that time they had engaged in sweet combat any number of times although it had been done secretly, and discreetly for neither Conn O"Malley nor Lettice Knollys had any intention of endangering their hard-won positions in Elizabeth Tudor"s exciting court. Lettice was the queen"s cousin; a far prettier version of Elizabeth, and the queen had always been jealous of her. As for Conn he owed his place in the Gentlemen Pensioners to her majesty who greatly favored him. Elizabeth enjoyed her Adonis, as she had nicknamed Conn, not only for his physical beauty, but his quick tongue as well. No one could pa.s.s as pretty a compliment, nor spin as delightful a tale as Conn O"Malley.
"Ye devastate me, Lettice," he said in reply to her remark. "Have I done something to offend ye, sweetheart?"
Lettice Knollys propped herself up upon an elbow, and looked down on her lover through narrowed amber-gold eyes. "Don"l tell me ye care, Conn?" she murmured.
He chuckled. "I"m curious. In one breath ye tell me I"m the world"s greatest lover, and in the next ye say ye"ll not see me again. Tis puzzling, sweetheart, wouldn"t ye say?"
"So "tis yer curiosity I"ve p.r.i.c.ked, Conn, and not yer vanity. What a man ye are! I envy the lady who"ll be yer wife one day."
He laughed. "I"ve no intention of marrying soon, Lettice. Women are like sweets, and I"m afraid I"ve got a terrible sweet tooth. I"ll not settle down until I"ve sampled all the tasties I can. Now, tell me why ye"ll not be seeing me again?"
"Because I am getting married," said Lettice Knollys.
"Married? I had not heard."
" "Tis a secret, and ye must swear to me that ye"ll not tell anyone."
"By anyone ye mean the queen. Don"t ye need her permission to wed, Lettice? Yer family."
"I am a widow, Conn, not some maid in the first blush of youth. Neither I nor my children will ever be any threat to my cousin"s throne, but ye know how she is, Conn. She"ll refuse me permission just to be spiteful."
"True," replied Conn who had no illusions about the queen, although personally he liked her.
"Promise me ye"ll say nothing," Lettice persisted, and bending down she bit at the lobe of his ear.
Reaching up he crushed one of her white b.r.e.a.s.t.s in his big hand. "Tell me who the lucky bridegroom is first."
"Not until ye promise me yer silence," Lettice said.
"Lettice, what are ye up to?" Conn O"Malley had a sudden premonition of disaster.
"Swear first!"
"I am not certain now I either should or want to know," Conn said.
Her pretty face stared down into his, her red hair tumbling about her shoulders. "Conn, please! Yer not just a good f.u.c.k, yer a friend, and frankly the only friend I would trust with this information. I need to tell someone!" she finished desperately.
He sighed. He had always had a tendency to be softhearted, and her plea touched him. Nay, it flattered him, if he were to be totally honest with himself. "All right, Lettice, I swear I will not reveal either yer plans or the bridegroom"s ident.i.ty; but I warn ye that if the queen learns of what ye"ve done, and asks me, I shall deny ye ever told me!"
"Fair enough, Conn." She paused, and then announced dramatically, "I am marrying Robert Dudley!"
"Jesu Christus!" Pushing her away he sat bolt upright in the bed. "I did not hear ye, woman! D"ye understand? I do not hear ye! G.o.d in his heaven, Lettice, are ye totally mad? The Earl of Leicester? The queen"s very own beloved? Do ye have a death wish then? Bess will not bring a swordsman in from France to sever yer head from yer shoulders, she"ll wield the b.l.o.o.d.y ax herself!"
"I love him!" Lettice cried dramatically.
"If ye love him then why are ye here in my bed? Love Dudley? Only Bess can see anything lovable in that snake! Whether ye"ll admit to it or not, Lettice, yer marrying the queen"s pa.s.sion in order to spite her!"
"He wants children!"
"Then he"d have been wise not to murder his first wife, but poor Amy Robstart had to be disposed of in order that Dudley might marry the queen. Fortunately for England the man lacks finesse, and caused such a scandal with the deed that even Bess didn"t dare defy the world to wed with him."
"It was never proven that Robert killed his first wife!" said Lettice Knollys angrily. "He wasn"t even at their home that day, and hadn"t seen her for weeks. She was dying of a canker in the breast, and killed herself rather than suffer any longer,"
"Whatever the truth of the matter is, Lettice, Robert Dudley is Elizabeth Tudor"s personal and private property. If ye marry him ye risk both of yer lives. Bess may not be able to wed him herself, but she doesn"t want him to wed with anyone else either."
"We"re being married tomorrow, Conn. Robert wants an heir. An heir I am already carrying!"
"He"s got two by Lady Douglas Sheffield if he"d but acknowledge their marriage which she claims took place several years ago."
"Robert doesn"t love Douglas Sheffield," Lettice Knollys said smugly. "He loves me! Loves me enough to defy that dragon on the throne to wed with me! Besides, he swears to me that he did not wed Douglas Sheffield."
"He"s hardly defying Bess if she doesn"t know about it," Conn observed wryly, "but then Dudley was never one for doing anything straight out in the open."
"Yer opinion is formed by yer sister Skye," said Lettice. "She never forgave Robert for casting her aside."
"Lettice, if ye believe that then yer a bigger fool than I think ye are for even considering to marry the Earl of Leicester. Yer husband-to-be raped my sister while she yet mourned her third husband. The queen knew it, and allowed him to get away with it in order to keep him happy because she yet believed then that she might wed with him herself."
"I"ll not stay here and hear my betrothed insulted, ye upstart of an Irishman!" Lettice shouted at him indignantly.
"Nay," said Conn with a wicked smile upon his face, "but ye"ll stay because no one, ye ginger-haired vixen, makes love to ye like I can, and yer right! This is the last night we"ll spend together unless yer widowed quickly. I"ll not f.u.c.k Dudley"s leavings, but it delights me that he"ll never know he"ll be f.u.c.king mine!"
"Wh.o.r.eson!" Lettice screamed, and hit him across the face as hard as she could.
He smacked her back, and grabbing at her they wrestled violently across the great bed. "b.i.t.c.h!" he hissed at her. "Yer nothing more than a b.i.t.c.h in heat, Lettice!"