For me, those words heard in a dream resonated:
‘Misery will haunt thee, brother, in this life and the next. I curse thee with the claws of the Corvus; thou will never get thy hands on what belongs to me.’
‘It’s all over, George. It couldn’t have been done without you, babble bum!’ I whispered after the prayers.
George laughed. ‘You’re welcome. I’ll never forget all this Tom, ever. It’s funny, but I feel different, sort of grown up.’ There was a pause before he added, ‘I didn’t think Corvus was the priest. I thought he was Edward Griffin. I read somewhere…’
‘Not now, George. I already worked it out…’
George smirked. ‘Well, he didn’t get away, did he? He had to live as a bird for nearly four hundred years, still wanting the treasure. But first he had to die, didn’t he? So when did he die? I’ve read somewhere about reincarnation, it could be that…’
‘Not now, George…’
After the blessing, Gran, with Mum and Annabel’s help, made tea for everyone, Gran managing to keep her cup, laced with whisky, separate from the others.
Inside, there was a lot of discussion regarding where we went from here. The forensic archaeologists had made a good job of getting cleaned up and were back to normal. Marcus was pretty certain that the bones belonged to a young boy and a young girl. He then joked that he was going to ask for danger money the next time a similar assignment comes his way. I was thinking that sort of work, if well-paid, would be well-suited to me and George. We would make a good team.
PC Andrews was bragging about his ‘kill’. ‘He won’t bother you anymore that’s for sure.’
The body of the raven was still out there: fodder for something wild in the next few days, no doubt. Didn’t fancy burying it.
Mum was looking forward to Dad being discharged from the hospital in the very near future. Some therapy needed, but almost as good as new.
I was thankful for the box still being with me. I had intended it to go with the bones; I hadn’t decided.
When all the professionals had gone, there was an eerie silence. Another aura moment. I knew exactly what an aura was now. Not only had George matured, but I had. I had grown up in that year. I looked down at the box, still in my hand. Yes, I would keep it after all…
The next day, I looked for Corvus on the spot where he laid slain…nothing, not even a single black feather.
‘Misery will haunt thee, brother,
in this life and the next.’
The End
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Historical Notes
Although Queen Elizabeth 1st had tolerated the religious differences of the times, in her later years, it is well documented that she was nervous and fearful of the conspiracies against her by the Jesuits.
Richard Topcliffe was her chief of operations, who held the responsibility to seek out those conspirators, but he was a cruel and ruthless investigator.
Francis Walsingham was the chief secretary of state from 1573 to 1590. He was a devout Protestant and a cunning spymaster, to whom the Queen turned in times of threat and potential treason. In the end, however, it is documented that she felt trapped into condemning Catholics to their death and was mortified following the sentence to death of her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots.
Saint Nicholas Owen was a trained carpenter and joiner as well as a Jesuit priest and devised many of the hiding places in the larger Catholic households. Tortured to death in the Tower of London, he was honoured as a martyr by the Catholic Church and canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1970.
All other remaining characters are fictitious. Reference to practices, speech and lifestyle of the period are close to accuracy, having been thoroughly researched, but who can, hand on heart, determine what facts are one hundred percent true?
There is an abundance of literature pertaining to the division of social classes. The Sumptuary Laws, for example, reveal what the different social ranks could wear. Crown princes, Kings and Queens were in fact believed to be born privileged and second only to God.
With regard to the greed of Edward Griffin, there was indeed a new wave of higher status gentry achieving recognition from acquired wealth, particularly from sheep farming on the recent enclosures of arable land.
The Earl of Becton would no doubt have had a much larger staff than is documented in my story, but for the purpose of character building this was deliberately kept low.
The study of antidotes for suspected cases of poisoning was becoming popular in the late sixteenth century. Although toxic ingested substances were on the whole accidental, in political circles, cases of deliberate poisoning was still around as it had been since the Middle Ages and continued to be feared.
Wise women or ‘Herb women’ did indeed experiment with plants and herbs thought to cure common ailments. Witchcraft was an offence punishable by drowning or burning at the stake but unlike Kathleen Melton, the crime victim was likely to have been beaten unconscious or strangled before her body was burned. Scotland hosted most of the burnings of witches.
A Few Tudor Properties with Identified Priest Holes
Coughton Court in Warwickshire. The home of the Throckmorton family. The hole is disguised in the turret. (National Trust)
Harvington Hall in Worcestershire, contains about seven priest holes.
Oxburgh Hall, in Norfolk. Mary, Queen of Scots was once imprisoned there. (National Trust)
Baddesley Clinton in Warwickshire. The house was said to have held a secret Jesuit conference that was raided. (National Trust)
Other Tudor Houses to Visit
Hardwick Hall, Doe Lea, Derbyshire. The home of Bess of Hardwick. (National Trust)
Rufford Old Hall, Lancashire (National Trust)
Hampton Court Palace, London
Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, Stratford
Bradley, Newton Abbot, Devon (National Trust)
The Old Manor, Ashbourne, Derbyshire (National Trust)
Sudbury Hall, Ashbourne, Derbyshire (National Trust)
Greys Court, Oxfordshire (National Trust)
Cotehele, Cornwall (National Trust)
Trerice, Cornwall (National Trust)
Montacute House, Somerset (National Trust).
Longleat House, Wiltshire
Burghley House, Peterborough
Moreton Corbet Castle, Shropshire (English Heritage)
Old Gorhambury House, (remains of), Hertfordshire (English Heritage)
Kenilworth Castle, Warwickshire. (English Heritage)
Kirby Hall, Northamptonshire. (English Heritage)
Lyddington Bede House, Leicestershire. (English Heritage)
Apethorpe Palace, Northamptonshire (English Heritage)
Hill Hall, Essex. (English Heritage)
Portland Castle, Dorset. (English Heritage)
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, to my husband Len, who has painstakingly rea
d all my drafts (and there have been many over several years).
Also to my independent editor, Jack Bates, whose initial red pen obliterations and marking horrified me. I did more pruning than I would for a field full of roses.
My friend and avid reader, Sam Hopwood, who like Jack, gave me excellent feedback and is a stickler for grammar!
Another friend and reader, Margaret Dawson, encouraged me at a low point by reading it all in one day, because she couldn’t put it down and last, but not least, my grandson Oliver, who is thirteen and gave me sound advice re the story’s structure and content.
When attempting to self-publish, my dismal lack of expertise was clearly evident (and heard by those in close proximity).
If it were not for the services and feedback of Anne Grange, a published author herself – ‘Outside Inside’ and ‘Distortion’ are her novels, The Curse of Becton Manor would still be collecting dust on the hard drive!
Although I was so grateful Anne’s support, I periodically submitted my story to agents and publishers in the hope of securing a publishing deal.
In April 2020, I submitted my work to ‘Burning Chair’ a publisher based in the UK. Within a few weeks they requested the full manuscript, but I was afraid to get excited.
The team however loved it. Simon fine tooth combed it, then Pete did the copy edit. It needed more work. I thought ‘Oh no, not again’ but I am so appreciative of everyone’s critique, feedback, thoroughness and honesty.
The story has improved due to all their support. and the work on the front cover has resulted in a well presented novel, thank you.
About the Author
Patricia Ayling is married with five grown up children, several grandchildren and a giddy Labrador. She lives on the border of South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire.
The inspiration for this novel stems from stories of strange incidents in her grandparents’ farmhouse in Wiltshire. She also enjoyed researching the last years of the Elizabethan era, including visits to Chatsworth House and Hardwick Hall. The combined interests led to the writing of The Curse of Becton Manor, which was completed while she lived in Cyprus.
She is fascinated by what makes people tick and enjoys writing gritty and pacey plots with strong characters.
About Burning Chair
Burning Chair is an independent publishing company based in the UK, but covering readers and authors around the globe. We are passionate about both writing and reading books and, at our core, we just want to get great books out to the world.
Our aim is to offer something exciting; something innovative; something that puts the author and their book first. From first class editing to cutting edge marketing and promotion, we provide the care and attention that makes sure every book fulfils its potential.
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