And Less Than Kind

by Mercedes Lackey

  Nor was there purpose in watching Elizabeth's religious practices. Elizabeth attended Mass regularly and gave the service lively attention, if not fervor. Certainly there was no one in the household who might conduct an heretical service in the middle of the night. Spying on her was not worth a night of broken sleep.

  She was surprised then when Harry jumped to his feet as soon as she came into sight and said, "Bess, you've had no dealings with the rebels, have you?"

  "Rebels?" Elizabeth echoed, stopping dead before she reached the table, which was busily rearranging chairs to accommodate the new arrivals. "What rebels?"

  Harry came forward and led her to a seat next to his chair. Rhoslyn, large-eyed, nodded to her, and Denoriel, frowning, took a seat on her other side.

  "There are whispers, specially in Courtenay's house, of a rising against the Spanish marriage," Harry said. "Has anyone visited or written to ask your approval of such an action?"

  "No!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "Da, how can you ask such a question? I am not an idiot. The only visitors I have had are Denno and a few tenants, who came on estate business."

  "What did they say to you?"

  "Me? I never saw them. Master Parry deals with the estate."

  Harry grimaced. "Parry! I remember all the trouble he got you into when he talked too freely to Tom Seymour. The man is a fool."

  "Not such a fool that he would listen to talk of rebellion and not mention it to me. He did tell me what Tom Seymour wanted."

  "Not clearly enough for you to realize he had put you in danger. What did he say the tenants wanted, Bess?"

  "The tenants." She looked down, frowning. "I do not think he mentioned them at all." She raised her head to look at Harry. "That means it was a very ordinary matter—a tenant being late with his rent or wanting to change what he had intended to plant." She sniffed loudly. "It cannot have been anything like asking my permission to support a rebellion."

  Denoriel laughed. "Yes, Harry, I imagine even Parry would not forget to mention a little thing like armed rebellion."

  Harry did not laugh in return. Perfectly soberly he said, "He would not if he thought mentioning it would endanger Elizabeth. As I said, the man is a fool, but he does love his lady and intends to serve her well."

  Elizabeth and Denoriel exchanged glances; he chewed his lower lip and she pressed both lips together until her mouth was no more than a thin line.

  "I do not think he would be foolish enough to completely conceal treason. I am sure he would warn me if he heard anything of that kind, but . . . but I will make sure to question him tomorrow."

  "Good, only be sure you do not sound as if you know anything about any rising. Parry means well, but do not forget how he spilled word of Seymour's advances when he was in the Tower. He is likely to confess to too much if you speak too freely to him."

  Elizabeth sighed. "I will be careful. But he must have known what he said could really do me no harm. Katherine was alive then and present during Seymour's indiscretions."

  Harry also sighed. He was accustomed to Elizabeth's loyalty to her old servants. "What about letters? You have not replied to any letter from one of those courtiers that hang about you, a letter that might have seemed to be wooing you, have you?"

  "The only letters I have received and replied to have been from members of the Council—and I wrote to Mary to thank her again for the sable hood and for the chapel furnishings and the priest. Kat and I thought it would not be wise to have too much correspondence. I did receive some letters bewailing my absence from Court when we first arrived, but I did not answer any of those."

  "You still have the letters?

  "Yes, of course.

  "Good. Keep every letter that arrives so it can be perused if there is an outbreak."

  Elizabeth's eyes widened. She knew that Mary did not trust her. Indeed, the reason that most messengers were turned away at the gates of Ashridge was because she feared some innocent message might be misinterpreted. And that fear was when there was no rumor of rebellion to sharpen it.

  "Surely no one will attempt rebellion," Elizabeth said plaintively, possibly proving the triumph of hope over foreboding. "There is nothing to rebel about. A little patience and reasonable discussion will surely smooth out the religious problems . . ."

  "It is the Spanish marriage," Rhoslyn said, also sighing.

  "But the terms the Council arranged protect England in every way—except if Mary has a child and dies in childbed."

  "I am glad you see it." Rhoslyn's voice was sharp. "It seems as if you are one of the few. When Gardiner explained the terms to an assembly of nobles and gentlemen at Westminster on January fourteenth and to the mayor and a council of citizens of London on the fifteenth, they were sour as unripe apples. Mary was furious! Both the mayor of London and the lords at Westminster said flatly that they did not believe the Imperial promises."

  "Oh my," Elizabeth said feebly.

  "So, my love, you must be careful," Harry said. "You must be very, very careful."

  Chapter 22

  The household at Ashridge closed tighter around Elizabeth as two tense weeks passed. She had enemies at Court and knew it. But it was her friends who brought danger with them.

  Sir James Croft was admitted to Ashridge when he came asking for an interview with Elizabeth "on a matter of importance," because William Saintlow, a long-time servant requested she speak to Sir James. Moreover Croft's father had been Mary's learned counsel before he died and Sir James himself had been knight of the shire for Hereford. The last Elizabeth had heard about him was that he was deputy constable of the Tower of London, one of Queen Mary's many officers.

  Sir Edward asked about the Tower and Sir James replied that he had not been there in some time, having been on a mission to Wales. Because Elizabeth wanted her household to look normal for the spies she was sure were seeded in it, Sir Edward no longer hung over every new arrival. It seemed safe enough to receive Sir James, and Shaylor was summoned to escort him in and watch him.

  Elizabeth suspected Sir James had been sent by some member of the Council to again warn her against making contact with the rebels. She was certainly willing to listen and agree with total sincerity to obey such a warning. Her first inkling that this was not an unofficial visit sanctioned by one of the queen's councilors was when Sir James, bowing over her hand, softly requested a private interview.

  "I am very sorry, Sir James," she said, backing up a step and not lowering her voice. "I have been too often accused of taking lovers. I do not receive any man in private."

  "But—" He shook his head, lowered his voice again. "I have news it is better for you to hear without witness."

  Elizabeth did not like that at all. It sounded as if some action was to be taken against her and Croft had been sent to warn her of it. Her first panicked thought was that no councilor would risk his place to send her a secret messenger, but she really knew she did have friends on the Council. Sir William Howard was her great-uncle and was fond of her; the earls of Arundel and Sussex, although they lectured her against treasonous acts, had eyes that saw Mary was thirty-seven and frail and Elizabeth was next in line; even Paget who was his own friend first did not want her dead. If someone on the Council wished to deliver a warning he did not want Mary to know about, it would be unsafe to ignore it.

  "My ladies can withdraw out of hearing," she offered without lowering her voice. "More privacy than that is not necessary and would do my reputation harm."

  Croft frowned but then gave a brusque nod; he waited while Elizabeth gestured to her women to withdraw, then stepped closer. Elizabeth withdrew again and held up a hand to prevent Croft from coming closer. Plainly he wanted to whisper. Elizabeth did not care about hiding from her ladies the name of whoever had sent Croft; she wished only to keep Mary's spies from being able to say that she had a whispered conversation with a man who might be a messenger of treason. She remembered all too well her dangerous passage through accusations of a secret marriage to Tom Seymour. Then even
so innocent a thing as a blush had been twisted against her.

  "I wish to warn you that there may be some unrest around the country," he said.

  Elizabeth drew a sharp breath. Her throat tightened and her heart leapt. Had Sir James been sent by Chancellor Gardiner to tempt her into admitting knowledge of the coming rebellion? When she spoke her voice was not hushed; it was high with shock.

  "What are you talking about? I know of no unrest in this realm. There is no reason for any unrest."

  Croft frowned again and shook his head. "I thought you would have received word . . ." Elizabeth's eyes widened and she stepped farther away from him. His expression puzzled, Croft added, "However you feel, my lady, much of the country is violently opposed to the Spanish marriage and to being driven again under the pope's yoke."

  "My sister has a right to marry as she thinks best," Elizabeth retorted. "She said herself it is not the place of others to choose a husband for her. As to the pope, the queen has always been a devout Catholic and regretted the lack of the pope's guidance. That is a matter for the Council and the Parliament, not for you or me. I have heard and will hear nothing about unrest in the countryside."

  "But it is dangerous, my lady. Remember there are two sides in any quarrel. It would be only simple caution for you to withdraw to a place of safety, like Donnington, where you can be properly defended."

  Elizabeth shook her head. "Defended? Defended against whom? The queen bade me to go to Ashridge when she gave me leave from the Court. Do you carry an order from Her Majesty or from the Council that I move?"

  Shaylor had come closer, his hand on his sword hilt. Croft looked nervously over his shoulder. "No!" he exclaimed. "But you would be safer in Donnington until the country is quiet."

  Elizabeth was torn with indecision again. If there was a rebellion . . . What if the rebels tried to take her and then the rebellion failed? Surely Mary would take advantage of her being with the rebels, even against her will, to order her execution. Still, Da had said she must seem to be ignorant of the rebellion and in such matters he was always right.

  "I know of no unquiet," Elizabeth insisted, "but I will think about your warning. It is kind of you, Sir James, to be concerned for my welfare. If it is true that there should be any disturbance, I will consider your advice."

  A finger twitch brought Dunstan out of the quiet corner from which he had been, as always, watching Elizabeth. An inconspicuous movement sheathed the knife he had been ready to throw. He stepped around the cluster of ladies and somewhere along the way picked up a salver on which there was a bottle of wine and a glass.

  "Let me offer you some refreshment," Dunstan said, bowing and offering the tray.

  His arrival effectively prevented Croft from saying anything more to Elizabeth, who, Sir James found by the time he had refused the wine, had turned away and summoned her ladies. She frowned slightly as she held out her hand to him to kiss in farewell, but it was to the ladies she spoke.

  She had no idea how much if anything they had heard of the conversation, but she had no intention of keeping it secret. "Sir James," she said, allowing her eyes to follow him as Shaylor escorted him out, "says there is unrest in the country because the people are unhappy with the queen's choice of a husband. I cannot believe how foolish that is. The Council has arranged that Spain will have no power over this country. Still, Sir James thinks that we would be safer in Donnington."

  "Donnington?" Alice Finch repeated. "Where is Donnington?"

  Elizabeth shook her head. "I would need to ask Master Cecil who has been my surveyor for some years. I have never been to Donnington in my life."

  "Do you think there is real danger of a rebellion?" Elizabeth Marberry asked.

  "I cannot believe it," Elizabeth replied. "The queen is so kind and works so hard for the good of the people—" and cannot whittle down her Council so they could actually help her govern instead of fighting each other nor can she hold for an hour together to a plan . . . except to marry that pallid offspring of the accursed emperor. "Who could be foolish enough to rebel?"

  "Perhaps you should ask Sir Edward to send out scouts so we would have warning if any unrest should start," Dorothy Stafford said. "Until there is any real danger, I would think it wrong to move from the place the queen designated for us."

  "I think so too," Elizabeth agreed.

  But she really did not know what to think about being urged to move to Donnington, and later, quietly, when Sir Edward came to tell her that the scouts he had long since sent out had found no local unrest, she suggested that he should order in extra arms and supplies for Ashridge in case of trouble.

  "Against whom must we guard?" Sir Edward asked.

  Elizabeth could only shake her head helplessly. "I do not know. I would not move to Donnington without an order from the queen or the Council, yet Ashridge is so spread out. I do not wish to be taken by the rebels and put up as a mock queen, like poor Jane Grey."

  "Rebels." Sir Edward snorted. "We can keep you safe from them. But what if there is an order from the queen?"

  Elizabeth shivered. "That I must obey. To fight against queen or Council is treason. I am Queen Mary's faithful and loving subject."

  Sir Edward bowed, but there was anger in his eyes. Elizabeth shivered again. She could only be grateful that it was Tuesday and that night Denno would come to take her to the Inn of Kindly Laughter where she could get reliable news and good advice.

  Elizabeth entered the inn eagerly, looking left to see whether anyone had preceded them. She was shocked to see a half-sized table with a family of gnomes seated in the space their table usually occupied. There had been too many shocks that day; her eyes filled with tears.

  "We will find them, Elizabeth," Denoriel assured her and began to look around for a server. "There," he said, nodding at a pole about six inches thick with red and white stripes constantly rising to a round white head. "The server will know."

  Elizabeth blinked at the thick pole; the moving red and white stripes sliding up and around made her a little dizzy. Despite her disappointment and anxiety, she could not help smiling and the fear that had made her so tense eased. "Of course we will—"

  Her voice checked when, suddenly, the small table with its family party of gnomes began to slide around the wall of the inn. None of the gnomes gave any sign of awareness of the motion. Elizabeth closed her mouth. As she and Denoriel stared, a human-sized table at which Rhoslyn and Harry were seated slid into place. They also showed no awareness that the table had moved and looked up to greet Elizabeth and Denoriel, who hurried over and sat down before the table got away from them.

  Elizabeth kept a wary eye on the wall behind them but then shook her head infinitesimally recalling that she could not detect illusion Underhill.

  "What's wrong?" Harry asked.

  Denoriel opened his mouth but made no attempt to answer the question directly, only saying, "This is a very strange place . . . even for one of the great markets of Underhill. Were you aware that the table was not in its usual position?" Both Harry and Rhoslyn gaped at him as if he were mad, and he shrugged, abandoning the topic to ask, "Is Pasgen coming?"

  Rhoslyn, looking pale and worried, said, "No. He came to leave a message at the empty house and I was fortunate enough to catch him before he left. It seems that he took Hafwen to a favorite Unformed land where he often collected power from the mist." She shrugged "I do not completely understand what Pasgen does, but somehow he draws power out of the mists. Only when he and Hafwen arrived he found what had been a rather gentle Unformed land was now an ugly chaos with dead places that stank of evil. The whole domain was stained and soiled. Hafwen, who is very sensitive to any taint of evil, was struck unconscious."

  "Is she recovered?" Elizabeth asked. She did not know Hafwen well, but had liked the quiet Sidhe when she met her.

  "Yes," Rhoslyn said. "It was only the shock. She begged him to leave her and discover what had happened. As you know Pasgen is clever with Gates. He was able to trace back from
which Gate the evil had come and he followed it back and discovered a whole trail of cruel, brutal, and senseless crimes."

  "That does not sound good." Denoriel frowned. "Has Vidal burst out into—"

  "I don't know," Rhoslyn said. "I spoke to Vidal myself not very long ago and he was completely calm and self-contained. As he was I cannot imagine him wreaking such havoc for no purpose. And I cannot think of any purpose . . . But Pasgen is . . . is going to report the trouble, and you know that Pasgen and Vidal never get along. I offered to go instead, but—"

  "No," Harry said. "That makes no sense. You did not see the places. What could you really tell Vidal? Pasgen is no fool. If Vidal is gone mad, he will not stay to confront him. If this is none of Vidal's doing . . . the armed truce between them will hold."