by Anne Herries
‘We had no friends to help us,’ they seemed to say. ‘You are luckier.’
Could she really hear their voices and feel their spirits or was she losing all sense of reality? Melissa knew that she could not bear the darkness much longer, and she was using her candles recklessly. Her head ached and her feet felt as if they were frozen. It was so very cold and she was hungry. She had eaten all the food from her basket and the coarse bread lay uneasily on her stomach, making her feel queasy.
She felt the tears begin to trickle down her cheeks, but she dashed them away impatiently. Feeling sorry for herself would not help. She must be patient and not give way to despair. Her only hope was that Geoffrey of Brampton would return—and that next time he would help her to leave this place. If he did not come soon, she thought that she might indeed lose her mind.
‘Rob, my darling,’ she wept. ‘Please, please come for me. I need you so. I need you so.’
During the hours of darkness the only thought that had sustained her was that her husband would not rest until he found her. She knew that he cared for her, desired her as his wife, and for a moment she smiled as she remembered the sweetness of his loving, the touch of his hands.
‘I love you, Robert of Melford,’ she said, lifting her tear-stained face. ‘You will come for me. I know that you will come for me…’ It seemed to her then that she heard something…like the pounding of the sea or the roll of thunder.
Pray God, it was the guns of Rob’s army!
Rob told the men to take their positions for battle. They had a bridge that would hold the battering ram as it was brought against the gates, and the first move was to bring that up to the castle under covering shields that would protect the engineers from the arrows and iron bolts of the defenders. Rob’s engines of war had been pounding the walls for an hour and now it was time to go forward, for though the wall was not yet breached it had begun to show signs of cracks that might bring it down soon enough.
He mounted his horse for he intended to be one of the first into the castle when it was finally breached. At that moment, he saw a man riding hard towards him, and hesitated waiting for his scurryer to come up with him.
‘What news?’ he demanded. ‘Have you seen Henry’s army?’
‘Yes, sir. He comes now and will be with you within thirty minutes at most.’
Rob gave a great shout of joy for he knew that once the reinforcements reached them they would win the day. Leominster could not fight the overwhelming odds that would now be ranged against him. He held up his arm giving the signal for the great machines of war to move forward, his knights and foot soldiers lining up to make the charge that would distract the archers while the bridge was secured and the battering ram brought into play.
It was as they rode towards the castle that they saw the white flag hoisted above the battlements. Rob stared at it in disbelief for he had not expected the surrender until the walls had been breached and Henry’s men came up to reinforce them. However, even as the bridge and battering ram was brought up to the moat, the drawbridge came down with a rattle and fell into position, almost as though the ropes that held it had been hacked through with a sword rather than let down as normal.
Now some of the men and women were coming out, a crowd of them about forty strong, cheering and carrying sheets or shirts, anything white that they had been able to lay their hands on. It was mostly village folk who had been caught inside while at their work, and now came running, eager to surrender and pledge their loyalty to the new king.
They cried out to Rob that they had never wished to resist, begging for clemency. He waved them on, letting them pour down the hill towards their homes. Calling to some of his knights, he rode towards the bridge, still wary for there had been no official surrender from Leominster himself and this might be a trap. However, as he rode across the bridge, he saw that one of the officers had drawn the soldiers up into a neat formation. None of them were wearing arms. Their leader came to meet Rob, his sword laid across his hands as a sign that he was willing to surrender it.
‘The castle is yours, Robert of Melford,’ he said. ‘The Marquis of Leominster has been confined in the guardroom and we have taken charge of his men-at-arms. Those who would not agree to the surrender are locked in with him, though now that it is over I believe most will be willing to swear an oath of fealty.’
‘And you are?’
‘My name is Will of Amlea,’ the soldier said. ‘I am a freeman and gave my service to Leominster as my overlord—but he has become a monster and I shall serve him no more. I will serve you if you wish it, Robert of Melford.’
‘Thank you. You may keep your sword and speak to me of this again later,’ Rob said. He looked about him, raising his voice so that all might hear. ‘There will be no bloodshed unless a sword is raised in treachery against us. The King follows close on our heels and he will deal with your master. This castle and the manor of Leominster is hereby declared the property of King Henry VII of England. Let no man attempt to succour the traitor, Leominster, on pain of death.’
Dismounting, he looked at the man who had offered the surrender, for it was clear that the others had deferred to him. ‘Take me to Leominster himself,’ he said. ‘I wish to speak to him.’
‘Yes, sir,’ the man said. ‘Please follow me. You need not fear that this is a trap. Many of us wished to surrender from the start, but we were not brave enough to defy him. But what he did to the lady was so evil that it turned our stomachs…’
‘He has harmed Melissa?’ Rob’s hand went to his sword. ‘Is she dead?’
‘I do not know, sir,’ Will of Amlea replied. ‘She has been imprisoned in the oubliette and few return from there. Only one or two of the men here know the whereabouts of that dread place.’
‘But someone must have put her there!’ Rob glared at him, a red mist forming before his eyes. ‘What kind of a monster would do that to a gentle, sweet woman? Tell me, where is she?’
‘I do not know exactly,’ Will said, and looked uncomfortable. ‘Two men took her there, that is true. One of them died last night as we seized the marquis and made him a prisoner—and the other is badly wounded. I am not sure who else knows the way, though I can guide you to the tunnel that leads to her prison.’
‘Then, take me,’ Rob said. ‘Leominster can wait.’
‘But there is a trap,’ Will told him. ‘It may be best if you speak with the marquis first, sir. One way is false and leads to certain death.’
‘Then, I shall see Leominster first,’ Rob said. He was chaffing with impatience for every minute that Melissa spent in such a terrible place might be her last. He knew how she must be suffering for it was the punishment given only to those who were intended to die; forgotten and abandoned, it was a cruel, evil torture for death often came too slowly in these hidden places.
Following Will of Amlea to the guardroom, Rob’s mind was enduring a mental torture the equal of anything that Melissa had felt in her cell. Was she still alive? Or had she been thrown down into a hole to die like a rat? The pictures crowded in on him, searing him like hot irons as he felt the pain she must be enduring.
Several men were locked into the guardroom. He could hear their shouts as he approached and his heart hardened. These were the men that had stood with the marquis until the last. He would not grant them their freedom. They could wait until the King came and be judged as the traitors they were.
‘Forgive us, sir,’ several voices cried out. ‘We feared our master and would beg to be allowed to surrender to you and the King.’
‘Keep your excuses until the King comes,’ Rob said, his expression one of anger and bitterness. ‘Where is Leominster? Bring him out!’
There was some jostling and shouting, and then a man was pushed forward to the front of those crammed into a small space. Some of them jeered at him, and Rob knew that they must have suffered from his injustice times enough to hate him.
‘Release me at once,’ the marquis demanded of Rob. He was angry and h
umiliated, his thick lips curled in a snarl as he gripped the bars of his cell. ‘I shall know how to deal with the turncoats who put me here.’
‘You will answer to the King,’ Rob said. ‘I neither know nor care what becomes of you.’
‘Then you will never see your wife again,’ Leominster said with a cruel leer. ‘She may yet live. I am not sure how long it takes a woman to die of starvation, but it will be slow and painful.’
‘Damn you!’ Rob grabbed him by the throat through the bars, his hands tightening sufficiently to make Leominster gasp and choke before he was released. ‘I’ll see you put to the irons if you force me. You will see hell before she does! Tell me where she is or I’ll kill you myself.’
Leominster put his hand to his throat, his eyes narrowed and cold. ‘You will pay for that when Henry grants me leniency. As for that bitch you wed when she was promised to me—she may die for all I care. I’ll not tell you where she is though you put me to the rack.’
‘Damn you to hell!’
Rob drew his sword, but he felt a touch at his elbow and turned to look at Owain. ‘You gave your promise, Rob. Besides, a woman who claims she served Melissa wishes to speak with you. She says that she may know where you can find Melissa.’
‘No woman knows the secret,’ Leominster sneered. ‘But run to your death, Melford. I shall lay no flowers on your grave.’
Rob turned his gaze on him. ‘If she is dead you will not see the morning,’ he said, and turned away, following Owain outside.
The woman waiting there came forward, making a curtsey. ‘I pray you find my lady before she dies,’ Naomi said. ‘My man took her food and water, but he is lying wounded and cannot aid you. Last night when they brought him to me, he said that you must not turn right at the crossways for it is certain death in the darkness…’
‘Will of Amlea spoke of a trap,’ Rob said, and nodded his head. He looked about him seeking and finding the man he needed. ‘Come, Owain, the men can deal with this and Henry will be here soon. We must find her before it is too late. You—Will of Amlea—lead me to her.’
Will inclined his head but looked doubtful. ‘He told you nothing. I can lead you to the tunnel but it may be dangerous.’
‘Take me there and I ask no more,’ Rob said. ‘But it must be soon.’
‘Come with me, sir. She is imprisoned in the bowels of the earth. Below the castle there is a tunnel and at the end of it a natural chamber that may be entered only from above. There is no light in the tunnel and one way lies the sea and a sheer drop. I have never been beyond the torture chamber and the dungeons. But I can show you the entrance.’
‘Then lead me there and I shall find her,’ Rob said. He glanced at Owain. ‘You are with me?’
‘Always, my friend,’ Owain replied. ‘I guard your back as I have in battle for though we have had fair words from most here, I trust few.’
They followed Will into the main body of the castle, passing through the great hall to a room at the rear. Will pulled aside a tapestry, revealing a door. It opened when he pulled a lever in the wall, and he stood back for Rob to enter.
‘You go ahead of us with this torch,’ Rob said, taking one from the iron bracket on the wall. ‘Lead the way down, sir.’
‘Yes, sir, to the tunnel,’ Will agreed. ‘But from there I have no knowledge which way is safe.’
‘Leave that to me. I will lead then and you will follow, Owain in between us.’
Will bowed his head. Robert of Melford was no fool. In this instance he had no need to fear treachery for Will of Amlea was a man of his word. He would not go back on it or hinder their progress, though he would not wish to blunder on in the dark without a hint of where they were going.
They walked down the narrow stone stairway that led to the dungeons and the torture chamber. Seeing that there were prisoners and that a bunch of keys hung on the wall, Rob took them down and gave them to Owain, bidding him to set the poor devils free.
‘The King comes and you are pardoned in his name,’ he called out. ‘Go from here and do no wrong to any man and you will not be harmed.’
‘God bless you, sir,’ one of them cried. ‘If you seek the lady you must hurry for it is four days since she was brought here and she may not live much longer in that cursed place.’
Rob needed no urging. Will was standing at the entrance to a tunnel. He went ahead of him, holding another torch to light their way. It was dark and narrow and the smell was foetid, the walls damp to the touch. He could see that they were coming to a crossways and he turned to the left without hesitation, stopping to glance back as he sensed that the man behind had hesitated.
‘Are you sure this is the right way?’ Will asked, looking uneasy. ‘Be careful as you go for there could be a sheer drop before you know you are upon it.’
‘This is the way, for Naomi told me that her man had imparted the information to her while he was still conscious. I trust her—she had no need to tell me unless she wished to help my lady.’
‘It was Geoffrey of Brampton who brought food here,’ Will said. ‘If it were not for him we might never have risen against the marquis—but it was either see him hang or do as he begged us.’
‘If he lives he shall be rewarded and his woman with him,’ Rob said. He stopped as he saw that the tunnel ended in a solid wall. ‘Damn it! Have we taken a wrong turn? Should it have been the other way after all?’
‘It must be here,’ Will said, and brought his torch forward. They both saw the grating at the same moment. ‘Down there! See, there is a lever on the wall, sir—and an iron ladder. Fix your torch in this bracket and see if you can move it…’
Rob did as he suggested, pulling on the lever. The grating began to slide across, but stuck halfway, the metal rusty and ancient. He bent down and pulled at it with his bare hands, shifting it little by little until it was wide-open.
‘Hold your torch so that I see down,’ Rob instructed. ‘Melissa—are you there?’ He waited but there was only silence. ‘Melissa! Answer me if you can. It is Rob. I am here at last, my love.’
This time he thought he heard a slight moan. It was obvious that though he might be able to jump to the first step, he could not get back without some form of help. Glancing about him, he saw that an iron ladder was bracketed to the wall, and realised that it was the only way down and out. Dare he go down and leave Will here alone? He hesitated but then he heard voices and he saw that Owain had come, two of the released prisoners following.
‘I have to put this ladder through the opening and climb down there,’ he said. ‘I need someone to hold the ladder and I may need help to get her up.’
‘I’ll come with you,’ Owain said, but Rob shook his head. He looked at one of the prisoners. ‘You there—by what name are you called?’
‘John of Leominster,’ the man replied. ‘I am cousin to the marquis but he feared I coveted his lands and he imprisoned me two months since, because he knew that I supported Henry Tudor. I will willingly help you with the lady, sir.’
‘I shall go down first and see if she is there,’ Rob said. ‘When I am on the bottom rung, hand me down a torch so that I may see where she is—if she is here.’ As if in answer to his words, there was a moaning sound. Rob put the ladder in place while Will and Owain held it steady at the top, making sure that it could not fall while he was on it.
He took the torch while he could still reach, and then turned to look about him. Seeing a huddled figure lying at the bottom of the steps, he gave a cry and went quickly down to her, turning her so that he could look at her face. She was clearly ill, and her skin felt damp and cold to his touch. Feeling the icy chill of the cell, he shivered.
‘It is a wonder that she survives in this place,’ he said. ‘But she still lives. Come down and help me carry her up the ladder, John. She is not heavy but it will be easier with the two of us. I do not wish to risk injuring her.’
‘I am still strong enough to help her,’ John of Leominster said. ‘I had friends who brought food
for me, though had my cousin had his way I should have been dead. The only reason he did not put me here is that he feared my friends might take up arms against him if they learned that he had had me murdered.’
Rob lifted Melissa in his arms. ‘Wait near the top of the ladder,’ he instructed. ‘I shall hand her up to you and the others may help you to lift her out of this cursed place.’ There was a note of anger in his voice for what he had seen had enraged him further. ‘I swear that that devil shall pay for this! Only a monster would have done this to a gentle lady.’
‘You have my support,’ John of Leominster said. ‘My cousin knew that I would have joined Henry Tudor had he not imprisoned me, and taken half the village with me I daresay. Some of his men would have joined me, too, for he is hated and feared by most.’
‘They rebelled against him or we might still be at the gates,’ Rob said. ‘Take care now, John. Do not let her head bang against the iron grating as you draw her through. I would not have her suffer more than she already has.’
‘Trust me, I have her securely.’
‘We have her now.’ Owain’s voice came down to him. ‘She is safe, Rob. Come up yourselves. We shall form a sling to carry her through the tunnel, using her cloak and this blanket. She is breathing still, though very pale. Pray God, that she will recover once we have her in her chamber.’
Rob came up after the others. Owain and some of the other men had gone ahead, carrying their precious burden through the tunnel. He looked down at the oubliette and shuddered.
‘There are the bones of others less fortunate lying there,’ he said to Will. ‘You should form a working party to bring them up so that they may be decently buried by the priest—and then this tunnel is to be blocked up. No one must ever come here again.’
‘You are right,’ Will replied, and shuddered. ‘I shall have it seen to immediately. Once the remains are removed, the tunnel will be bricked in so that no one can ever be shut up down here in the future.’
