“Then is it a crime to protect someone who has committed no worse transgression than to voice a belief that peace might be restored if the king proved again that he is the lover of justice and law that we all know he is?” The maid shook her head to indicate she was not yet done. “If this man were found before he escaped the village, he could well be imprisoned and even executed for no greater crime than his hope of peace.”
“Has he sworn violence or taken up arms against the king?” This time, Eleanor controlled her anger over any perceived insult to the king’s justice. Sir William was dead, a man most agreed was fair. Who knew who would take over his position and how he would render justice? And, as Eleanor knew, justice was often hard to obtain when blind passions, common during war, ruled.
“Never, nor would he. He has been unwillingly stranded here. His only wish is to reunite with his kin in Wales. Once there, he will avoid the war as best he can, having no longing to fight. He only lacks the way and time to leave. He will remain hidden here only until the moment he can depart.”
“Do you know this man well and do you swear to his loyalty to the king?” Eleanor knew how risky this approach was. Eluned had not so much lied to her as avoided answering questions fully. Yet her instinct told her that the maid was honorable. Even if she was in strong sympathy with the Welsh cause, and the prioress had no doubt she was, she did not seem likely to commit or advance treason.
Were Eleanor truthful with herself, she, too, had some quarrels with the king’s decisions, although they remained unspoken. Yet she was not Welsh, and her eldest brother was both a liegeman of the king and his friend. It was highly unlikely her loyalty would ever be questioned.
“I know him well, my lady, and I can swear that he wishes King Edward no ill in body, life, or rule.”
Not quite the same thing as being loyal, the prioress thought, but set that aside for the moment and asked her most important question.
“Is he the ghost that men speak of in the village?”
“He is, my lady.”
“Yet Bardolph was convinced the man who knelt by Father Payn’s corpse was the executed Hywel.”
“He resembles him well enough in the shadows that linger even in the light of the fullest moon,” Eluned replied, “but I give you my oath that he has slain no one. If I lie to you, may the Prince of Darkness take my soul and condemn it to the worst torture possible for eternity.”
“If he is not the murderer, who is?”
“That I cannot answer,” the maid replied. “If I could point my finger at the one, I would. The three dead men were flawed, but they were no more evil than most of us. I cannot say they offended anyone deeply enough to invoke the rage to kill.”
The prioress realized that Eluned had reached the edge of her endurance. She was taking enormous chances in stealing food and keeping this man’s secret. Although she might have several reasons for hiding him, Eleanor suspected that the strongest one was love.
Eluned now bent forward and covered her face. “My lady, is there any way you can help this innocent man escape to Wales? I beg your mercy. He is innocent of all wrong, and yet…”
“You love him.”
“I confess it, and he loves me.”
Although she feared she might regret this promise, Eleanor’s own heart understood all too well what the young woman was suffering. What would she not do to save Brother Thomas’ life? She fought to retain her masculine reason and banish her womanish heart. The battle between her two natures was short, but neither side was victorious. She was forced to a compromise.
“I can promise nothing, my child, and must require further proof that this man is free of any hint of treason. I must also insist that you help in all ways possible to find whoever has killed so viciously. If you can do all that, I will also do what I can to help this man leave the village safely. I cannot promise, nor can anyone during a time of war, that he will reach Wales and his family without harm.”
Eluned swore to help.
As the cresset lamp now threatened to go out, the two women rose.
Eluned took the dying lamp, left the food where she had placed it, and the two women climbed the stairs.
As Eluned turned to close the vault door behind her, she whispered to Prioress Eleanor, “Go to Lambard. If you say to him ‘Eluned says Hywel wishes it,’ he will know I have given him permission to tell you all he knows or even suspects. I think he can prove the innocence of the man I am helping to hide. He may even show you paths to investigate in your quest for this terrible killer.”
And yet, Eleanor thought, he did not do so for Brother Thomas. Why would he now become more agreeable? Because Eluned approved? She chose to ponder the problem later. For now, she simply nodded.
With that, the prioress let the maid hurry off to her mistress.
Although she had to meet Sister Anne at the sheriff’s house, Eleanor needed time alone to consider what she had learned and try to make sense of the contradictions and new complexities.
She also prayed she had not been criminally foolish and erred tragically by what she had promised the maid.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Eluned looked neither left nor right as she ran into the house now owned by Sir Rainold.
Brother Thomas and Sister Anne watched her, and then went back to the subject of their conversation.
“What a monstrous way to kill a man,” Sister Anne said. “And the murderer used Sir William’s own sword to decapitate him?” She shuddered.
Nodding, Brother Thomas took a moment more to catch his breath after returning from the bridge. “From what I was able to see when I examined the body, I believe Sir William was struck down first, just as Bardolph was before he was hanged. The sheriff was probably unconscious when the assailant took the sword and cut off his head. The blow was not cleanly finished but was enough to kill him.”
Thomas winced. The memory of Sir William, lying on the blood-soaked earth with his head dangling by a few shreds of flesh and bone, would remain with him longer than most violent deaths he had witnessed. “This was an especially cruel murder.”
Hearing footsteps, the pair turned to see their prioress approaching.
“I heard part of what you said, Brother. The form of this death appears to be symbolic, as were the other two,” Eleanor said.
“I am so glad you have returned,” the sub-infirmarian said. “The Lady Mary has accepted as much comfort as she could tolerate, and Brother Thomas has just come from examining the sheriff’s corpse.”
Eleanor frowned for a moment. “Did Sir Rainold take you there and return? He was here with the widow when we arrived. I assumed he had already had the corpse moved to the abbey.”
“He sent a servant to tell me of the death and relay the message that Rainold could not accompany me. His duty lay in consoling the Lady Mary and assuring her that she had no fears regarding her future now that he has inherited. He gave orders for the servant to take me to the murder site so that I might better examine this latest corpse. Only then would the body be sent to Abbot Gerald for care.” Thomas described in detail to his prioress what he had seen and concluded.
“As it was with Bardolph, no satanic imp needs to render a man unconscious before cutting off his head,” Anne said. “I agree with Brother Thomas that this crime was an earthly one.”
Eleanor’s smile was grim. “I have spoken with Eluned, and she admitted that the ghost we have been seeking is a creature still owning flesh and blood.”
“Then you have found the killer!” Sister Anne’s eyes sparkled with happiness.
“Yet you allowed her to freely return to this house?” Brother Thomas looked at his prioress. “I do not understand.”
“I have not found the murderer, or at least I do not think I have,” Eleanor replied and told the pair about her meeting with the maid.
Sister Anne threw her hands up in di
sgust. “It is unconscionable! Even if this Welshman is innocent of all wrongdoing, surely a way could have been found before now to get him away. How could this woman allow the village to remain fearful? Who is this man she is feeding? And how came she to hide him in the first place?”
“Do you even believe her claim that he is innocent, my lady?” Thomas made no attempt to hide his doubt.
“I remain certain that Eluned is still hiding parts of the truth, although she has wit enough to realize that I could report how she has been stealing food and harboring a man whose loyalties, in this time of war, are questionable. Barring unusual mercy from her mistress, her thefts are criminal even if the man she is protecting is innocent. For that reason alone, I think most of what she has told me is factual.”
“Thus she kept silent only on what she believes you do not know and cannot find out.” Sister Anne’s voice betrayed a rare anger.
“Quite probably.” Eleanor looked up at her monk. “There is one more detail. She gave me the name of one she claims can confirm her story and the innocence of her hidden man. You have already had contact with him, Brother. It is Lambard, the spice merchant.”
Thomas failed to hide his shock and squeezed his eyes shut to recover himself. “Indeed, my lady?” was all he was able to say.
The prioress did not remark on his reaction and only asked, “What was your opinion of the man?”
“I cannot say,” he replied and quickly tried to decide what he dared reveal. “As you concluded with Eluned, I wondered if he knew more about this matter than he ever divulged, yet I am unable to explain why I thought so.”
“He did say he would try to help you resolve the sightings of the ghost.”
Thomas slowly nodded as if still pondering.
“He mentioned nothing about his readiness to lend Hywel’s brothers his hut to wash and prepare the body for burial? He may have been the last to have seen the two men.”
“He said nothing about that. Perhaps he thought the cleansing of the body was irrelevant?” The monk frowned. “Yet it was an odd thing for him to have done. Hywel had been hanged for killing Englishmen. None of the other villagers, despite the opinion held of the stonemason before the trial, would have allowed the brothers a location to cleanse the body of such a criminal.”
“Take your time, Brother,” Eleanor said. “Think carefully about that night at the inn. Was there anything he said that seemed odd? Might he have tried to find a way to discover if he could trust you? Many would take his willingness to help the brothers as an offense to the king and the dead Englishmen. Although you say he seemed eager to help, I can understand why he might be cautious.”
There was nothing Thomas wished to remember about that night. He swallowed hard and tried to do as his prioress wished. “After I had spoken to some of the merchants, he suggested the two of us leave the inn and led me to a narrow alley where he said we might see the phantom. We did not, and we soon parted company. He most certainly did not mention his offer of the hut or any conversation he might have had with the brothers after the execution. Perhaps he decided, for some reason, that he could not trust me enough.”
“I understand that he might wonder because you came here in the company of the Wynethorpe family, yet he knew that before he offered to help. Can you think of anything else that might have caused him to hesitate?”
“I cannot. We had both drunk too much ale, my lady. A man’s judgment is not logical under those circumstances.” Thomas longed for this discussion to end.
“Despite the good reasons he would not want to speak of this detail to villagers, his past failure to do all he could to help us troubles me. How willing will he be to do so despite Eluned’s encouragement? We are dealing with murder, not treason as far as I know. Yet I wonder. Eluned may be wrong about Hywel’s innocence. Perhaps Lambard is more involved in the crime for which the stonemason was executed than is known.”
Thomas kept his eyes lowered to hide his thoughts. If Lambard had used seduction to distract him from discovering the merchant’s involvement in the murder of English soldiers, he also made it impossible for him to speak the truth lest the merchant reveal the sin committed. If Thomas stayed silent, he became an accomplice in the crime for which Hywel was hanged.
To prove his loyalty to King Edward, he would be forced to reveal his sodomy. At best, that might mean sentencing by the Church to a life in a solitary cell. At worst, it could mean a slow death at the stake if the support for such punishment had grown strong enough. Even if he was prepared for either punishment, how could he bring humiliation down on his prioress for harboring a sodomite?
“We must speak with Lambard privately and hear what he has to say when he learns that the maid has given permission. Since you have spoken with him before, Brother, I want you to accompany me. Your observations and questions will be crucial.” She turned to the sub-infirmarian. “And your insights will be needed as well, if you can spare the time away from my sister-in-law.”
“I feel greater confidence that I can,” Anne replied. “She seems to be healing well. If there is an urgent need to find any of us, we can leave word with a servant at the lodge. Someone can run swiftly enough to the spicer’s shop.”
Thomas could find no way to refuse his prioress’ request. As he nodded agreement, he implored God to give him strength to endure this meeting, find a way to spare his prioress, and gain the courage to face what could be a horrible future.
Eleanor finally smiled. “Having been foolish enough to chase after Eluned and follow her into a dark crypt alone, I am grateful that you both will be with me for this meeting. Having once failed to use the wits He gave me, I dare not call solely on His mercy a second time.”
May He show me that mercy as well, Thomas thought, and did not dare count the number of times he had beseeched such a kindness.
The trio walked on. It was not a long way between the dead sheriff’s house and that of Lambard the spicer, but, for Thomas, it felt like the walk he might have to take between prison and the stake where he would be burned.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The journeyman who greeted the monastic trio in the shop below the living quarters seemed not at all surprised by their visit, yet was hesitant to disturb his master.
“He is spending the day in prayer and fasting. He gave orders that he should not be disturbed unless it was a matter of dire urgency. If you wish alms, I have the authority…”
Prioress Eleanor smiled with appreciative sympathy. “It is not alms we seek, but our cause is pressing. I respect Master Lambard’s vow to dedicate this day to God and promise that we will neither interrupt his devotions nor tire him unduly.” Her expression shifted into one that clearly conveyed her message that any refusal was unacceptable.
With resignation, the man bowed, said he would return shortly, and then vanished up the stairs.
Knowing that her portrayal of unarguable determination was usually successful, Eleanor tried not to smile. Although her approach carried the power of her position as Prioress of Tyndal, she wondered how often the man’s wife had used the same look with equal success.
The journeyman soon came back and led the trio into a room above where Lambard stood, his expression carefully composed into one of warm welcome.
Thomas deliberately stood at the rear of the monastic party. He trembled with dread and fury in equal parts but was relieved when the spice merchant ignored him as he bowed to Prioress Eleanor and Sister Anne.
“I have called for refreshment,” Lambard said cheerfully. “My man servant will be here shortly.”
Both good spirits and smile are forced, Thomas noted, and wondered if his prioress and sub-infirmarian had concluded the same.
“I fear this matter requires privacy,” Eleanor replied. “Although your servant may be trustworthy, it is imperative that we four speak alone.”
For the first time, the merchant glance
d over the prioress’ head at Thomas. Alarm was unmistakably present in his eyes.
Briefly, Thomas felt his anger melt away, and he discreetly shook his head in response to the unspoken question. I may be a fool, he thought, but perhaps Lambard has as much reason as I to hide what we did in that alley.
“I shall tell him.” Lambard excused himself and left the room. When he returned, his face was gray. Shutting the door quietly behind him, he invited his guests to sit.
Giving permission to the others to do so, Eleanor remained standing. “I bring a message, after which I have many questions. Or, if you prefer, you may tell the whole story without omissions or shadings to hide truth.”
The merchant tensed, and then nodded.
“Eluned says Hywel wishes it.”
To Thomas’ ear, Lambard’s sigh was one of relief rather than regret.
“I hope she explained that, in giving you that message for me, you have agreed to take no action against any of us in this matter.” The merchant’s tone was respectful.
“I told her only that I would agree as long as treason against the king is not involved and that the man in hiding is no murderer. I need proof of both, Master Spicer, not allegations.”
“Some define treason more narrowly than others, my lady. Do you allow disagreement where there is no intent to commit any form of bodily harm or to overthrow a duly anointed king?”
“Eluned and I discussed that. In principle, I do. Yet I also know that men are known to twist meaning to suit their purpose and often try to make even murder sound like a loving act.”
“I swear on any hope my soul may have of God’s mercy that the only sin in what I am about to tell you is one man’s wish to join his family in Wales and a belief in his right to think King Edward might have avoided this war if he had been more generous with the Welsh after that last one.”
The Twice-Hanged Man Page 17
