Daughters of the Doge (40 page)

Walsingham and Cheke nodded together. ‘Peter Vannes. What way is that for an ambassador to act?’ Cheke was visibly shaken, but Walsingham was calm.

‘We have to accept we are not dealing with honourable men. We can trust no one who is, or may be, in the pay of Queen Mary or, especially, of Felipe of Spain.’ He used the Spanish pronunciation as if speaking of a dog.

‘Cheke, here, and Sir Peter are returning to Antwerp. Sir John’s wife awaits him there and has written to ask him to return. We only hope it is not a trap. Sir Peter will look after him on the journey and will then proceed to Ireland to argue his case for the return of family lands. That is why we meet today, to formalize the formation of the Sons of England. Our purpose I have stated, our tactics will be to confound our enemies on every occasion and to build a series of reliable alliances with individuals who will remain silent, as “sleepers”, until the princess is crowned Queen. Only then will we appear at her side – to strengthen her position and to do her bidding.’

We all nodded our agreement and put our hands together like arm wrestlers, in a united grip, to signify our allegiance. But Walsingham had not finished.

‘What is our greatest vulnerability, gentlemen?’ There was confusion around the table. ‘I will tell you. The Princess Elizabeth herself

At this Cheke shook his head feebly. ‘No! I really can’t accept that . . .’

Walsingham put his hand on Cheke’s. ‘What I mean is, the only person in our plan known to Queen Mary and Philip of Spain is Princess Elizabeth herself, and if we allow ourselves to be discovered and our purpose becomes public, not only will we be beheaded for treason, but the princess will surely follow Lady Jane to the Tower and the axe.’ The significance of his statement took us all aback, and we looked at each other in concern.

‘On no account must we be discovered,’Walsingham continued. ‘If any of us is arrested, he must ensure he gives nothing away. There will be nothing in writing, except our letters in the agreed code, and as soon as they have been deciphered, they must, I repeat
must,
be burned. Is that clear?’

We all signalled our agreement and I made a mental note to burn Walsingham’s note as soon as I returned home. I, in turn, described the search of our house in Venice by state agents and told of Courtenay’s visit to Duke Ercole in Ferrara. Walsingham was disparaging.

‘The man’s a dangerous self-inflated fool. Keep your distance from him if you can, Richard. He will remain an active target for Queen Mary’s agents – with Vannes the most immediate threat. They will almost certainly assume the visit to Ferrara is part of a plot to join the French. Your very association with him is fraught with danger. Be very careful who you meet and what you say to them. Your own life is at risk, Richard, but if I may say so, another, more precious life might also be put at risk by your actions: the Princess Elizabeth’s.’

There was a pause while we all took in the magnitude of what he had said.

‘Go now, in quiet and secrecy. Do everything slowly and carefully. There is no great hurry. Only write to each other if it is essential and then always in code. Richard will return to Venice and try to observe the actions of the ambassador and their effect upon the state. Peter and John will travel to Antwerp. For myself, I am going to move to Switzerland to try to develop alliances there. God’s speed, gentlemen, and take care.’

We left quietly, one by one, subdued by the burden of what we had heard and agreed to.

I found Sebastiano at the fish quay, our boat full of those varieties of fish that were hard to find in our northern part of the lagoon.

‘Good, was she?’ He grinned conspiratorially.

I had told him the purpose of my journey was to visit a young married woman and that secrecy was essential. It had been the first excuse that came into my head, but Sebastiano had accepted it enthusiastically. Now he rubbed his finger against the side of his nose. ‘You must have been busy. You have been gone hours.’

I nudged his elbow with mine, and winked. ‘I had to wait until her husband had left. It was worth it, though.’

We jumped down from the quay into the boat and pushed off. The sails were dry and the jib and mizzen hoisted easily. Sebastiano steered her across the harbour and we raised the mainsail as we reached open sea. He looked back at Chioggia. ‘Better get some speed up in case her husband comes after you.’ I did my best to laugh, but I was very aware that the city of Venice was likely to become a good deal more dangerous for me than the fishing port we were leaving.

C
HAPTER
48

April the 5th 1556 – Ca’ da Mosto

I was keen to move into the new house I had found in Cannaregio but could not do so until the lease had been signed. I had now received four warnings: the first in the form of the visit of the State spies, the second direct from Veronica, the third the attempted murder of Sir Peter Carew, and now my friend Tintoretto was sufficiently concerned to add his voice to the warnings.

‘I have a friend in the government – not high up, it is true, but with access to information. Sometimes the information from the top does not allow you to know exactly what is to happen, but my friend is at what you might call the operational level and hears specific instructions being given. I knew that the
bravi
had been sent to the Ca’ da Mosto the other day, but did not associate it with me, or with you, so I said nothing. It was Veronica who made the connection and she prompted me to ask a few questions.

‘It appears there is an argument going on within the Council. One group wishes to support the English and get rid of your earl as a potential troublemaker. The Council has been approached by a representative of the English government, asking them to arrest the earl and deport him to England. However, the other group argue that such action would be inconsistent with Venice’s reputation as a free independent state and risks damaging our trade abroad.

‘This second group is angry at England’s attempts to interfere in the affairs of an independent state and they want Peter Vannes withdrawn as ambassador. They say he has acted beyond his authority and capacity and it is only his diplomatic position that prevents him from being arrested for attempted murder.

‘I have no idea which side will win the argument, but whatever happens Courtenay is at risk and will be closely watched upon his return to Venice. It is almost certain his papers will be examined to determine his intentions. My friends tell me that you are not on their list of suspects, Richard, but they are suspicious of the doctor, as he has accompanied Courtenay to Ferrara and may be an active participant in any plot that is unfolding.’

I had been back at the house for two hours since Tintoretto had given me the warning, but even now I felt agitated and indecisive. In truth, I did not care much what happened to the earl. He had always looked after his own interests and, apart from paying my costs as companion and secretary, he had not shown me any personal consideration. I really did not feel I owed him anything beyond what he was paying for. If he wanted to visit known allies of our enemies the French, I did not think it was my responsibility to protect him from his country’s wrath.

Thomas Marwood was another matter altogether, and I was determined do what I could to prevent him from being associated with anything that might put him at risk.

I felt no desire to write to the earl, and if I did, my communication was likely to be intercepted and might signal my own complicity in whatever dangerous plan he was getting sucked into. If that happened, my own freedom – perhaps even my life – was at risk. On the other hand, if I wrote to Marwood, and couched my letter in personal but distant terms, my letter, even if intercepted, would be interpreted as a warning to a friend to distance himself from potential wrongdoing. It was a tightrope to be walked, but the alternative – doing nothing – was probably even more dangerous.

I gathered paper, ink, pens and drying-sand, and made myself sit at the table and concentrate. How could I signal an early warning in my letter so that Thomas would understand its full significance? We had no codes between us, for we had never had need of them. An idea entered my mind. I had made no promise to write, and Thomas knew how infrequently I could be cajoled into writing home. That would be my clue.

I walked round the room three times; trying to think of any better way to convey my message, then sat and re-read what I had written.Yes, Thomas would be more than able to read between the lines and know that I was warning him, but wording the letter in such a way that it might appear innocuous to a third party.