[Roger the Chapman 04] - The Holy Innocents (12 page)

I stroked my chin thoughtfully. 'So,' I said, 'in spite of the cook's and the maid's protestations that the children could not possibly have left the house without their knowledge, somehow or other they must have done so.'

'Yes. But alive, and without the assistance of Eudo Colet. Loath as most people were to accept that he had nothing to do with their disappearance, in the end, it was generally agreed that, following the quarrel with their stepfather, Andrew and Mary decided to run away, managed to escape unseen and took to the forest, where they got lost and were captured by the outlaws.'

'But why should the outlaws kill them?' I wondered.

'Perhaps, after a few weeks, they saw a chance to make a bid for freedom, and took it.' Grizelda's eyes filled with tears. 'They would not be easy to control, those two. They had courage and spirit, especially Andrew.'

I frowned. 'If the truth be told, you are satisfied in your own mind, are you not, that Eudo Colet had nothing to do with your young cousins' deaths?'

The silence stretched between us. After a long time, she nodded.

'I suppose so. I must be satisfied, mustn't I? There is no other conclusion I can come to.'

I did not answer immediately, but after a while, I said cautiously, 'There may be an explanation which no one has yet thought of.' I hesitated before adding, 'I have had some success in the past in solving mysteries which others considered too difficult to unravel, and I might be able to uncover something in this case, if you so wish it.'

My companion glanced at me in surprise, then smiled uncertainly, not sure if my claim were to be taken seriously.

'I could not put you to the trouble,' she eventually protested. 'You will want to be on the road again tomorrow.'

I shook my head. 'I've made good money in Totnes, enough to support myself for several weeks before I need to restock my pack. And, as I told you earlier, Oliver Cozin has offered me the shelter of Master Colet's house until he departs for Exeter on Saturday, and I suspect he would be happy for me to remain as long as I wanted. It seems your cousin's husband can find neither tenant nor buyer for the property at present. Why is that? Although I think I know the answer.'
 

Grizelda nodded. 'Oh, yes. There are still rurnours of witchcraft in the town; people like Jacinta of the castle ale-house believe Eudo Colet guilty of a compact with the Devil. Small blame to them, I suppose, when everything worked out so well for him, the children's deaths following so pat upon their mother's. It was the reason why he dismissed the servants and shut up the house to take lodgings with Dame Winifred and Agatha, on the other side of the river. It would never surprise me to know that he had removed from the district altogether.'

'Not according to the lawyer. If Oliver Cozin is to be believed, he is even now negotiating on Master Colet's behalf for a new property hereabouts, although exactly where, he did not mention.'

There was a sudden raucous cawing above our heads as a rook with some titbit dangling from its beak flew home to its nest among the trees. The sunlight slithered across the jetblack plumage and tipped the ragged wings with gold.

Grizelda watched the bird until it disappeared, when she lowered her eyes again and turned to me.

'So,' she said at length, 'Eudo Colet intends to remain to plague us, does he? I thought that surely he would go away and leave us all in peace to mourn the dead.' She lifted her chin and I saw the jawline harden. 'Do you really believe that there is anything you can possibly discover that has eluded the vigilance of the rest of us?'

'That I don't yet know,' I answered. 'I can but try, so long as I have your blessing. You are the person most nearly concerned with the dead, both by blood and friendship, and therefore the one to be most distressed by memories if I proceed.'

Once more, she tilted her head back against the wall, eyes dosed, thinking. I did not try to persuade her one way or the other; the decision must be hers, and hers alone. But I waited with bated breath for the reply, my curiosity by now fully aroused, and with the bloodhound scent of the chase hot in my nostrils. And yet, because I felt sure that God had led me to this place, once again to do His bidding, I did not truly doubt what her answer would be.

I was not disappointed. Without opening her eyes, she nodded.

'Very well. If you can find out anything further, you have my blessing. But I must warn you that I think you will not succeed.'

I leaned forward, my hands on my knees. 'Perhaps. But did it never occur to you, or to anyone else, that Master Colet might have made a compact with the outlaws to steal the children and do away with them later? These things do happen. In Bristol, unwanted kinfolk are still sold into slavery with the Irish, in spite of the fact that the trade has been banned by both State and Church for more than two hundred years.'

Grizelda looked horrified, but argued that such a possibility would have been considered by the Sheriff; if by no one else.

'Yet, if so, it must have been dismissed in the end. For how could the outlaws have spirited the children out of the house without themselves being seen? Or how could a rendezvous have been arranged between the children and their captors without Mary and Andrew's connivance? And I should tell you that the gatekeepers on all the town gates were questioned most minutely, but not one of them remembered seeing two small children on their own. Indeed, not a single person was found who had even the smallest recollection of sighting either Mary or Andrew, within or outside the walls that morning.'

'But they got out somehow!' I placed my hand over hers, where it gripped the edge of the bench, and she made no attempt to free it. 'Are you seeking to discourage me?' I asked. 'Are you regretting your decision to let me probe further into this affair?'

She looked me full in the eyes then, smiling and shaking her head.

'No. I just want you to understand the difficulties you are facing. I wouldn't wish you to think that others had been lax in their duty and not given every consideration to even the most unlikely probability.'

I grinned. 'In short, you are trying to check my conceit before I make a fool of myself and have to admit that I am no cleverer than my elders and betters.'

'No, no!' she laughed. 'I only meant... Oh, I don't know what I meant! You confuse me.'

'Do I?' I raised my free hand and stroked her cheek, the skin soft and smooth despite its weather-beaten appearance.

Then, as much to my own surprise as I think to hers, I leaned forward and kissed her on the lips.

Chapter Eight

'That,' I said, a trifle breathlessly, 'is in return for the kiss you gave me yesterday morning.'

'Did I kiss you yesterday?' The brown eyes mocked me, but I thought I also glimpsed a tenderness in them. 'So I did.

I remember now. When we parted.' She cocked her head to one side, as though to ask, 'What response do you wish me to make?'

I had no answer to her unspoken question. She was unlike any other woman I had ever known or thought myself in love with. So far, these had all been women younger than myself; and while Grizelda was, indeed, thirty to my twenty-two, in maturity she gave the impression of a sibyl, wise beyond her years.

Moreover, I guiltily recalled that on the several occasions when both Jacinta and Grizelda had talked to me of Rosamund Colet dying in childbirth the previous Martinmas, I had not once remembered that my young wife, Lillis, had also died of the selfsame cause around that time. There had been no well-spring of grief nor bitter recollection to bring tears to my eyes or a lump to my throat. I had quite simply forgotten that I, too, was a man bereaved, left with a child to care for. I felt suddenly and deeply ashamed.

'What is it?' Grizelda asked gently. 'Something is bothering you. There's unhappiness in your face.'

Perhaps there was no other woman, under such circumstances, to whom I would have given an honest answer, but with Grizelda I felt that I could tell her the truth. She heard me out in silence, drawing a little away from me, but still retaining her clasp on my hand. When I had finished my confession, she smiled.

'You have too tender a conscience, my friend. No one is able to control his or her thoughts, not even the most disciplined and saintly amongst us. It is how you translate those thoughts into actions that matters, and will matter to God on the Day of Judgement. Or to the Devil, if we happen to find ourselves before Old Scratch.' I crossed myself hastily, and again she smiled. 'You are a good man, Roger. Don't expect too much of yourself. There are times when we all have to accept what we are.'

'Do you?' I queried.

'Oh yes!' She spoke cheerfully, if a little ruefully. 'I realized many years ago that to be jealous or envious of those who had more than I did was not necessarily sinful. Oh, I was told that such feelings were wrong, but only by those who wished to keep what they had to themselves and deny me any share in it. Once I understood this, I was able to acknowledge my failings and to condemn myself less harshly. Even so, you told me yesterday that I was too severe on myself Well, now I tell you the same. You did not love your wife, but you did your best for her. You married her when she found herself with child, and I daresay you made her as happy as you could during the brief months you spent together. Be content with that. It's as much as God has a right to ask of you.' I eyed her a little askance, wondering if I should cavil at what any churchman would condemn as blasphemy, but knowing that if I did so, I should be a hypocrite. Had I not entertained similar thoughts myself from time to time? And no priest worth his salt would condone the arguments I had with God, nor the direct way I approached Him, instead of through the Virgin or the Saints` Grizelda and I had many ideas-in common. Maybe that was what drew me to her.

I debated silently whether or not a renewed advance on my part would be welcomed by my companion. I wished she did not make me feel quite so young and inexperienced. But while I hesitated, the moment was lost. Something landed with a thud at my feet, barely missing striking me on the forehead. With astonishment, I saw that the missile was a short, thick length of branch, stripped of its leaves and trimmed into a handy weapon. A piece of bark was peeling away from the core, and could have caused a nasty, ragged gash had it hit me. Looking up swiftly for my assailant, I saw Innes Woodsman standing on the opposite side of the clearing.

Gathering up the piece of wood, I rose menacingly to my feet, and Innes, after staring defiantly for a moment or two, withdrew strategically into the trees.

'I seed you kissin' her!' he shouted. 'You leave 'er be! She's a bad woman!'

I advanced a few paces, letting my arms hang loosely by my sides, He retreated a little further, with equal deliberation, unsure of my intentions. Then I sprang with such suddenness that he lost valuable seconds before he realized what was happening, and so fast that I was on him before he had taken more than a couple of steps` I bore him to the ground, pinioning his wrists together with my hands so that he was unable to make a grab for his knife.

'This is the second time in as many days you've tried to harm me,' I accused him through gritted teeth. 'I think I'm about due for a reckoning, don't you?'

He looked up at me with a hatred I was shrewd enough to know was really meant for Grizelda. 'She's a bad woman!' he repeated. 'You let 'er be.'

For answer, I tightened my grip on his bony wrists and tried to ignore the rancid smell of him - sweat and dried urine and mouldering leaves - which, at this little distance, was all-pervasive.

'Why do you vilify Mistress Harbourne so?' I demanded.

'Let him go, Roger,' Grizelda said from behind me. She had advanced so quietly that I had not heard her approach. I told you yesterday, he means no harm.'

'I beg to differ,' I answered shortly, and turned my attention back to my captive. 'Well? What have you to say for yourself? I'm waiting.'

'She turned me out of my home,' was the sullen response, which rose to a mewling whine. 'You're hurting my wrist, I ain't strong. You'll snap 'em in two if you're not careful.' I was unmoved by this complaint and, kneeling astride him, dug my knees into his fleshless hips.

'This cottage belongs to Mistress Harbourne, who graciously permitted you to use it until she needed it herself. And what is her reward? Not gratitude for benefits received! Oh, no! Rather, attacks on her person and abuse.' I bent closer to him, valiantly ignoring the blast of stinking breath.

'Now, let me make this clear! If I hear that you have tried to harm her just once more - just once, mark you! - I shall hunt you down and thrash you within an inch of your miserable life.' I rose, abruptly releasing him, and watched in silent contempt while he scrambled to his feet and made off amongst the trees without so much as a backward glance. I turned to Grizelda. 'You must promise to tell me if you have any more trouble from him.'

She led the way back to the cottage.

'You're very kind,' she said, 'but you have no need to concern yourself with me. I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself.'

'That man has a knife,' I persisted, 'and bears you a grudge. I would much prefer that you allowed me to send word to the Sheriff. Innes Woodsman could well prove dangerous, not simply to you, but to others.'

Grizelda resolutely shook her head.