Henry woke up after two weeks of being unconscious. The doctor's all thought it was a miracle that he did. He ate a lot as soon as he woke. He then called for Catherine. She came to him in a bright yellow gown. Her hair was hanging loosely and she had never looked more beautiful. He motioned for her to come and stand by the bed. He dismissed all of his attendants.
"Catherine," he said. "You look remarkable."
"Thank you. I am happy that you are well," she replied, but it did not sound as if she was happy.
"What is wrong?" he asked her.
"I thought you were to die," tears began coming from her eyes.
"Shh… All is well. Do not worry."
Catherine cried even more because she could not tell him the truth. She had wanted him to die. If he had died, she could have married Thomas and have many more children.
Henry took her into his arms on his bed. There was nothing he could think of to calm his beloved wife, so he did the only thing he could think of. They both removed their clothes and slept together as man and wife once more.
As time passed, Henry sought after her company more often. He had taking a liking of her in bed and he asked her there many times. Henry was a little mad at her for canceling the wedding between Thomas and Lady Elizabeth and they rescheduled it to take place at Kensington like it was before. The entire families left once again for the wedding. Before Bessie left, she came to the queen's chambers while everyone else was away. She bowed in a greeting to Catherine.
"Lady Elizabeth," Catherine exclaimed. "Whatever can I do for you?"
"Milady," she replied. "I do not want to disappoint you nor the King, but I do not wish to marry Thomas. He is your lover. Everyone, with the exception of the King, knows that. If I marry him, he will always be around you and I will never have any heirs to our fortune. I could be sent into the country forever and not see him." Bessie began to cry.
Catherine was shocked by her forwardness. No one, except the King, had ever spoken to her that way. She stood and walked over to Bessie.
"Sweetie," she said. She had actual sympathy for the whore. Sometimes, she even amazed herself. "Thomas will treat you right. He's a good man and he will do the right thing. When he is married, I will not see him in the carnal way that I have been. With this being said, I trust you not to let it slip that I was even involved with him. Please do this Bessie."
"Yes, Your Majesty," she replied. Even though Bessie had taken her husband away, she trusted Catherine not to do the same. Being involved with one man was bad, but being involved with a married man seemed a little worse. Bessie knew. She had done both before.
Catherine felt sorry for the child. She never knew what she got herself into when she had slept with the King. She took Bessie into her arms and whispered in her ear. With that, Bessie stood with a smile in her face, bowed, said "Thank you," and left the room.
Three days later the wedding was to take place. Thomas walked out of the room at Kensington and looked around for someone to get him water for a bath. He wanted to be clean before anything began.
"Servant," he called down the hall. The servant turned around and he saw Maria, the servant he had imported from France, turn and bow down to him.
"What can I do for you?" she asked with her French accent.
Thomas looked her up and down. She was pretty with her long, dark hair, her bright brown eyes. She was flawless.
"First," he began. "You can come into my chamber to clean."
She bowed and did as she told. Thomas grabbed the French maid around her waist from behind and pulled her close to him. She did not seem to object. He pulled her to the bed and had his way with her.
Bessie could not decide how to style her hair. She was no virgin and everyone knew that. She decided to ask the maid who was helping her, Maria. She knew it was bad for Thomas to see her before the wedding, but she believed this marriage was going to hell anyway. She opened her door and walked silently down the hallway to where her husband-to-be would be getting ready. She knocked one the door, but no one answered. She thought to just open it, but he may be getting dressed and she did not want to see him like that earlier than she had to. She decided against it and pushed the door open and her mouth hung open.
Maria's wrists and ankles were tied with cloths to the bedpost and Thomas was on top heaving and thrusting inside if her. Bessie's mouth gaped open. She wanted to let out a scream, but nothing would come out. Thomas… Thomas was someone who was obsessed with sex and he had taken it from the Queen too. Bessie did not want to marry him. Not if it meant a life of seeing Thomas with a bunch of little whores. Thomas and Maria both moaned from pleasure and Bessie had had enough. She slammed the door, but doubted either one of them noticed. She was going to find her father and demand the wedding be put off. She began to storm down the stairs, but her dress, not yet hemmed, had twisted around her ankles. She lost her balance and stumbled down the stairs. She let out a little scream that she also doubted anyone heard and fell to the ground level of the stair.
Thomas appeared before her face. She believed she was imagining it, but nothing then he began to speak.
"You know too much for a young girl," he told her. "You're nothing but a used whore. What made you think I would marry you?"
He reached out his hands and placed one on each side of her face. He then twisted hard. A loud crack echoed throughout the empty house.
