Author's Note: I'll be honest, I have lost some inspiration with this story, yet one reviewer told me how she wanted this story updated. It got some creative juices flowing. So here is the 5th chapter. Please let me know what you think. It gives me inspiration to keep writing.
There is the timeline for this chapter.
During April 1469 - The rebellion was raised in the north of England. The rebels were defeated in April by John Neville, Earl of Northumberland, but further troops were raised, and the rebels openly denounced the government of Edward IV, demanding that he remove his wife's family, the Woodvilles, from positions of power.
Warwick now orchestrated a rebellion in Yorkshire while he was away, led by a "Robin of Redesdale". Part of Warwick's plan was winning over Edward's brother George, possibly with the prospect of installing him on the throne.
July 11, 1469 - Isabel Neville married George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, in Calais, France.
26 July 1469 - After the Yorkist defeat at the Battle of Edgecote Moor on, Rivers and his second son John were taken prisoners at Chepstow.
12 August 1469 – Earl Rivers and his son John were beheaded.
September 1469 - He was imprisoned in Warwick, and in August taken north to Middleham Castle. In the long run, yet, it proved impossible to rule without the king, and continuing disorder forced Warwick to release Edward.
IV: April 1469 – September 1469
Mary did as her sister commanded. For two years, Mary watched her husband's movements and wrote to Edward and Elizabeth. For two years, she was spied on her husband, who gave her two stepchildren and a son she adored.
Mary kept her son and step-daughters in the countryside as much as possible in the past two years. Only the occasional letter from her other family members held her in touch with the outside world. Little Annie and Isabel yearned for the court, and Mary understood. Before marrying Warwick, she yearned for the court life as well.
Now, it was all falling apart. Pure anger spread throughout her very soul. Not only was Warwick betraying her family and the King with this new rebellion, but now he was dragging Isabel into it. Isabel was going to marry Edward's brother George against the King's command.
She sent a secret message to the King, warning him of a plot against him. Warwick must never know of her involvement. If he suspected, her life would be in danger. The thought of leaving her children alone in his hands, it filled her with dread.
Mary caressed her pregnant belly, determined to remain as calm as possible.
"Lady Mother," Isabel called to her. Mary turned her attention to her step-daughter. Isabel glowed, full of hope. How could Mary ruin the reality of her marriage? She would marry George on Warwick's promise to back him as the new King. How could Mary tell her of the rebellion that was taking place? "Do you think he will love me?"
Mary stood up from her chair next to the window and walked over to Isabel. Anne was straightening Isabel's dress. "Oh, course he will, Isabel, how could he not?" Mary kissed Isabel's forehead.
"Isabel, tonight, be prepared," Mary whispered into her daughter's ear about what to expect tonight from George. He might be gentle, and he might not. Mary already took precautions slipped into the chamber already and put some flowers under the bed to help with Isabel's pain and give her some pleasure from George's carelessness.
The door to Mary's chamber opened, and Warwick walked in. Mary stepped in front of Isabel, holding her hand tight. "Let's get this done." Mary saw George in the hallway, watching her. She glared at him, wishing a thousand curses on what would happen. Mary grew to love Isabel and Anne. Now, she would watch her daughter be bonded into a loveless marriage. "Come, girls."
"Mother." Isabel grabbed Mary's hand tightly. "Please don't leave me."
Mary cupped Isabel's cheek. "Never."
The three females walked out of the chamber to the chapel. There she saw Duchess Cecily waiting with a huge smile. Her face fell as Mary strolled towards her. "I am surprised you are here. I would think you would be in bed."
In recent months, Mary discovered she was with child. She had an awful morning sickness plagued her body. She was always in bed, ill from continually throwing up. Although, today, she gathered up the strength to be here for Isabel. "I am feeling much better today, Duchess Cecily. Nothing could keep me from my daughter's wedding." Mary motioned for Anne to join here, while Duchess Cecily moved away from the Rivers woman.
Mary could see the happiness in Isabel's eyes throughout the ceremony. She knew that after the consummation, Isabel would come running for her mother. Later that night, Mary held Lionel as he cried. He was uneasy in the company of his father, and Mary knew that he would grow strong without his father's impulses. "Mary." Warwick strolled into the nursery. "Let the nursemaid tend to him and come to bed."
Mary hushed her baby boy as he let out another cry. "He cries when someone other than one of the girls or me holds him." Mary kissed his forehead as Lionel started to settle down. "I hope you don't regret what you have done to us all."
"I am bringing a King to England that will listen to others besides witches." Warwick watched as his wife set their son into his crib. "I thought that Isabel as a Duchess would please you."
Mary walked out of the nursery, leaving some instructions for the nursemaid. "Isabel will be bond to a marriage with George with little hope of any happiness. Also, I will be branded a traitor to my family because you are my husband. If you fall, then our children and I fall with you."
As she turned to her bedroom, Warwick grabbed her wrist, pushing her to a wall. "My dear wife," His tone was lined with a warning. "If I discover that you are sending messages to the King or that witch, I will beat you bloody before tossing you out for the wolves. A pity our son would grow up without a mother to guide him."
His threat filled her with absolute dread! He threatened Lionel! Her baby boy! A tear glistened in her eye. "Yes, my lord." He released his grip before walking back to his chambers. She cradled her injured hand as she walked to her bedchamber. There in the privacy of her suite, Mary felt a tear run down her face. Outside, her window began to glisten with raindrops.
A new resolve came from within her. She would play the quiet, obedient wife and protect her children from Warwick's foolish pride. She would support his cause from within while undermining him. Does he dare threaten her family?! She could see her parents, brothers, and sisters, nieces, and nephews all dead from Warwick's pride. Her children? Lionel, Isabel, Anne, and her unborn child. She would protect them all if she needed to.
That night as Mary slept, her chamber door opened a cracked, and soft padded feet crept to her bed. "Lady Mother…" Isabel shook her stepmother's shoulder. Mary opened her eyes before throwing her arm around Isabel's shoulders. Isabel cried into her shoulders. Mary cried too. She despaired over this marriage, and now Isabel suffered because of her father's pride. "It was awful. My wedding was not for me at all. It was father's way of rising against the King."
Mary shushed her daughter before Isabel settled to sleep. Yes, this marriage was an act against Elizabeth and Edward. Mary needed to do something. There, in her antechamber, Isabel slept on. Mary stood by the windows, whispering a tune. A haunting tune.
Across England, Elizabeth could hear a call from her bedroom window. She slid out of bed and opened her bedroom window. The rain began to come down, as the wind began to sing.
She listened and learned.
Mary crawled back into bed with Isabel. She closed her eyes, whispering a sweet melody in Isabel's ear. May she have a child to love when her husband could not. The next morning, Mary watched as George and Warwick left the castle for the battle. She didn't speak to her husband before he left, but he did look at her.
This man had been her companion for the last four years. In some sense, Mary held affection for him, but now, all of it was replaced with hatred and anger. She prayed to God that her family would be safe from his pride.
"Lady Mother," Isabel and Anne stood next to her, soft tears coming down their faces. "How can we survive?"
Mary cupped both of their cheeks. "Be not afraid, my dears. I will protect you from all that would harm you." Both girls hug her, hoping and praying she was right. As the days went on, news of the battle reached Warwick castle. Edward was no longer King and prisoner at her husband's castle. Mary watched from behind a curtain as her husband tried to reason with Edward. She laughed, knowing it wouldn't work.
"Advise me, Warwick?! Not lock me up or take away my throne, but, no, you would "advise me"?!"
Warwick tried to reason but was cut off again, "Edward, the council, feels-"
"No, it doesn't! The council feels nothing but what you tell it, and you will turn them against me!"
"Edward, all we ask is that you take back your old advisors and dismiss the Rivers family."
Edward snapped again, making Mary laugh. "Which, you know, I will never do! So, the game is that you make demands on me, you know I cannot agree to and use that as your excuse to keep me here while George rules in my place! But, you rule through him."
"Edward! The loyalty that we had to-"
"No! I am "Your Grace" to you, cousin! The Lord's anointed king and ruler of this kingdom! And Your Grace needs to understand that this is a betrayal and that the Queen's family are loyal to me! Which is more than can be said for you and George. Now, where is the Queen because if you have harmed a single hair upon her head?"
"She would have likely sent the Devil down upon me! But she is barricaded in the Tower."
"Now that, dear cousin, is treason!"
Finally, Warwick had enough of Edward and walked out to the courtyard. Mary walked in with a few servants with some food for the King. "Your Grace." Edward looked up and saw his wife's sister, beautiful Mary, serving him. "I am sorry this has happened to you."
"Your letters were most helpful." All her letters over the year about Warwick's movements did help, but this was unexpected. Edward took a sip of his ale but saw a faint bruise on her wrist. "Mary." His hand caught her arm. "How did this happen?"
A single tear dripped down her face. "I tried to reason with him. To leave it be, but my husband didn't like it." She wiped her tear away.
"What else did he say?" Edward asked.
Mary glanced around, knowing the servants were gone. "He threatened to take my child away. I am sorry, Your Grace, but I had to agree."
Edward knew he had to tell her the truth of what happened at the battle. Mary deserved to see the truth. "Mary," Mary considered Edward's eyes and saw sadness there.
"Your Grace?"
"After the battle, when I was captured…. your father and brother John." He paused, and Mary pressed him on. "They were executed by Warwick."
Mary's eyes widened as in disbelieve. "No, it can't be true!" She pounded on the King's chest. "Say it isn't true, Edward! Say it's not true!" Edward caught her as Mary's legs gave out. Her dries of anguish and distress filled Warwick castle. "No! It's not true!" Edward wrapped his arms around Mary as she wrapped her arms around him. Both lost their fathers in this war, so for a moment, they shared the same pain.
Isabel and Anne both were playing cards that evening, not wanting to leave Mary alone after what happened. Isabel glanced back in the direction of Mary's bedchamber and then leaned forward, her voice a hush as she asked, "Do you think I should go in and see her?"
"No," Anne responded immediately. "Let her sleep."
A loud wail of mingled pain came from within, and Isabel and Anne were on their feet in an instant. "What is it, Lady Mother?" Isabel and Anne saw their stepmother kneeling on the large, carved bed, crying out as she touched her bloodstained shift. "The baby!"
"Anne, run!" Isabel rushed to her step-mother's side as Anne sprang into action, running to get the physician.
"My baby!" Mary's anguish is evident on her face. "No, no, no, no, no, no!" Mary sobbed as she held onto her abdomen. "No, please, no!"
The blood of her unborn child stained the mattress, escaping from her womb. Mary couldn't hear Isabel's cries or her maidservant's yells. All she could see was red. It all flowed away, leaving her an empty and lifeless husk.
Warwick walked into his wife's chamber. He saw the once-proud vibrant woman lying there, useless. "You lost my child."
Isabel and Anne carried the bloody mess away from her stepmother's eyes as Mary's snapped her eyes open. "You have no one to blame but yourself!" She screamed at him, jumping from her bed. "You murdered my father and brother in cold blood!" She went to attack him, but Isabel caught her stepmother's waist. "Now, you have killed my child! Murderer!" She shrieked.
Warwick shoved Isabel away, swung his hand back, and struck his wife across the cheek. Both girls shrieked as they saw Mary fall to the floor. "You will calm yourself, Madame, before I call for the physician to sedate you!"
Mary cupped her injured cheek, tears falling down her face how she hated this devil who murdered her father, brother, and now a sweet child! She lifted her eyes and saw the hot poker in the fire. Something overtook her, something hard and dangerous! "Murderer!" She stood up, running towards him with a hot poker from the fire. "Murderer!"
"Guards!" Warwick yelled as two guards caught their mistress by her waist, holding her as she flung around, trying to get to Warwick. The physician came running down the hall. "Sedate that madwoman!"
"Murderer!" Mary screamed at the top of her lungs. One of the guards knocked Mary on the head, causing her to become unconscious.
Warwick wimped himself off. "Take that mad woman to the convent nearby. Perhaps there she can regain her sanity."
"Father!" Isabel and Anne ran to their father after they heard him. "She didn't mean it. Lady Mother is upset about the miscarriage." Isabel grabbed his arm. "Please, let mother stay here under the physicians' care until she is well."
Warwick looked at his daughters and his mad wife. The girls did have a point. If this got out, he would be a laughing stock. "Very well. She will be locked in her chambers with the priest until Mary regains her sanity. I expect her to behave from now on."
Isabel and Anne could breathe easy as the guards to Mary back into her chambers to rest. Once Mary came to, all she did was weep. That night, as Mary lay alone, she knew that her bedroom door was locked uptight.
She wandered out of bed, removed the secret compartment in the wall, and removed a small knife. "I curse you, my husband, Richard, Earl of Warwick. I curse you, George of Clearance. By the blood of my father, brother, and unborn child, you will die." She pricked herself on my finger, flinging it into the fire. The embers cracked at the curse. The wind began to blow, and Mary heard the call of her ancestor answering the call. She would see her loved ones avenged.
A couple of weeks past and Warwick let Edward go after he couldn't command parliament. Warwick released Mary from her confinement. She threw herself into running the household and caring for her children. She slept in different chambers where her husband couldn't pursue his rights. Isabel was with child, and Mary could feel the bitterness from over losing her child, but she couldn't. Mary loved Isabel and would let this young woman enjoy motherhood.
Eventually, Edward invited them all back to court. Mary watched as Edward embrace Warwick and his brother kindly. Mary stepped out of the carriage, and Edward could see she was no longer with child. He kissed her hand and embraced her gently.
Mary let herself feel safe for once until her brother Anthony escorted her to Elizabeth's chambers. Anthony embraced his sister tightly before entering the Queen's chambers. Her ladies-in-waiting left the room at Mary's entrance.
Her mother and Elizabeth were waiting for her. "Sister." Mary curtsied to Elizabeth before the Queen rushed to embrace her. Mary cried into her older sister's shoulder in despair. "He took them, Lizzie. Father, John, and my child." Elizabeth heard of Mary's miscarriage and wept at the news.
No one should feel the pain of losing a child. "He will pay for what he has done, Mary."
Jacquetta fell to her knees, embracing her daughter, tears coming to her own eyes. "I am sorry, Mary." She whispered. "I didn't mean to leave you so alone. Never again love." Mary cried even harder. She tried to act so strong, but she was still a little girl who needed her mother's embrace.
Later that day, Mary sat in the royal gardens watching two swans dance around each other. She closed her eyes, enjoying the silence until "Lady Mary…" That voice. Her Richard.
"Your Grace." Mary opened her eyes, watching as Richard sat next to her on the bench, taking her hands in his. Tears burst down her face as Richard pulled her into his arms. For two years, the lovers were kept apart, but now in the time of greatest need, they drew back together. "He took them, Richard."
He wrapped his arms around her, as Mary wrapped her arms around him. "I know…" He let her cry there. He knew that they wouldn't be disturbed. He made sure of it with the guards. "I am sorry for your loss."
He cradled her head, and in her despair, he kissed her. Mary was shocked at first but returned the kiss with equal fever.
Duty be damned. She needed this moment, in his arms, forever.