Chapter 16
The next morning, I called a Council of all my trusted allies, in order to be able to plan my first moves as Queen.
Of course, the vital matter of what to do with my half-brother was first on the agenda. His uncles might have been slain on the battlefield and his other general, the former Lord Henry Brandon forced into exile, but he was still the Duke of Richmond and Somerset. He was still a powerful force in his own right. And to make matters worse, he wasn't even thirteen. Unless I wanted to be known as a tyrannical monster, I couldn't order his death. Particularly not since he was my half-brother.
"Much as I hate to admit it, he is my brother. We share the same father; the same blood. I can't execute him. But he's a thorn in my side. I can't just let him roam free to do whatever he likes. He's too powerful for that."
"Well, strip him of some titles, then." Blanche spoke up suddenly. I glanced at her in surprise.
"What? I understand politics better than you might think, Bessie. He'd be able to do us far less damage as the Earl of Nottingham than he would as the Duke of Richmond and Somerset."
"That's not enough, though. Father talked of doing that before, just for discourtesy towards our cousin the Queen Dowager, Blanche. Edward's an out and out traitor now. I'd be well within my rights to kill him if I wanted to."
"Your Majesty, no! Lord Edward is just a child!" Charles Brandon exclaimed. I rounded on him.
"Lord Nottingham is twelve! He should know enough of the world by now to be able to be held accountable for his own actions! If it wasn't for the memory of my father, I would kill him!"
"Well, throw him in the Tower, then. An indefinite spell in confines such as those should cure Lord Edward of any royal pretensions that he may have."
"Your Grace, you do not know my brother as I know him. Nothing could quash that bastard's pride. Even if I left him in the Tower for the rest of his life, he would still be as arrogant as he was the day he was first incarcerated." I raised my eyebrows and Anne, sensing that my temper was hanging by a very fine thread, smoothly stepped in to compromise.
"I agree that, whatever we do with His Grace, he will need to be closely watched, but it wouldn't be wise to keep him too confined. He might attract more sympathy for his cause in the Tower than he might otherwise do. Than he has at the moment, for example. If we lowered him in rank to the Earl of Nottingham, confined him to the Tower for a while, say until Her Majesty's coronation, for example and then put him under house arrest, well, no one can say that we haven't been more than generous to him, given the circumstances."
"There's no way I'm ever receiving him at Court, understand? Sparing his life is about as merciful as I'll be."
"You wouldn't have to receive him. We could keep him buried in the countryside if that's what you want." Anne assured me.
"Fair enough. But who's willing to take him on? To watch over him? He won't be the easiest of house guests."
"I will, Your Majesty." John Dudley half-stood as he spoke, catching my eye for the briefest of instants. "Difficult though Lord Edward may be, I believe that his presence in our house will help my family come to terms with Ambrose's death."
"You shouldn't have to come to terms with it, Sir John." I murmured. "I am truly, deeply sorry."
"I appreciate your condolences, Madam, but Ambrose died fighting for Queen and country. There's no death more honourable than that."
"I'm glad that's how you feel. He will be buried as befits his station and you will be honoured for your loyalty." I promised yet again, before turning back to the others in the room.
"All right. We are decided. My half-brother will henceforth be known as the Earl of Nottingham and will spend the time up to my coronation residing in the Tower, before being released into house arrest under the care of Sir John Dudley. Yes?"
"Yes, Your Majesty." They all chorused agreement as I rose, half-smiling.
"Good. I'm glad that's settled. Now, I intend to ride out with my sister Blanche and my husband, but Sir John, would you see to it that he's waiting for me upon our return, please? I want to speak to him before he goes to the Tower."
"Yes, Madam." Sir John smiled as he bowed before me and then I swept from the room, Blanche and Edward arm in arm half a pace behind me.
An hour or two later, refreshed and calmed by my ride with my two closest family members, I returned to the chamber I had been in earlier, wearing my finest gown of cloth of silver trimmed with gold velvet ribbon. My hair, pinned up and woven with diamonds, gleamed under the regal tiara that Anne had leant me for the occasion, since we still hadn't ridden to London to reclaim my rightful jewels from the Treasury at the Tower.
I had promised myself that I would try to act the calm, collected Queen and not let my emotions get the better of me, but I still couldn't restrain the surge of triumph that swelled in my breast as Edward entered the room, hands tied behind his back and was forced to abase himself before me.
Dismissing the guard with a nod, I looked down at Edward and glared at him for a split-second before composing myself.
"Lord Nottingham. You know why you're here. You know what I've sentenced you to. Have you anything to say?"
"Nothing, sister, save that you are sitting on my throne and that one day, I shall win it back from you."
"I doubt that very much, Sir Edward. You are a bastard, born out of wedlock to a Seymour harlot, albeit one who was lucky enough to secure royal favour for herself. I, on the other hand, am a trueborn Princess of England."
"How do we know that? You say you are, but who knows? Given who your mother is…"
"Watch it. You're a convicted traitor as it is. Need I remind you that I have power of life or death over you?"
"But you won't use it." Edward taunted. "None of you Howards would. You're all talk and no action. That's why you won't make a good Queen. Why you don't deserve the throne. You, your mother, your cousin. You're all the same. Inconsistent, fickle, swayed by passions. If the time came when you had to choose between your love and your country, well, who's to say that you'd choose the country like I would?"
Crack! My hand contacted with Edward's cheek as hard as it possibly could. He reeled back, half-dazed by the force of the blow. Poisoning him with my gaze, I hissed "I've wanted to do that for a very long time."
My voice quite literally throbbed with anger. Calling for the guards to take my bastard brother away to the Tower; seeing the merest hint of fear behind his arrogant bravado was the most satisfying thing that I'd ever done. My heart almost sang and I nearly laughed out loud in triumph as he was hustled out of my life for the last time.
The awkward matter of my half-brother settled to everyone's satisfaction, we prepared to ride into London.
Determined to make a favourable impression on my people, I wore a tight riding habit of sumptuous emerald velvet with a matching hood. Meanwhile, Edward dressed in white satin so that, together, we made up the Tudor colours of green and white. With Blanche in sky blue and Anne and Mary both in lavish scarlet, escorted by George Boleyn and my father in law, who were both were wearing smart navy damask, we made up a glittering party as we trotted towards the gates of the city, Edward and I both making use of our prowess on horseback to ride hand in hand, controlling our horses one handed and presenting our people with the sign of a new start and the hope of a joyful, peaceful union.
Even as we mounted up and clattered out of the palace gates, however, I knew Edward was keeping something from me. He kept glancing around far too much for him not to be. Besides, his eyes didn't light up as much as usual, not even when he smiled, as he was doing for the sake of the people.
I was half worried about him; worried that I was pushing him into the role of England's King Consort too quickly, before he was ready for it, but upon reaching London's gates, I saw the true reason for his agitation.
As we rode up, a woman in her mid to late twenties and three little girls stepped forward from the crowd to curtsy to us. The oldest of the girls presented me with a wreath of flowers for my hair, so I took my hood off and fitted the clumsily woven circlet on to my head, blowing the child a kiss by way of a thank you.
Then the other two girls, identical twins, dropped to the ground in second curtsies, their childish voices ringing as they said in perfect unison "God Bless You, Queen Elizabeth. We thank God that you have succeeded where others unfit to be named have failed and we are both pleased and honoured to present to you the keys of London."
They had clearly been coached in the words; they sounded far too grown up for their age, but their charming, impish smiles disarmed me, particularly when, as they rose and I leaned down from the saddle to take the keys in my hand, our eyes met and recognition sparked.
"Sister." I gasped, knowing all of a sudden that it was Nora who stood before me. Two years older, it was true, but nonetheless, still Nora. I gazed at her, silently drinking in her brown eyes, her dark hair, her pale creamy skin. Tears pricked at my eyelids, but I fought them back. I was Queen of England. I couldn't break down. Not here, not now.
"God Bless You, Beth." Jess's soft whisper as she went to rejoin Mary Boleyn and her daughter Katy by the gates galvanised me into action. To Hell with propriety! These were my sisters! My beloved little sisters who'd been torn from me far too long ago!
Tumbling from the saddle, I threw the keys to Edward and held out my arms to the twins.
"Jess! Nora! Come here."
They were hesitant at first, but another, half-pleading smile won them over. They were still my little sisters. Queen or not, I was still their Beth.
Falling to my knees, I clutched the twins to me as they flew into my arms. Laughing and crying all at once, raining kisses down upon their dark hair, I forgot everything but their presence; the warmth of their proximity. We weren't Queen and subjects, we were simply three sisters; sisters joyfully reunited after far too long a separation.
"If this is how Elizabeth greets all her subjects, then England is indeed in safe hands." Edward's voice broke into the joy of the moment.
Only then did I realise that everyone around us was cheering and applauding, enraptured by the open display of affection between me and my beloved little sisters.
Rising, I kissed them both yet again, murmuring "Did I not promise you that we'd see each other again?" into Jess's ear as I held out my hands to them and led them back the few paces to the horses.
"Do you want to ride into London with us?" I asked, noting with a pang how much taller they were against me now than they used to be.
The light that sprang into their eyes at the question, however, was still the same light as the one that I had cherished all those years ago.
"Yes please, Beth!"
"Come on then." Smiling, I wrapped my arms around Nora's waist and boosted her up on to Edward's saddle, silently thanking him for arranging this as I did so.
It was slightly more challenging getting Jess into my own saddle, because, without a rider to hold him steady, Sovereign sidestepped at the unexpected weight, but he calmed down quickly enough as I soothed him in a whisper.
One of the watching men was quick to offer me a hand back into the saddle, which I gratefully accepted. Settling myself behind my younger sister, I gathered my reins, enclosing her in my hold as I did so.
"Smile, Jessie. All Princesses have to smile at their people, no matter how they feel. You're like a Princess today, so smile. Smile your happiest smile."
As Jess nodded and did as I bid her, I flashed a glance at Blanche and Mary to tell them to fall into line behind us, so that, when I pushed Sovereign forward into a walk, my husband and Nora perfectly beside myself and Jess, I rode into London surrounded by my sisters.