The King, The Duke, The Lady
Chapter 15
Brianna spent months getting the household of the two princes established, both at the royal court and at the castle the King had designated. Somewhere in the middle of the hubbub of getting both residences prepared, she learned she was pregnant once again. This time she knew for sure it was Charles'. They were both delighted. She remained very careful and instead of riding, took carriages between one residence and the other. Once she became too far along to travel anymore she left the remaining establishment to Ms. Ashcroft who remained at Richmond to oversee the preparation of the castle. At Whitehall, Mary took on much of the responsibilities as directed by Brianna.
One of the benefits of having the boys living at Whitehall with the King and his Court was that they learned about Court life, their fathers were present with them often, dinners were shared, and they were constantly getting each other into trouble and keeping their governesses busy. This sort of freedom had never been granted to a child of a king or a duke before and was shocking to the court. Mary and Elizabeth loved it and spent much time with their brother and the boy they considered their nephew. It also did not mean that the children did not spend the appropriate amount of time with tutors and governesses to learn courtly manners and such. They just had a lot more fun doing it.
One afternoon Henry and Charles were watching from the window onto the grassy walking area along the pond, watching a very pregnant Brianna, Mary, and Elizabeth all playing with the two boys. The king realized suddenly what everyone else at Court had known for some time. The two boys were almost identical. Given the resemblance between Brianna and his Queen, it was obvious that Charles was indeed his son.
Henry looked at Charles, "How long have you known that Charles was mine?"
"After about six months, they started looking more and more the same. And their personalities are clearly following in their father's footsteps."
Henry laughed at the irony. "I am happy that he is mine, but I am sorry that you must be faced with the fact that your first born is my child."
"I am his father Henry, in every way. I was there when he was conceived. I was there when he was born. He carries my name and will carry on my titles and lands. Besides, we knew this was always a possibility. We even wrote it into the marriage contract."
"I must recognize him in some way, Charles. Even if I don't acknowledge him outright, I should give him his own lands and a title that sends the message even if I don't declare him as such."
"Henry, we agreed you could honor him with titles or such as you saw fit, but you must do it privately or with a very small audience as witnesses. To have Charles outright declared puts him in danger from anyone who might lay claim to the throne and it would be apparent to some degree what happened. I do not want to be seen as having a wife who yet again slept with the king."
"I will think on this and see what I can come up with. What about Duke of Richmond and Sommerset? He will retain your name and titles of course, but I could set him up with his own lands. Between yourself, Brianna, and his own lands, he may likely be wealthier than I am!"
Charles sighed. "It is up to you Your Majesty. But, I am sure that both Brianna and I would be happy to leave things as they are. Charles has no need for the land, the title or the formal recognition from you. One would have to be blind not to see the resemblance and I still feel that Your Majesty's honors, while appreciated, would be unnecessary."
Henry gave Charles an irritated look. "Alright, we will leave it for now. I still reserve the right to acknowledge him at some later time."
Charles nodded his head, "Of course, Your Majesty."
Brianna's lying in and birthing were uneventful, if grueling as most births are. Another son was born to her and Charles and they were both pleased. They named him Henry. The King stood as Godfather and Princess Mary as Godmother. Brianna laughed silently to herself at the interesting dichotomy that lay behind their agreements to be Godfather and Godmother, an Anglican who was more Catholic than anything else and a pure Catholic. It would be interesting if the need for their roles to ever be necessary.
Once Brianna was given the permission from her doctors to be up and around again, she began to accompany Mary to Mass every morning, often bringing the baby with them. It was cold that particular morning and the babe was wrapped in his ermine blanket while she and Mary had on their long heavy cloaks and their hoods up after leaving the chapel. They were in a comfortable and silent contemplation while walking along the cold stone hallway, their soft shoes silent on the floor. Both women watched the sleeping boy child held warmly against Brianna's breast. They were good friends, even best friends, and they both adored the child.
As they turned the passageway they heard angry whispered voices, and Mary, reacting first, pulled Brianna and the child quietly into a darkened alcove. Angry whispered voices were never a good sign in a hidden part of the castle and they were unprotected by guards. It was best to hide and stay quiet until they could safely pass. They were close enough to make out the angry quiet voices, and they could not help but overhear.
"We must do it now. The King will soon recognize his bastard with his bitch-cunt and may very well place him above the Princess Mary in sucession."
Mary stifled a gasp as she heard her name mentioned. Brianna stiffened as she quietly listened to both the slur as well as what the argument involved.
A different male voice spoke up, "It is not lawful for a bastard to sit on the throne. He cannot put his bastard in the succession! He wouldn't dare!"
"He put himself as the head of the Church over the Pope, why would he think he could not change the laws of succession. The boy is clearly his. There can be no doubt. And he is being raised in the Church of England just as Prince Edward. No…if we want a Catholic England, we must kill the two boys so that we ensure Princess Mary ascends to the throne."
There was a noise further down the corridor and the two men's voices cut off and they started to move away. Their profiles were clear to the two hidden women and it was Brianna's turn to stifle a gasp. The two men were the Duke of Norfolk and the Earl of Nottingham! The two women looked at each other in surprise and fear and stayed hidden until the two men had disappeared. Then they left their hiding place and headed straight for the Duchess' apartments.
As they entered, a pale and trembling Brianna called for one of the guards, known to be completely loyal to her and the Duke.
"Gerard, I need you to go immediately and fetch the two children from their play in the courtyard and bring them here to the apartment. You must not let them out of your sight. Do not alarm them at all and act as casually as you possibly can. We must not set an alarm. Just keep the children here. They can do their school work in the apartments. The Princess Mary and I must meet with the King. Is the Duke with him?"
"Yes, your Grace. May I ask…?"
"Wait Gerard. I will tell you what I can when I can. Right now, go and get the children."
"Yes, your Grace." Gerard turned on his heels and taking another guard with him headed towards the gardens.
Brianna dismissed all her ladies-in-waiting so she and Mary could discuss what to do.
Mary spoke first as she noticed Brianna's shaking. She wasn't sure if it was in rage or in fear, but knew that those behind it should be afraid. "We must go to the King immediately."
"I know. He is in his Privy meeting, but I think this is important enough to interrupt it and if we announce ourselves he will know it must be important."
Mary added, "We must not announce ourselves publically. It would be too dangerous to the children. We will have to get a message to him that we need to speak with him and hope he will dismiss his council quickly."
"Of course." Mary watched Brianna square her shoulders and check herself in the mirror noting how pale she was. Well, perhaps that would help the King understand just how frightened they both were. She had no doubt that the King would be furious.
The two women eased their way through the private doors that entered into his private quarters, surprising the King's his Master of the Stool who was in the room straightening and changing the sheets.
"Your Grace! Your Highness!" The man bowed low.
Brianna spoke first, her voice leaving no room for argument. "We need to speak with the King and the Duke immediately."
"They are both in Privy Council, Your Grace. I cannot interrupt…"
Princess Mary interrupted him at this point, all her royal grooming coming to bear on the conversation. "You can this time. Go in there and leave him this note." She quickly wrote a short note and folded it, putting it in his hands. "Go now. Put it in his or the Duke of Suffolk's hand immediately. We will wait here."
The man's face paled at the thought of interrupting, but did what he was told. Less than five minutes later, both the King and the Duke entered the King's bedchamber where the two women waited.
"Brianna! Mary! What is the meaning of this? Your note… something must be dreadfully wrong to interrupt us like this." The King's voice was abrupt and irritated.
Both women curtsied to the King and then Brianna started to speak, explaining quickly and thoroughly what they had overheard. When she reached the point of the slur the two men had called her she paused briefly and then skipped over those words, not wanting to incite either man further. As she reached the point where the overheard discussion whispered about killing the two young boys, she sat on the settee and was close to fainting. The king immediately went to his apothecary and poured her some of the tea she had prepared for him in a small cup to help revive her.
Brianna drank a few drops of the tonic and made a face. "This is terrible!"
"Yes, that is what I tell you every time you give it to me, but it does work." The king turned to Mary and asked her to finish the story.
While Mary was continuing, Brianna stood carefully and walked to the window, opening it slightly to get a breath of fresh air. The Duke walked up beside her and placed his arms around her small waist and pulled her against him in comfort.
By the time Mary completed the story, naming the two accomplices in treason, the King threw a cup into the fireplace in his anger and the Duke squeezed Brianna even closer. Brianna didn't even start at the King's violent reaction or Charles' need to hold her closer. Charles had felt her body stiffen and her anger building. The mama bear was coming out to protect her cubs. She casually turned to the King in his tantrum and asked, "So, what are you going to do?"
He looked at her surprised. "I am going to have them both killed of course."
"If I may your Highness?"
"Of course, Brianna…"
"They are probably the leaders of this outrage, but they are not the only ones involved. We need the entire treacherous group."
Charles spoke up, his voice tight and angry, "Then we will torture them all to death until we get the truth."
Brianna sighed and looked at both men. "Torture will often just get you the answers that you seek, not necessarily the truth. In this case, *I* want the truth."
Both men stared at her trying to understand what she was asking for. Then the King asked "Where are the children now?"
"In our apartments, under trusted guards."
Henry went to the door of his apartment and went to the outer room whispering in one of the guard's ears. He came back in and told them he had asked for Sir Francis to join them. Mary stood to leave and Brianna turned to look right at Henry, daring to look at him right in the eye. "I know you will resolve this problem and protect our children Henry."
Sir Francis entered the room as the King leaned down to kiss Brianna's tear streaked face. "No harm will come to either child Brianna. On this I give my word. They are both my sons and I will never allow anything to endanger them." Brianna nodded her head, and with a longing look at Charles, left through the private door.
Francis' eyebrow rose as he heard the admission but he held his tongue. It was of course no surprise, but the king had never admitted it to anyone as far as he knew. Of course, Brianna and Charles knew. Charles had turned his back to the room and stood staring out the window, his shoulders stiff. The King had walked stiffly to the hearth and rested one arm on it while he stared into the fire. Sir Francis stood waiting for one of the men to speak. He had to wait several minutes.
"Francis, I have a job for you…"
TBC
A/N: Looking forward to your reviews!