“A young man in his employ, one Rafe Sadler.”
“Did you open it in his presence?”
“No, he departed at once.”
“Then let the trouble fall upon his head, or that of chance. What if the letter went missing before you had a chance to read it? And circumstances today kept you so busy, with Cromwell closeted away, that you were unable to find him to enquire of its contents. After all, had it been a truly important matter, he would have spoken to you directly.”
Thomasin saw where Mary was going with this. “So you counsel us to pretend ignorance? That the letter was never read, and so its contents cannot be acted upon?”
“I don’t know,” said Sir Richard. “It is still a deception.”
“A small deception for a greater good,” said Mary. “And if I have the letter, you can honestly say that it is no longer in your possession. And if I place it somewhere unknown to you, you can tell the truth and say you have no idea what has become of it.”
“And if Cromwell makes trouble tomorrow, I can still offer to leave straight after the court, if the matter is so urgent, except I will have already given my evidence.”
“He will try and prevent you from entering,” Thomasin added, “as he did to me today.”
“Then I must ensure I am present before his arrival, even if I must bribe my way in and conceal myself behind a tapestry!”
“There is a servants’ passage that passes behind the dais,” said Ellen, “with a door opening behind the depiction of Moses. You could enter that way.”
Thomasin nodded. “And you’ll appear in court, before his very eyes! If you wait there until just before Wolsey and Campeggio appear, he can hardly have you thrown out before them, as he would need to give good reason.”
“And Campeggio would not stand for that. His papal authority would override any decision made by the king,” added Catherine. “It is an excellent plan, although I am sorry that we must go about it in this manner. And you are always under my protection, Sir Richard, whether in court or countryside.”
“I thank you, my lady.” Richard gave a low bow.
“I shall meet you early,” said Thomasin, “not in the courtyard, as that is too public, but by the stable, where no one would expect us to be, and we shall go to the servants’ passage together.”
A sound at the outer door interrupted them. One of the guards appeared to announce Mistress Holland.
“Good grief,” said Mary. “Brace yourselves.”
“She can’t be much worse than the wife,” muttered Ellen.
All turned towards the doorway to catch a glimpse of the controversial new arrival. To their surprise, however, she was accompanied by Norfolk himself, who strode majestically into the chamber and made his bow before Catherine. The woman at his side was young and slight, with pale colouring and bright red hair pulled back beneath her French headdress. She looked demure, rather than brazen.
The duke drew himself up to his full formidable height. “My lady, may I present Mistress Holland.”
The woman curtseyed slowly and deliberately, as if she had been practising.
“Mistress Holland, is it?” Catherine asked, almost through gritted teeth. The Duchess of Norfolk might have been a horror, but at least she was the duke’s lawfully wedded wife.
“Yes, my lady.” She spoke sweetly, unassumingly.
“We must bid you welcome to court, as convention demands,” said Catherine, tempering her welcome with all the reluctance that she could. But the new arrival seemed oblivious to her coldness.
“Thank you, my lady. It is an honour to be here, and to meet you.”
Norfolk cleared his throat warningly, as if she had overstepped the mark. The woman smiled shyly, and her cheeks dimpled.
“What do you intend to do, whilst at court?” Catherine persisted. “What is your purpose?”
Mistress Holland’s dimples deepened as her blue eyes lighted upon Norfolk. “To serve my good lord, of course.”
“We have come, out of courtesy,” said Norfolk stiffly, “as custom demands, to enquire about positions. Should there be a place in your lady’s household whereby Mistress Holland might fulfil some simple tasks and earn her board and lodgings, as she has many practical skills? Only if it suits you, my lady.”
But Catherine was not in the mood to do a relative of Anne Boleyn’s any favours. “As you can see about you, my lord, I am already generously provided with women.”
