‘The Lieutenant of the Tower, Sir John Digby, came to me, offering the keys to my accommodation so I might escape and join the Simnel rebellion,’ he had explained to his family. ‘It was clearly a trap, a test of my loyalty to the new king. I replied, “I shall remain in the Tower until such time as our good sovereign lord, King Henry VII, releases me and not before.”’
When he heard this, Henry Tudor was suitably impressed and the following year, in March 1488, the king pardoned the earl, but he did not release him. From then on, the Earl of Surrey’s accommodation improved, with Lady Howard and, on occasions, members of his family, allowed to visit.
‘Not seeing you every day has been hard, Lizzie,’ he said, releasing her, ‘but I have exciting news.’
‘What?’
‘The king has a very special job for me and it’ll involve all the family,’ he said. ‘There’s a rebellion in the north and with myskills as a soldier and negotiator, he has decided to send us to live in Yorkshire at Sheriff Hutton Castle.’
‘A castle?’ said Elizabeth in awe.
‘Yes, a castle, and after your mother, you will be its queen.’
4
CERENSTHORPE ABBEY, HAMPSHIRE – PRESENT DAY
‘Gulliver, what’s happened?’
Tabitha ran towards him, her heart pounding.
‘She’s gone,’ he wailed. ‘She’s gone. I tried so hard, but she’s gone.’
‘What do you mean, “She’s gone”?’
She crouched in front of him. His skin was ashen, cheeks hollow, eyes red raw above his dark stubble. He looked ill, broken.
‘Left me…’ he whispered, then howled; a sound of pure collapse.
Tabitha had never seen anyone unravel so completely. Her mind raced as she tried to decide what to do for the best. Edith would be distressed to see Gulliver in this state, although, his mother, Molly, would be practical. Yet, he was so far from his usual laughing, teasing self, Tabitha wondered whether Molly would baulk with shock and be more of a hindrance. The blood on his hands was turning darker as it dried, a shadow of threat on his long-fingered artistic hands.
If in doubt, she thought,follow family rules.
She pulled her phone from her handbag and called her sister Tamar.
Tabitha was the fourth of five sisters, after Suzannah, Tamar and Bathsheba, with Eve the youngest. Each of the sisters had – as they described it to each other with a great deal of laughter – ‘different skills’, which was the reason as teenagers they had created the rule to always consult each other first if they were in a situation where they felt out of their depth.
Suzannah and her husband Resman were both solicitors, Tamar was a doctor, Bathsheba was a scientist and Eve was a chef. Until six months earlier, Tamar had been a GP, but she had decided she wanted a change. After several years of watching the youngest Mundy sister struggle with infertility issues, this had inspired Tamar to move into research to help other women in similar situations to Eve. However, today, Tamar’s years as a GP were Tabitha’s lifeline.
‘Hey, Tabs,’ said Tamar, answering on the second ring. ‘What’s up?’
‘A bit of a family rules situation,’ replied Tabitha, moving away from Gulliver.
‘You OK?’
‘I’m fine. It’s Gulliver, I need some advice.’
Tabitha explained the strange situation and after a prolonged silence, Tamar said, ‘Do you think he’s dangerous?’
‘What? No, he’s distraught, not violent.’
‘Why is he distraught? And, where’s Lucia?’
‘Not here,’ said Tabitha with a tremor of unease.
‘And he’s covered in blood?’
‘He suffers from terrible nosebleeds,’ said Tabitha. ‘He hasn’t murdered anyone.’
