‘For all his pathetic kindness,’ Lucia continued, ‘Gull was truly filthy in bed, shame you’ll never be able to experience it.’
‘Where is he?’ Tabitha demanded.
‘Upstairs, with his dear old Auntie Edie,’ she said. ‘When he caught me, I pretended to burst into tears, to run away, but I’d already filled the teapot with arsenic. He’s so trusting, he would never have thought to make any more. The amount in there will have killed them both by now.’
She howled with laughter. Beside Tabitha was a heavy-duty stapler, she scooped it up and flung it at Lucia’s face. It hit the mark, slamming into Lucia’s nose, which exploded with a rush of blood as she screamed. Tabitha grabbed the three envelopes, barged past the flailing Lucia and fled. As she sprinted down the corridor, her phone rang. Tamar’s name and image flashed across the screen.
‘Help me, Tay,’ she gasped as she ran.
‘What’s happened?’ said Tamar.
‘Lucia’s admitted to poisoning Edith,’ said Tabitha, panting as she took the stairs two at a time. ‘She said she’s poisoned Gull too.’
She heard Tamar shout to her husband to call the police.
‘Do you know where they are?’
‘I hope so,’ she said, fighting to keep her tears and panic under control.
‘I’ll stay on the phone until you’ve located them,’ Tamar said.
‘She’s lying though,’ said Tabitha. ‘Killing someone is extreme…’
‘Lucia’s been arrested twice for attempted murder, but the charges have never stuck,’ said Tamar. ‘It’s at the end of the file.’
Tabitha felt her insides go cold. She flew along the corridor to Edith’s room. Crashing through the door, she dropped the envelopes onto the sofa and burst into the bedroom. She screamed.
‘What?’ shouted Tamar in her ear.
‘They’re dead,’ Tabitha gasped, fighting back tears of panic. ‘Edith and Gull…’
‘Check their pulses,’ demanded Tamar and the severity of her tone brought Tabitha from her shock.
Tabitha put her sister on speaker phone. She could barely bring herself to approach the two people she had grown to love. Edith was motionless on the bed, her skin fragile, tinged with purple, her eyes closed. Gulliver was slumped in the armchair beside his great-aunt’s bed, his face waxy, a blue tinge around his lips.
‘No, you can’t be dead,’ she whispered as she ran to his side.
‘Tabs, talk to me,’ shouted Tamar. ‘Does Gulliver have a pulse?’
Tabitha grabbed his wrist and felt for the tell-tale whisper beneath his skin, a skill Tamar had taught her sisters on many occasions. She calmed her own breathing, concentrating on Gulliver, then relief flooded her. It was faint, but there was a pulse. He was alive.
‘Yes,’ Tabitha called. ‘He’s alive. Let me check Edith.’
With great gentleness, Tabitha reached for Edith’s delicate arm. Over the past weeks, she had lost a huge amount of weightand Tabitha felt it would be easy to snap Edith’s bones with the lightest of touches. She placed her fingers on Edith’s wrist and waited, tears welled in her eyes, then miraculously, she felt the faint beat of the old woman’s blood.
‘Edith, too. There’s a pulse,’ she said.
‘Stay with them,’ said Tamar. ‘An ambulance is on its way. Billy called it. He’s told them it’s an emergency. Sit tight, we’ll be with you soon.’
Tabitha stared from Gulliver to Edith, feeling helpless, then she remembered Lucia and wondered where the other had woman had gone. She ran through the suite, reaching to lock the door to keep them all safe until help arrived, but as she did, the true horror of their situation hit her. The smell of smoke was filling the room.
40
LONDON – 15 MAY 1536
Footsteps echoed up the stairs of the house they had rented in Cheapside and Elizabeth sent up a silent prayer. Thomas stood with his back to her, staring out of the window, while Jane, Viscountess Rochford, was curled in a chair, snivelling into a linen handkerchief, her eyes red with weeping. The door of the silent room opened and Agnes Howard, dowager Duchess of Norfolk entered.
‘Well?’
