The Earl’s breath ceased again for the count of five slow heartbeats, then ten, and the silence extended, as those gathered all held their own living breath. A cold, rain-laden breeze stirred the bed hangings, and the priest leaned over the Earl.
‘His soul has gone to God,’ he said, signing his breast.
Lady Elizabeth uttered a wail and flung herself over the body, embracing her son and tearing off her headdress to expose her wiry grey braids. Katerine’s blank mask folded and she put her face into her hands. William stood frozen, and white-faced. Edward gripped his shoulder and murmured in his ear. Jeanette knew she should go to him, but she couldn’t, and instead pushed her way from the room.
Her father-in-law had been such a powerful, vital man, an accomplished courtier, a warrior of repute, a statesman, and it was all gone in a moment, in the single slip of a horse’s hoof on muddy ground. That was all it took for anyone to die. Now the women would truly take over the household, which was a sobering, frightening thought.
The Earl’s body was washed and then dressed in his finest garments and armour, ready to be borne away to the priory at Bisham for burial. Windsor chapel was crowded for the funeral mass, and Jeanette saw Thomas standing with the other household knights praying for the Earl’s soul. His head was bent, and she could tell he was genuinely at prayer, not just paying lip service. She dropped her own gaze, feeling humbled and a little ashamed. She could not pray though. Where dislike and anger had resided, there was now a blank area stretched over a hollow, like the skin over a drum, waiting to be struck, but as yet without a beat. She could not mourn the death, but the shock had left her wondering on each person’s lot in life, and how fleeting it was.She wanted to seize the day, but her way was barred, and there was nothing she could do about it except endure.
As the funeral cortege collected in the courtyard to travel the ten miles to the Salisburys’ manor at Bisham, Prince Edward found a moment to take Jeanette aside.
‘What is this about you and Thomas Holland?’ he asked in a quiet voice as he drew on his gloves.
Jeanette looked into his face. A new, adult shrewdness had sharpened his hazel eyes, and although they were friends, she did not know if she could trust him. ‘What have you heard?’
‘He seems to think you are married to him, and the only reason he is not pressing his case is that he lacks the funds and expertise to take the matter through the courts. And perhaps too he fears for his career and his life – I know I would.’ He tilted his head. ‘Is it true?’
Jeanette hesitated, then raised her chin. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘We spoke our vows before witnesses, and he did not force me to it. At the outset I was the one who pursued him.’ She saw the frown between his swift brows. ‘No one will listen because their interests lie elsewhere. We have no one to speak for us, and your father will pay no heed for certain.’
Edward said nothing, and she knew he must be conflicted. What could he do? His father had been close friends with the Earl of Salisbury and the same with Katerine from what she had seen. He would not want a scandal of this magnitude on top of the Earl’s death. Edward and William had been companions since boyhood. Probably Edward was thinking like everyone else that she should never have become embroiled with Thomas.
‘I am sorry,’ he said. ‘I do not think there is anything I can do. I would help to resolve matters if I could.’
Jeanette nodded, but wondered what form that resolving would take – in her favour, or in William’s? Edward might be herfriend, but he was also heir to the throne and he was governed by political expedience even if he had sympathy for her. She touched his arm. ‘Just keep me in your prayers,’ she said, ‘as I keep you in mine.’
‘Of course, you do not need to ask.’ He looked relieved before he turned away.
Jeanette went to the cart and climbed in beside Katerine and Elizabeth. The two women were silent. Elizabeth’s doughy features were pale and blurred with grief for her son, and Katerine was tight-lipped with shadows smudging her eye sockets. Whatever was between her and the King, her husband’s death had still left its mark on her, and she had clearly cared for him.
Jeanette’s new terrier pup Nosewyse, Grippe’s replacement, came to lie across her lap and she stroked his soft tan coat, taking comfort in the motion of her palm over his fur.
That evening, Edward sat down with his mother to play a game of chess and talk privately. ‘Thomas Holland and my cousin Jeanette tell me an interesting thing,’ he said casually. ‘I wonder if you have heard any rumours yourself.’
His mother eyed him warily. ‘What have they said?’
‘They seem to think they are man and wife, and that it happened at Saint Bavo before witnesses, but I do not know whether Thomas is exaggerating his case, and it might not be true in the legal sense. If it gets further spread abroad it could destroy Jeanette’s reputation – I know there has been trouble about that before.’ He toyed with a chess piece, turning it end over end in his fingers. ‘I am fond of her, and Will Montagu,’ he said, ‘and I would hate to see that happen.’
His mother frowned. ‘Indeed, I have heard such rumours, and I have discouraged them. Keep this matter to yourself, for it will cause more harm than good, and as you say, it will tarnishJeanette’s reputation. Better not to stoke a fire that may well sputter out of its own accord.’
‘And if it continues to burn?’
‘We decide what to do if that happens. Wait and see, and decide accordingly. That is my advice, and I hope you will take it.’
‘I intend to,’ Edward said, relieved that his mother’s thoughts concurred with his own. Even so, he felt a little sordid, as if sweeping dirt behind the tapestry instead of cleaning it out, and that somehow his decision was letting Jeanette down. ‘Do you really think it is true?’ he asked. ‘You were there at Saint Bavo after all.’
His mother refused to meet his gaze. ‘It is not my task to keep an eye on the young ladies of my chamber every moment of every day – others have that duty. Much of the time I was with child and had other concerns. The Earl and Countess of Salisbury would not have contracted the match if they believed there was a prior agreement.’
‘No, but do you think there is a possibility nonetheless?’
Philippa considered. ‘Something may have happened between them,’ she said, ‘but a full marriage behind everyone’s backs? That seems preposterous.’ She raised a forefinger in warning. ‘It is best not to meddle. Let it run its course without interference.’
‘Yes, mother, I agree. It would be for the best – but will you keep an eye on Jeanette? Invite her to court when you can.’
His mother eyed him thoughtfully. ‘I shall, but she shall have no favour beyond that which she earns. Her duty now, especially since her father by marriage has died, is to provide her husband with offspring to further the dynasty. She is no longer an innocent damsel.’
Edward set the piece back on the board. ‘But her marriage to Montagu might still have to be proven. If there is doubt, the legitimacy of those offspring might be questioned.’
‘Let it be,’ Philippa said firmly. ‘Now is not the time. Should the marriage be called into question, there is always recourse to the law.’
