Succession: An Elizabethan Spy Thriller by Steven Veerapen

Author:Steven Veerapen [Veerapen, Steven]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sharpe Books
Published: 2020-04-29T22:00:00+00:00

16

Early the next morning, we scrubbed at our hands and feet, combed our hair, and dressed ourselves in our remaining clean underwear and the best of our clothing. On went my court clothes, and Lockhart brushed down his sable until it shone. I talked him out of dragging us to a barber, arguing that it was a courtly enough thing for men to be bearded. We ate a light breakfast of unsweetened pancakes provided by Andro’s Auntie Peg – the little man himself was nowhere to be seen, and our hostess offered us no explanation – and decided to put matters off no longer.

It was time to meet the man who had executed a regent, an earl, and cried out for the sudden and secret murder of two sprigs of that earl’s noble house. It was easy enough, I thought, to believe that such a king might have had black secrets.

The palace of Holyroodhouse was a small but rather elegant affair, more sedate than the gaudy new buildings going up in London yet easier on the eyes than the rambling piles of Whitehall. The sentry at the gate had given us no trouble; indeed, he had flushed with excitement when he heard that we were English. Only when he had ascertained that no, we did not carry urgent news out of London, did he seem to deflate. Thereafter he lapsed into business, alerting what he called ‘the big hoose’ to our presence. He led us then across the wide, open courtyard, towards the building – a stone facade with a pair of towers on the left-hand side. The double entrance doors stood in the main block which stretched off to the right.

Inside, we were compelled to wait on a wooden bench whilst, I assumed, further discussions were had about us. The entrance hall of the palace was narrow – so narrow, in fact, that I supposed it must front an internal courtyard. The arrases and tapestries on the walls, however, were as good as any I had seen in Cecil’s house. Glittering wall sconces made up for the small windows, illuminating the sparkling gold and silver thread of the arrases. What was most noticeable, though, was the noise. Unlike in the silent town, the palace servants went about their business singing, humming, drumming their fingers. All who passed gave us neat little bows and curtsies, doffing their caps and smiling.

‘A cheerful place,’ whispered Lockhart. I nodded, leaning back on the bench until my back rested on a wall hanging.

Eventually, a steward emerged from the direction of the towers, a stout, red-faced man of middle age at his back. The steward inclined his head towards us and then backed against the far wall, melting into insignificance before his superior. ‘The gentlemen who are come fae – from – the Queen of England’s Revels Master?’ He spoke slowly, deliberately. On seeing his approach, Lockhart and I had sprung to our feet, and we made low bows, removing our hats. Glancing up, I saw the fellow’s smug grin as I did so.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.