In the Shadow of the Crown - By Jean Plaidy Page 0,133

a woman of purpose. There was something rather awe-inspiring about her.

I forgot about her in the next few days. The weather had become exceptionally hot, and almost as soon as we had moved into a new house we had to leave it for sweetening. One could not escape the stench of decaying rubbish in the streets; there were flies everywhere.

At such times an outbreak of plague was almost inevitable.

Susan came to me and told me breathlessly that the body of a man had been found in Gray's Inn Lane. He had collapsed and died and the spots on his face indicated that he was a victim of the plague. That was the first case. Others came fast and in increasing numbers.

The Court was in London, and the Queen was full of anxiety.

She came to me and said, “Should we leave, do you think?”

I was unsure.

She went on, “Edward is not well at the moment. He is coughing and having his headaches rather frequently. We should have to pass through the streets on our way. He would be very susceptible to infection. On the other hand, to leave him here…”

I could not give her an opinion. If she allowed Edward to stay here, and he caught the plague, she would be blamed for leaving him in danger; so would she be if she took him through the streets of London and he caught it. There was no way out of her dilemma.

She loved the boy; but also her own life was in danger. If Edward died, some charge would surely be brought against her.

She was in a state of nervous tension. There was no one who could advise her. None dared. They wanted no hand in this decision.

At length she made up her mind.

The sultry heat was continuing; the plague was growing worse.

She gave orders that the household was to prepare to leave London.

IN THE CLEAN COUNTRY air Edward's cough improved and Katharine gave thanks to God for one more deliverance. Her head was safe on her shoulders until the next alarm came.

The Regency had been successful, and the King was coming home. He had taken Boulogne so he could return as a conqueror, a role which pleased him mightily.

His friendship with the Emperor—never on very firm ground—had waned and, although they claimed themselves to be allies, they were fighting with different objects in view. Each was concerned with his own interests: my father to subdue Scotland forever and to bring it under the control of England and the Emperor to force François to give up Milan.

But he was home, and Edward was safe. However, the campaign had not improved the condition of his leg. The sores were spreading, and the other leg was infected now.

“The clumsy oafs did not know how to dress it,” he said. “The bandages were either too loose or too tight. By God's Life, Kate, I missed you. There is none that has the way with a bandage you have.”

So her task of nursing began again. She was appalled by the condition of his legs, which were indeed growing worse. He was in great pain at times and would shout abuse at any who came near him.

Only the Queen was allowed to dress the sores.

Chapuys said to me, “The King has the worst legs in the world, and the Queen should thank God for them.”

I looked at him questioningly and he gave me his sly smile. He was implying that it was the King's bad legs which kept the Queen's head on her shoulders.

UNDER KATHARINE'S SOOTHING HANDS and the new ointments she had discovered, the King's legs improved. But instead of being grateful to her, his eyes strayed to others.

Perhaps in his heart he believed that a miracle could happen—his legs would be well again; this excessive flesh would drop from him and he would be a young and agile man again. Perhaps he thought back to the days of his glorious youth when one ambassador had said that he was the most handsome man in Christendom. If one has been handsome, it is hard to forget it; and I suppose people see themselves not as they are but as they once were. I think that was how it was with my father; and in these moods he would ask himself: What am I doing with such a wife…a barren wife? Her only claim to his affections was that she knew how to tie a bandage.

There were beautiful women at Court. There was Lady Mary Howard