his house.
He stood at the door listening. He heard noises within. Strangers were in his house.
His heart was beating fast as he opened the door and went into that room in which he did his work. There stood two men; he noticed that his cupboard had been turned out, as had the drawers of his table. In the hands of one were several sheets of his Concordance. These men had forced the lock; they had discovered his secret.
“What… what do you here?” he stammered.
“John Marbeck,” said one of the men, “we come on the King’s business. You are our prisoner. There will be questions for you to answer.
“Questions… questions? I beg of you, give me those papers…. They are mine….”
“Not so,” said the man. “These papers are our prisoners also. Come, master chorister. There is no time to waste.”
“Whither do you take me?”
“To London. To the Marshalsea.”
Marbeck was trembling, remembering tales he had heard and had bravely not heeded. Now they were close to him and he would have to heed them. He thought of torture and death; and as he left Windsor for London in the company of his captors he thought of the smell of crackling wood and burning flesh; he thought of the martyr’s death.
ANNE, LADY HERBERT, came to the Queen and begged a secret audience with her. Katharine forthwith dismissed all her attendants.
“What ails you, sister?” asked the Queen. “I declare you look as if you have seen a ghost.”
Ah! thought Anne Herbert. Mayhap I have. The ghosts of Anne Boleyn and Catharine Howard warn me.
“Gardiner is moving against you. He, with his friend Wriothesley, has ordered a search of the houses in this town.”
“A search!”
“There have already been arrests.”
“Whom have they arrested?”
“Four men of Windsor. Two priests and two musicians. Pearson is one of them, Marbeck another.”
“God help us!” cried the Queen. “I know why these men have been taken.”
“It is a blow at you, dearest sister. They dare not attack you now because you have the King’s favor. But this is a warning. As soon as they consider they have a chance to work against you, they will do so. Dearest Majesty, you must give up your reading, give up those little gatherings of our friends. It was unsafe when you were Lady Latimer; but now that you are the Queen it is desperately dangerous.”
“Anne, what will happen to these men?”
“I know not. Dr. London is preparing a case against them.”
“Dr. London! That rogue. He was Cromwell’s man. That is he, is it not? He roamed the countryside and turned the monks from their monasteries while he took their treasure.”
“He took those treasures for his master, Kate. He is a man without principles. Then he worked against the Catholic monks; now he works for Catholic Gardiner and the King’s Secretary, Wriothesley. He is wily; he is clever and he is unscrupulous. What is to become of these men, I do not know. They say they have found Marbeck’s notes on the Bible. That will ensure a fiery death for him.”
“But, Anne, the King has a fondness for Marbeck. He complimented him on his singing.”
“Gardiner has no fondness for Marbeck’s religious views.”
“The King is all-powerful.”
“But, Kate, Gardiner will show that Marbeck has disobeyed the King’s orders. I am afraid… desperately afraid. Not only for these men… but for you.”
“We must help them, Anne. We cannot let them die.”
“Let well alone. Listen to me, dearest Kate. Remember those who went before you. You have the King’s favor now. Keep it. Do everything you can to keep it, and stay away from trouble.”
“But I must do everything I can for these men, Anne.”
“You tempt Fate.”
“No, Anne. I must prove my courage in this. I have to acquire courage. Something within me tells me this. If I fail now I should fail later.”
“Later?” said Anne Herbert fearfully.
“Anne, there may come a time when I shall have to be very brave indeed.” Katharine put her arm about her sister. “Speak what is in your mind, dearest. You talk of four men of Windsor, and you think of two Queens. Remember, I have an advantage over them. I know what happened to them; though they, poor souls, had no indications of what they would come to. All will be well, I promise you. The King is fond of me and he grows fonder.”
“Dearest sister,” said Anne, “I would that you were merely my sister and not my Queen.”
IN THE DARKNESS of the royal bedchamber the Queen whispered to the King: