Belaset's Daughter - By Feona J Hamilton Page 0,76
expression changed from puzzlement to horror, and she clapped her hands across her mouth. Her eyes, wide and frightened, looked at Aaron.
He grasped Hubert by the shoulder, and shook him, roughly.
"Quickly!" he said. "We must get the women to safety. Milk Street is not far we can make it, if we hurry!"
"Milk Street will not be safe," said Rokesly’s man. "We must go further than that out of the City and as far as Westminster, my master says."
"Lead on, then!" said Aaron. "We will be behind you. Go as fast as you can but tell me, where are we making for?"
"My master bid us meet him by the Abbey walls," said Hubert. "I know the place well."
He set off, walking swiftly, then breaking into a trot, as the sounds of the riot grew louder. They ran along small alleys, some with stone houses backing on to them, some lined with rough hovels. They seemed to be the only people in this part of London, although it was clear that the mob was only a few streets away. The shouting of men’s voices, the sound of wooden staves being thumped on something solid, the occasional clash of steel, was a continuous accompaniment to their progress. Sometimes, there was a strangled cry, cut off suddenly in mid-breath and, again and again, they heard the high, terrified screams of women.
Then another sound rose above the rest the crackling sound of fire. Their guide suddenly veered to the right, taking the small group with him. Ahead of them, a veil of smoke was drifting across the street, and they could smell burning wood and, in gusts, the sicklier smell of roasting flesh. Then, their guide turned sharply to the left, and they were making their way up West Cheap. Their breathing, already made difficult by the effort of running, became even more ragged. Running through the smoke, they began coughing and choking, as it seared into their lungs. Belaset staggered, and tried to pause, but Aaron grasped her arm and urged her forward.
At last, they were through the smoke, and the air was cleaner. St Paul s loomed suddenly on their right and they ran the full length of it. The noise faded behind them, and they came to the City wall at the Ludgate. Hubert brought them up close to the wall itself, and motioned to them to crouch down against it. They were all too exhausted to speak, but leaned gratefully against the solid stone, panting for breath, and feeling their hearts beat painfully against their ribs.
The manservant leaned towards Aaron.
"We must pass unnoticed through the gate," he said, in a low voice. "Then we can cross the Flete Bridge and so make our way to the Abbey."
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Belaset’s Daughter
"How hard will it be to get through the gate at this hour?" said Aaron.
"Not very I’ll wager the watch’s interest will all be elsewhere," said Hubert, nodding grimly in the direction they had come. "They’ll be trying to see what s happening from up there on the top."
Aaron said nothing. He could imagine what the men might see from their vantage point the burning houses, the bodies of his people lying in the streets. He glanced at the women. He was lucky that Judith and Belaset were with him and safe but where was
the rest of his family? How many of them would they see again? This was not the first time that the Jews had been the target for a massacre some excuse could always be
found to inflame the passions of the so-called ’Christian’ crowds, especially at this time of the year.
He turned his mind deliberately to the problem of getting all four of them through the gate and away, unseen. He had no doubt that the servant’s assumption that the watch would be looking elsewhere was true. Outside the gatehouse was where the danger might really lie. It would take only the smallest movement to catch someone’s eye, and they would become the prey themselves running this time through streets unknown to any of them. He rose to his feet.
"We are going through the gate, across the bridge, and straight along the road on the other side," he said to Judith, helping her to her feet. He turned to Belaset.
"Are you alright, now, Mother?" he asked her.
She smiled at the term.
"Yes, Aaron," she said. "I needed only a short rest, just to regain my breath. Have we much further to go?"