would not be required to sleep in the open. That would add a measure of safety and comfort to the trip.
He decided to take the shortest route possible, but would need to deliver documents and messages to Nottingham on the way to Lambley. He spent the first night in Melton Mowbray at the house of the priest.
As he passed through the villages and hamlets, he was surprised at how poor the people seemed. Already, he thought, the internal strife for the crown was having an effect on the people. They were poor already and they were the first to suffer when the royals contended. Because he represented the Church, he was approached many times and soon had given away all of the extra food that he had brought with him. He would have gladly given the donkey as well, but it was not his to give.
It was especially heart-wrenching for him to see the little ones approach him, wearing no covering on their feet and with ragged clothing, look at him with big sorrowful eyes.
The road from Melton Mowbray to Nottingham ran through few villages and a portion would be through the Sherwood Forest. This concerned James because the forest was reputed to be the home of thieves. James wondered whether the ranks of the thieves would have grown due to the economic hardship of the people and whether the thieves would be more brazen. Because he was just a humble priest, he trusted that the thieves would not harm him.
James entered the woods soon after noon and continued on without seeing anyone. A couple of hours later, he heard something coming toward him. It sounded like rumbling and also metal clanking. He stopped to listen and decided that it must be a large number of men and animals. He decided that it would be wise to not be seen even if he was a monk, so he coaxed his animal off the road and into the trees. There he dismounted and waited. Before long he saw the occasional flutter of a flag through the trees and then he started seeing men walking and wagons. As the column of men drew closer, he could see that the flags had an unmistakable white rose. These were obviously the Duke of York's men. James fought back feelings of anger toward them for the injury that they had inflicted on his father. At the end of the company, James saw a large machine on wheels and it took him some time to determine what it was, having never seen such a device. It was a catapult. 'Pity the towne that it is used on,' thought James.
After a time, the solders were gone and James continued on his way, reaching Lambley the next day. He tied the donkey in the yard behind the bakery and entered through the rear. He noticed that the oven was cold and there was no bread or other items on the shelves. There was flour and wheat in the bins though.
'Mum, it is I, James,' he called up the stairway.
'James!' Elizabeth called from the room above and then appeared at the top of the stairs. 'James, you came!' she said.
James hurried up the stairs and took his mother into his arms and she cried.
'I came as soon as I received your message, mum,' James said.
'Oh James, I knew that you wuld comb.'
''ow is father?' James asked.
''e is nay gud, sone. Comb and see.'
James followed his mother into the room and saw Thomas laying on the bed. His eyes were closed and his breathing was labored, but shallow. His skin was ashen.
'Whot 'appened to 'im, mum?' James asked.
Elizabeth related to James that the Duke of York's men had come through Lambley and they had been a frightful sight. The village knew that they were coming for a day or so before they arrived and the villagers that could had left. Those that couldn't leave, or those that thought to earn money from their presence, stayed. Elizabeth and Thomas would like to have left, but Thomas was afraid to leave the store unattended. He had insisted that she leave, but she had refused to leave him alone.
When the army came, Thomas had been at the church and Elizabeth in the bakery. Several soldiers had come into the bakery and had demanded bread. She had given it to them and they had refused to pay. She would have gladly accepted their departure without payment, but one of the soldiers had taken hold