The Service of the Dead
- Автор: Робб Кэндис
- Серия: A Kate Clifford Mystery #1
- Год: 2016
- Язык: английский
- Год: Pegasus Books
- ISBN: 978-1-68177-175-5
- Жанр: Исторические детективы
Электронная книга - «The Service of the Dead». Краткое содержание книги:
Expertly recreating the social and political upheavals of late medieval Europe and the increasing power of the wealthy merchant class, acclaimed author Candace Robb introduces a new series starring Kate Clifford, a woman forged on the warring northern marches of fourteenth century England.
Political unrest permeates York at the cusp of the fifteenth century, as warring factions take sides on who should be the rightful king – Richard II or his estranged, powerful cousin in exile, Henry Bolingbroke. Independent minded twenty-year-old Kate Clifford is struggling to dig out from beneath the debt left by her late husband. Determined to find a way to be secure in her own wealth and establish her independence in a male dominated society, Kate turns one of her properties near the minster into a guest house and sets up a business. In a dance of power, she also quietly rents the discreet bedchambers to the wealthy, powerful merchants of York for nights with their mistresses.
But the brutal murder of a mysterious guest and the disappearance of his companion for the evening threatens all that Kate has built. Before others in town hear word of a looming scandal, she must call upon all of her hard-won survival skills to save herself from ruin.
Still chilled, she warmed her hands at the brazier in her uncle’s parlor, but she could not reach the true cause of her tremors, a chill deeper than any fire could dispel. Any sense of safety she had once felt being in York, away from the northern border, had been undermined by the events of the past week. The delicate balance she had achieved between meeting Simon’s debts and saving for a future she might choose for herself was threatened, the safe haven she had created for Phillip and Marie invaded. She wanted to find the murderer and end this. She wanted his blood. But at the moment, she had only the name of someone possibly connected to all this, Hubert Bale, and a vague connection to Henry Bolingbroke, Duke of Lancaster. Something did not feel right about that. The deaths seemed far too personal to have been arranged by a noble in exile. She knew she would not sleep soundly until she had eliminated the danger.
So much for a quiet respite. By the time her uncle escorted Phillip into the room, Kate welcomed the distraction from her own uneasy heart.
She smiled at the elegant outfit Marie had chosen for her brother. Phillip wore a dark red velvet jacket, deep brown leggings, and red leather boots. Elegant. But the clothes hung loosely, revealing a loss of heft since Jennet had fitted him months ago. Kate wondered what he had eaten the past few days.
A servant brought food and wine, then withdrew. Kate urged Phillip to eat. He tore some bread, smoothed soft cheese on it, and nibbled at it.
Dean Richard smiled. “My favorite cheese.”
Phillip nodded. “I like it. Marie would hate it.”
They ate in silence for a few minutes.
“Tell us how you found him, Phillip,” Kate began. “You said you witnessed nothing, but then how did you happen to be there? I know you stayed the night in Connor’s lodgings.”
“How do you know that?”
“Jennet learned where you were, and made certain you were safe.” Not safe enough. “Go on, I pray you.”
“I think it was the sound of the street door closing that woke me. The door to the room was open, and Connor was gone. I pushed open the shutters, saw him hurrying in the direction of the minster yard. He was with another man.”
“Was he following the man, or walking with him?”
“With him.”
She nodded for Phillip to continue.
“I tried to catch up, but by the time I put on my boots they had disappeared. I thought it must be one of his fellows who had come for him, so I went on to the minster yard, hoping to catch them there. But the yard was dark, and there was no one yet in the masons’ lodge. I didn’t know what to do.” His voice broke. He wiped his eyes on his velvet sleeve. Foolish Marie.
“How were you able to see him down in the street?” Kate asked softly.
“A lantern. The stranger carried a lantern.”
“Why were you with Connor last night?” the dean asked.
“He went mad in the tavern when he heard that Alice Hatten had been pulled from the King’s Fishpond, and what had been done to her, how she died. I feared he would hurt himself when he sobered up.”
“They were lovers?” Kate asked.
“I think so. At least that’s what I guessed when I saw them together the morning after she witnessed the man murdered in your guesthouse.”
“You know of that?” the dean asked.
Phillip shrugged, averting his eyes. “I heard them talk about it, and he told me more.” For a moment, it seemed the boy’s weariness took over. He slumped into himself, bowed his head.
“Phillip, do you need more rest?” Kate asked.
He straightened and rubbed his cheeks. “I heard you complain to Berend that my father kept things from you that you would have been better off knowing, as all men did, thinking to protect you. But you do it too. If I had known…” His voice broke again.
“You might have prevented Connor’s death? No, Phillip. We knew of it, but we’ve not spoken to anyone who was there in the room that night. We do not yet know what happened. But we will find out. And we will avenge these deaths.”
“Katherine,” the dean warned, “this is not the border country.”
“We will argue that point once we know more. For now, we need to hear all that you know, Phillip. Something you heard or witnessed might hold the key. You saw them the morning after the murder in the guesthouse?”
His slender face solemn, his voice soft, he began to spin out the sad tale of Connor’s last days. Phillip skipped school one morning. Master Grantham had said he would be away, so the boy hoped he might catch Connor at his work and convince him to straighten up so that they could work together. He found Connor working on a corner fit. At first he invited Phillip to watch him at the task, telling him he could then try a corner himself. He had set aside a flawed piece of stone for Phillip to work on – so no worry if it split, no one would care, there were plenty more on the pile. As he watched Connor work, Phillip told him about Grantham’s offer to train him himself, and his own preference to work with Connor.
“He said nothing until he was finished. Then he said maybe the master was right. He had lost the gift. I argued that he had not.
“Connor blew on the piece of stone to judge his progress. He fit the chisel into the edge of the cut, then looked sidewise at me, shaking his head. ‘A master is guided by the beauty in his head, a vision. I’ve lost that. I thought myself a good man, a man who would never balk at doing the right thing. Most of all for those I love. But last night… I succumbed to my demon. I went first to the tavern, arrived late… Damned I am. Had I been there–’ Then Connor brought down the hammer with such force the chisel sank deep into the stone, splitting it in an explosion of fine particles. With a curse, he dropped his tool. ‘You have promise, lad. Take Grantham’s offer. You will learn precious little from the likes of me,’ he said, then stormed off, shedding his smock as he headed toward the minster gate.
“I picked up the hammer and ran after him. I tried to tell him he was a good man, I knew he was, but he just told me to leave him be, to work with the master and leave him to hell.”
Phillip pressed his hands to his face, bowed his head.
Kate and her uncle exchanged a look. Perhaps it was too much too soon. She was about to suggest that Phillip rest awhile when he sat up with a huff.
“You see? I was right all along. Connor was not a drunkard, he was sad. He believed he had failed someone. I followed him, to see if I could help.”
He found Connor behind his lodgings, holding a woman by the arm. “Alice. I know that now. She was trying to break away, he was begging her to stay. She was crying. Her clothes were crumpled and her hair all undone. She looked frightened. He was telling her they had to go away on their own, they could not wait for everything to be readied, it never would be now. She kept saying she would go to her son’s father, he would make it right. And Connor kept saying he was the one who had put her in danger. They were both angry and frightened. I was afraid he would hit her, but she got away from him and told him that he was better off without her. He turned away and marched to the nearest alewife.”