When another week and more passed without word from Uncle John, Aunt Kat became resolute to go to London and make things up with him. Her excuse for leaving the princess’s side was that her arm ached strangely, and she wished for a physician to examine it.
It was obvious that Elizabeth saw through the excuse for the journey, but she gave Aunt Kat a cool nod and permission for her to leave for a short while.
Wanting, I suppose, to reconcile with me as well, Aunt Kat bade me accompany her.
I went with her readily, because not only did I want Aunt Kat and Uncle John to patch up their quarrel, but the countryside had become gloomy in the dark of December. London, though it could be as muddy and cold as the country, would at least be interesting.
Vendors would sell hot nuts and cider, and there would be street entertainment aplenty. Though Aunt Kat admonished me that tumbling men and performing bears were low forms of amusement, I enjoyed them, and I noted that they could hold her attention as well. Elizabeth was also fond of bears, tumblers, and acting troupes of the sort my father had belonged to, whenever they passed through Hatfield in the warmer months.
I had also hoped, when we reached London, to shop a bit. I wanted a peek at whatever fabrics and trims were coming in on the great ships, as well as baubles and beads I could sew into patterns on the cloth.
When Aunt Kat descended the coach with haste at the dwelling of her friends, people called the Slaynings, she shut herself inside the house and refused to budge, admonishing me to remain with her.
The Slaynings’ home was large but dark, and the fires did not draw well, making the rooms smoky and my throat sore. I tried to busy myself drawing designs for gowns and planning what I’d search for in the shops, but Aunt Kat made no sign that she wished to leave the house. She did not even emerge from the chamber her kind friends had prepared for her.
“Will you not seek the physician?” I asked her with impatience after a few days had passed. “I thought your arm pained you so.”
“I cannot go out, Eloise,” was Aunt Kat’s listless response. “I have nothing to wear.”
True, Aunt Kat had not packed very much above her travel garments, but I knew this was only an excuse. She bore the demeanor of a woman who meant to stay the whole day indoors with her feet propped on a stool by the fire.
She’d come to London to find Uncle John, and no other reason. Her fabrication about seeking a leech had already been forgotten.
“Perhaps I should visit the physician on your behalf,” I suggested. On the way, I could seek out the markets and immerse myself in my beloved fabric.
“Yes, do go, Eloise. You are restless as a sparrow.” Aunt Kat returned her brooding attention to the fire, clearly uncaring of what I did.
I conscripted a maid and a lad of the house to accompany me, it being unfit for a young lady to wander the muddy streets alone. They resented being dragged out into the cold and muttered to themselves as we walked along.
The house in which we stayed was near the Strand. I turned onto this street and reveled in the carts selling everything from sweetmeats to trinkets from far-off places. I found ivory-colored beads that would look well against a white velvet bodice I was designing, and purchased a few with what pennies I had.
Durham Place—which should have been Elizabeth’s, had not the Lord Protector confiscated it—was a fixture of elegance on the Strand, not far from the Lord Protector’s own home of Somerset House.
The gates of Durham Place stood open this morning. As we strolled past in search of more shops, I craned my head to peer in beyond the gatehouse. A huge courtyard led to the manor itself, which was set far back from the street, its rear windows overlooking the Thames. I could well understand why Elizabeth was annoyed that the Lord Protector had pulled the lovely mansion into his clutches.
Farther along the Strand, near Temple Bar, we came upon a troupe of acrobats—three men and two women—in the middle of a lively performance. I and my servants joined the watchers in delight.
Wind scraped down the narrow lanes from the river, and a chill crept up my skirts and seeped into my gloves. The acrobats, climbing upon shoulders and tumbling to the ground, were smiling and rosy, but the audience stamped feet and blew on fingers.
The troupe finished their last move, landing solidly and raising their arms to our wild applause. They unfroze from their pose, the men bowing, women curtsying, then moved through the crowd, hats out for coins. I dropped tuppence in one, to the sweating tumbler’s delight, and the maid and lad I’d purloined happily gave them a farthing each.
The heavy tramping of feet interrupted the proceedings. I spied liveried and armed gentlemen pushing down the Strand toward us, their presence indicating that an important personage was traveling this way.
The acrobats abruptly swung from the crowd, and all five nimbly disappeared down the nearest passageways. The audience dispersed, hurrying aside for whatever noble gentleman or lady came their way, and I did the same.
I hadn’t gone more than three steps before a chillingly familiar voice called out to me.
“It is too cold to be abroad, kitten. Is your mistress so cruel that she does not allow you to laze by the fire?”
I stilled for a long a moment before I turned slowly. Thomas Seymour, Lord High Admiral of England, had halted with his guards and eyed me from among his entourage.
Why he, an exalted nobleman, should be tramping about on foot, I could scarcely say. It was easier to move through London using boats and barges on the river than through the filthy streets, but then, the athletic Seymour had always done as he pleased.
I curtsied as well as my stiff legs would allow and murmured, “Your lordship.”
Seymour flashed his arrogant smile. “I asked you a question, seamstress. Does your mistress not keep you busy sewing?”
He took in my two servants, who’d faded behind me, and noted the absence of any other person or retinue. Clearly, he wanted to know whether Elizabeth was nearby or in London at all. I had no intention of telling him the answer to either question.
