Cor Rotto: A novel of Catherine Carey by Adrienne Dillard Read Free Book Online Page A

wide grin on his face.
    “You’re right,” I sighed. “I have to get back to the queen, but I will see you both tonight.”
    Stafford nodded. “We would like to request your presence at supper in our rooms if the queen will allow it.”
    I felt a catch in my throat, but I tried not to show it. They must want to share the news of my match tonight.
    “Of course, Master Stafford, I will be there.”
    I made my way back to Nan, who had a bouquet of yellow and white daisies in her hand.
    “Your mother is at Court?” She asked incredulously. “I never thought she would come back here. They must have something important to tell you.”
    I ignored her comment and pretended to be interested in a ladybird that had landed on my hand.
    She stood staring after them. After a moment, she took a sharp breath. “Wait! You know, don’t you? That is why you were so sullen last week. They have found you a husband haven’t they? Why didn’t you tell me?”
    I put my finger to my lips, “Nan, please keep your voice down. I don’t know what is going on, but I am sure they have. That is why I was sent to Court - or requested I suppose - since the king did ask after me. I will tell you after supper.”
    Nan nodded solemnly and we headed back to the queen’s rooms. Lady Rutland and Lady Rochford had already interrogated Queen Anne on her maidenhood and it was obvious that she suspected that something was amiss in the king’s behaviour. Instead of her usual calm, she had become suspicious of us all. I knew the flowers would cheer her and I hoped they would improve her mood.
    That evening Stafford and my mother carried on about how delighted they were in the king’s choice of husband for me. Francis was a Gentleman Pensioner. This meant that he served as one of the king’s own body guards. His father, Robert, had died when he was young and his mother, Lettice, was married for the third time. He had been granted the estate of Rotherfield Greys in his home of Oxfordshire and I would be travelling there next month to be married.
    My mother would stay here to help me prepare and then travel with us by carriage. I had expected the revelation of this information, but it was still a shock to me to realise that within a month’s time I would be someone’s wife. I went back to my room hopeful for my future, but in the back of my mind I was terrified. It would not be long before I was a mother. What if I did not know what to do? I knew that we were born to be wives, give birth and raise children, but what if, like Anne, no sons came? I had seen that love could exist in a marriage, but not all men treated their wives as kindly as Stafford. I tried to have faith in the choice that the king had made, but I spent many sleepless nights waiting for my wedding day.

PART II
My Lady Wife

Oxfordshire, Rotherfield Greys:
April 1540
    The road to Oxfordshire was wet and muddy with the spring rains, making the carriage bounce and shudder the five hours it took to get there from London. By the time we arrived, I was exhausted and nauseated. My mother could tell I was not feeling my best and sent our page on to Greys Court to let my future family know that we would spend the night at the local inn so that I could rest before I met them. I wanted to make a good impression and with the sorry state I was in, that would be impossible.
    Mother called for a wooden tub and hot water. Exhausted, I climbed in. The hot water reddened my skin and as I lay back against the stiff boards and closed my eyes, I felt relaxed for the first time in weeks. Mother poured rosewater down my back then rubbed my hair clean with linen rags. I felt like a child again, bathing before the fire at Calais, as if all my troubles were far away. After I dried and put on a new linen shift, she braided rosemary into my hair to perfume it overnight. Though it was still light out, I crawled into bed and slept until morning.
    I awoke to the sounds of hoof-beats outside my window. I wondered who