Heartstone by C. J. Sansom Read Free Book Online

mother.
    â€˜Yet I have heard it said that lawyers are bad folk, with no morals, who will argue a wicked man’s case as readily as a good one’s. People say lawyers’ houses are built on the heads of fools, and they use the tangles of the law as webs to ensnare the people. What say you, sir?’
    The girl’s serious expression showed she was not mocking me, she truly wished to hear my answer. I took a deep breath. ‘My lady, I was taught it is a good thing for lawyers to be ready to argue the case of any client, indifferently. A lawyer’s duty is to be impartial, so that every man, good or bad, may have his rights faithfully argued before the King’s courts.’
    â€˜But lawyers must have consciences, sir, and know in their hearts whether the cause they argue be just or no.’ Elizabeth spoke emphatically. ‘If a man came to you and you saw he acted from malice and spite against the other party, wished merely to entangle him in the thorny embrace of the law, would you not act for him just the same, for a fee?’
    â€˜Master Shardlake acts mostly for the poor, Elizabeth,’ the Queen said gently. ‘In the Court of Requests.’
    â€˜But, Mother, surely a poor man may have a bad case as easily as a rich one?’
    â€˜It is true the law is tangled,’ I said, ‘perhaps indeed too complex for men’s good. True also that some lawyers are greedy and care only for money. Yet a lawyer has a duty to seek out whatever is just and reasonable in a client’s case, so he may argue it well. Thus he may indeed engage his conscience. And it is the judges who decide where justice lies. And justice is a great thing.’
    Elizabeth gave me a sudden winning smile. ‘I thank you for your answer, sir, and will think well on it. I asked only because I wish to learn.’ She paused. ‘Yet still I think justice is no easy thing to find.’
    â€˜There, my lady, I agree.’
    The Queen touched her arm. ‘And now you must go, or Master Timothy will be searching. And Serjeant Shardlake and I have business. Jane, will you accompany her?’
    Elizabeth nodded and smiled at the Queen, looking for a moment like an ordinary little girl. I bowed deeply again. One of the maids came over and accompanied the child to the door. Elizabeth walked with slow, composed steps. The little dog made to follow her, but the Queen called to it to stay. The maid-in-waiting knocked on the door, it was opened, and they slipped through.
    The Queen turned to me, then held out a slim ringed hand for me to kiss. ‘You answered well,’ she said, ‘but perhaps you allowed your fellow lawyers too much latitude.’
    â€˜Yes. I am more cynical than that. But she is only a child, though a truly remarkable one. She converses better than many adults.’
    The Queen laughed, a sudden display of white even teeth. ‘She swears like a soldier when she is angry; I think Master Timothy encourages her. But yes, she is truly remarkable. Master Grindal, Prince Edward’s tutor, is teaching her too and says she is the cleverest child he has ever taught. And she is as skilled at sporting pursuits as things of the mind. Already she follows the hunt and she is reading Master Ascham’s new treatise on archery. Yet she is so sad sometimes, and so watchful. Sometimes frightened.’ The Queen looked at the closed door with a pensive expression, and for a moment I saw the Catherine Parr I remembered: intense, afraid, desperate to do the right thing.
    I said, ‘The world is a dangerous and uncertain place, your majesty. One cannot be too watchful.’
    â€˜Yes.’ A knowing smile. ‘And you fear I would place you again amidst its worst dangers. I see it. But I would never break my promise, good Matthew. The case I have for you is nothing to do with politics.’
    I bowed my head. ‘You see through me. I do not know what to say.’
    â€˜Then say