Prisoner of the Queen (Tales From the Tudor Court) by Eliza Knight, E. Knight Read Free Book Online Page B

a bleak future.
    The quarrel between Princess Elizabeth, Jane and me still played vividly in my mind. She’d called us pawns. She had been right.
    Once more Father would seek to put us all in danger, and there was naught that we could do about it. Even my own mother had not been able to persuade him otherwise. I never thought my father capable of such treachery. Certainly there had been whispers but I never thought it possible. To put his daughter on the throne… It would be the end of us all.
    My fingers play ed nervously with my skirt, twisting the fabric, wrinkling the delicate folds into a mess Mother would certainly disapprove of.
    On the barge, we heard pe ople shout from the shores their approval of Jane’s ascension, while Jane made an illustrious progress from Westminster to the Tower of London. She waved at the townsfolk as we passed. But all the while, dark, stormy clouds gathered overhead. Big fat droplets of rain spilled on our heads as we rushed for cover from the quay and through the gates of the Tower. Thunder cracked and lightning streaked across the sky amidst the sounds of cannon fire, signifying the queen had arrived. Heralds declared the proclamation of Jane’s rule to the crowd, who grew restless and wet, above the sounds of nature and man. I could not have been the only one who saw this as a bad omen.
    A shudder passed through me, and I took a long deep breath to calm my anxious self. We were quickly ushered inside to warmth, where maids took linen towels to our persons to dry off the bits of water clinging to our velvet gowns and headdresses, even the tips of our noses.
    Jane stood still and stoic as her maids carried out their duties and the other ladies surrounding her giddily talked of the men in their green and white livery. I saw in her eyes something was changing, taking root there. Several minutes later, her stolid countenance dropped, and a rare smile crossed her lips.
    Jane was a conundrum. For in private, one moment she gave this triumphant smile, and the next moment fear filled her eyes, her lips pinched together as if she were ill. In the face of others, she remained stoically resolved to take the crown if it was God’s will. Her reluctance genuine as was her bouts of joy.
    My throat tightened painfully, my chest hurting from not breathing. If Father’s plan to take the crown did not work—and I admitted to having extreme doubts—we could all be killed. Executed. I still recalled the heads on spikes protruding from the top of London Bridge in warning to any who entered the formidable city. Please, let our futures not be grim. Let Jane rule until she’s old and gray. Let us all rejoice in this! My sister, Queen of England! We, the most powerful family in the land. There will be feasts, dances, dresses, jewels. I felt my heart stop just thinking about it all.
    For certes, our dear cousins, Princess Mary and Princess Elizabeth, would not stand aside while a usurper took over what they deemed their birthright. But Jane’s army and guard would protect us. The law of the council would protect us. They must! At least, until they bowed to Princess Mary’s rule, for she would not bow down to Jane with a fight.
    I’ve heard t he servants whisper of Princess Mary gathering troops and preparing to march on London. I’d met my dear cousin years before. She was an angry woman—embittered with the trials of her station, the wrongs done to her. Behind Mary would be thousands of retainers set on destroying us. We must stand our ground, or we would all be locked in the Tower. We would all be led to the scaffold or the gallows for having gone against her, for having strayed from the Catholic faith she so revered.
    London, all of England, w ould stand for us, would they not?
    I folded my hands with in my gown to keep anyone from seeing how they trembled. For I was uncertain now… The minds of people changed so readily.
    Why did King Edward have to die so young? A chill snaked its way up my spine.