The Midwife's Tale by Sam Thomas

defeated the assault. Later, Edward told me that upward of forty rebels died in the attack and over two hundred more were captured.
    After dinner, I retired to my chamber and reviewed the month’s rental receipts from some of my estates in Hereford. In the midst of this work, Hannah announced that my brother-in-law, Edward, was downstairs. I was surprised and more than a bit worried—a man of his stature did not often call upon others, preferring to do business on his own terms and in his own home. I closed my account book and descended to the parlor, a thousand possibilities racing through my head. Was the city in greater peril than it seemed? Had the Lord Mayor decided to surrender to the rebels? The loss of York would be a blow to the King’s cause, but the city would fare far better if it was handed over peacefully than taken by force.
    Edward stood in the middle of the room, resplendent in a fine silk doublet. He gazed out the window at the city over which he wielded so much power. I wondered what he thought of the day’s events. I knew that his sympathies lay with the rebels, but he certainly would not want to see the city sacked. I did not envy his position between Scylla and Charybdis. When I entered the room, Edward turned and embraced me. We talked briefly of the attack before he changed the subject.
    “Bridget, I need to speak to you in confidence.” I nodded. “Early this morning the Aldermen and Lord Mayor met at the Castle and tried Esther Cooper for murder.” I started to object, but he held up his hand. “There was nothing else to be done. The Lord Mayor and several Aldermen—Aldermen who are partial to the King, if you must know—demanded a trial. It was too vicious a crime to delay, particularly in the midst of a rebellion. I assure you that the proceedings were scrupulously fair.”
    “And the verdict?” I asked, though I already knew. The politics of the moment meant that only one verdict was possible.
    “I’m sure Will told you that the constable found a vial containing the same poison that killed Stephen in Esther’s cupboard. The evidence is clear. She is guilty, and she will die for her crime.” I felt anger rising within me, but I controlled the urge to lash out at Edward.
    “How did she explain the ratsbane?”
    “What do you mean?” His refusal to meet my gaze told me something was amiss.
    “At her trial the constable must have testified about finding the ratsbane. It was the only evidence against her. How did she respond?”
    He coughed softly and looked at his feet. He was as embarrassed as I’d ever seen him. “She did not appear at her trial. The evidence was so clear that the Lord Mayor deemed it unnecessary.”
    At this I could no longer contain my fury. “Surely you are joking!” I shouted. “You establish a court with no legal basis, you leave Esther in gaol during her own trial, and then you sentence her to death?”
    “What would you have had me do?” he protested. “And what difference would her presence have made? There was only one possible outcome.”
    “And that excuses this charade?” I cried. “Edward, you know Esther. Surely you cannot believe she killed Stephen.”
    Edward looked away before answering. “I know that St. Paul says we are by our nature children of wrath. It is only by the grace of God that each of us does not commit such a wicked act.” Such sophistry enraged me all the more.
    “Answer the question, Edward! Do you really believe that Esther killed her husband?”
    Edward sighed heavily. “What I think is immaterial. The court heard the evidence against her, convicted her of petty treason, and sentenced her to die. That is all that matters.” He took me by the arms and looked in my eyes. “Bridget, I am sorry. There was nothing I could do.”
    I believed him. “How long will they wait to hang her? I should like to visit her.”
    Edward exhaled slowly and once again looked away from me. “The Lord Mayor refused to hang her. She