The Unfaithful Queen: A Novel of Henry VIII's Fifth Wife by Carolly Erickson Page B

prompted.
    Uncle Thomas turned to me.
    “‘By all that is holy,’ His Majesty said, ‘if only I had seen this girl before Crum began these damnable talks with the Clevans!’ Those were his words. And I said, ‘It is not too late, sire.’”
    “But I—” I began, then closed my mouth. If I understood Uncle Thomas correctly, he was telling me that King Henry might prefer me to the mysterious Anna of Cleves. I was pledged to Francis, but Francis had made it clear that our handfasted pledge need not hold me back from becoming the king’s mistress. Or his wife.
    I felt dizzy.
    “Come, sit here, girl,” Grandma Agnes was saying, patting the cushioned bench beside her. Obediently I went to sit down.
    “Give her some wine!” she called out. “She looks pale.”
    “Perhaps we have not appreciated you up to now, Catherine,” she said, speaking in a voice I had never before heard her use. Not stern, not demanding, not shrill. An almost motherly voice.
    “There are so many girls living under my roof,” she went on, “I have so many granddaughters and grandnieces, wards and orphans and babes left on my doorstep—” She waved her hand as if to dismiss them all. “I cannot see every one clearly. I cannot appreciate each one. They are a swarm, nothing more.”
    As she spoke I drank thirstily from the goblet of wine that was brought to me.
    “If we have neglected you, I regret it. I assure you, Lambeth will be made a much more pleasant place for you from now on. I know your father does not provide very generously for you—”
    “Where is father?” I asked, holding out my goblet to the servant who stood by, who hastened to fill it.
    “Shouldn’t father be here, to hear what you are telling me?”
    Grandma Agnes looked uncomfortable.
    “Thomas—” she began.
    “He is in the North Country. He has been appointed Keeper of the Subsidies for Yorkshire and the Borders.” Uncle Thomas spoke brusquely, hurriedly.
    “But he was hoping to be made second under-cellarer to the new queen!” I said. “He expected the appointment!”
    “The Lord Privy Seal does not wish it,” was Uncle Thomas’s response, spoken in a low, resentful tone.
    “Lord Cromwell!”
    “He ordered your father to Huddleston last week. He will take up his duties there as soon as possible.”
    Damnable Lord Cromwell! He was thwarting us at every turn. We Howards, whose descent was as far above his as the sky is above the earth, as I had often heard Uncle Thomas say.
    “I see by the scowl on your pretty face that you share our view of the Lord Privy Seal,” Grandma Agnes said, her tone acid. “He harms and thwarts our family’s interests at every opportunity. You, on the other hand, may have the good fortune to advance our interests.”
    “Uncle Thomas, can you not ask the king to give father the position he wants?” I asked bravely.
    “Perhaps not,” came his answer, “but you could. And while making your request, you could feed his fancy, charm him further, nurture his love.”
    “Take the monkey with you,” Grandma Agnes added. “He likes it that you chose the monkey from among all the gifts he offered. Will you do it?”
    I felt no hesitation.
    “If you think it would help father, yes.”
    “Before you go, I must tell you that the talks with the men of law from Cleves have run into difficulties.” Uncle Thomas looked pleased. “Our own man of law here believes that Anna entered into a marriage contract with another man, and is still bound by that contract. And our theologians maintain that there are worrisome differences in doctrine between the Lutheran belief of Cleves and our English church as reformed by Parliament. Unless these differences can be removed, the Lady Anna cannot marry King Henry. She must conform to our ways in all things.”
    Both the lawyer and the priest were clearly eager to speak, but Uncle Thomas held up his hand to silence them.
    “So it appears that the king may not be able to marry the lady Lord